1980 Rolls-Royce Camargue

The Australia-based vendor is selling his UK-based Camargue because, in a post-Brexit Covid 19 world, shipping container space is harder to find than Lord Lucan.

It’s just too difficult to get the car to Australia and rather than keep it languishing in storage for an indeterminate length of time, he’s looking to sell.

The vendor is a Bentley enthusiast and tells us that the only Rolls that’s ever really caught his eye is the Camargue. And this is a man of rare taste and refinement – he’s currently working on two Facel Vega restorations.

He bought the car at auction in the UK in 2019, did a little basic recommissioning and had some work done to make sure the driver’s door closed sweetly. Mindful of Australia’s ferocious import rules on anything potentially containing asbestos, he also renewed the exhaust manifold gaskets, brake pads and handbrake pads.

He took the car on tour to the Beaulieu ‘Autojumble’ swap meet, drove up to Oxford, visited Bicester Heritage and generally got a chance to acquaint himself with the car.

He tells us that it drives very well. Having driven it ourselves, we can attest to the truth of that assertion. It starts on the button, goes and stops with reassuring aplomb and certainty, and it has a ride quality that has to be experienced to be believed.

It wafts and shimmies like a magic carpet over the potholed unpleasantness and ‘traffic calming’ monstrosities that now litter most British roads.

We think you could run over a fairly corpulent peasant in this without even noticing.

And the peasant would probably thank you for choosing him as you progressed majestically on your way.

Overall, the car presents extremely well and is in fine condition bar a few blemishes here and there.

It has covered fewer than 1000 miles in the last 6 or 7 years, it’s been the subject of plenty of mechanical fettling over the years, and it had a bodywork makeover and respray in 2014.

It is a very good example of an extremely special car.

Quite frankly, this car is a stunning thing to behold. It challenges the vocabulary of anyone trying to describe it.

There are only so many superlatives available.

It seems unlikely that this car could ever fail to attract attention but, just to make absolutely sure it gets noticed, it comes in the splendidly vivid shade of Larkspur Blue.

The paintwork is rich and lustrous in most places but less so in others. It’s a bit of a curate’s egg – it’s good in parts. But as there’s more paint on this than a Royal Navy frigate, it’s not that surprising to find some inconsistencies in the finish here and there.

The aluminium panels are properly aligned and largely free of any dinks, dents, scuffs, folds, nicks, ripples, warps or creases.

The panel gaps and shut lines are crisp and tight.

Mercifully, the enormous doors open and close exactly as intended, which, given that they’re about the weight and size of something you’d normally find in a bank vault, is a welcome testimony to the structural integrity of the thing.

The chrome work has held up very well and is as bright and shiny as you’d like. The wheels, too, wear their years very lightly and give the car’s seemingly endless profile an extra touch of design elegance.

The tyres are definitely getting a little long in the tooth. We think that age-related sidewall degradation is probably responsible for some of the occasional steering vagueness and skittishness the car exhibits.

The lights, badging and most of the trim are pretty good.

But it’s not perfect. Nothing is.

Looked at in the right light from certain angles, there is some spidery crazing to the paintwork at the rear of the bonnet. This suggests that either the paint has ‘shrunk’ a bit since being freshly applied by Strattons in 2014, or hard water deposits have conspired to create a lunar-esque surface effect. You will no doubt form your own opinion. Either way, a decent machine polish might make a world of difference. 

There is a little bubbling in evidence at the top of the driver’s door and also in one or two places on the O/S front wheel arch. The rubber trim around the rear windscreen is a bit manky and/or loose in places. The black paint has worn off on the bonnet grilles just below the windscreen wipers. One of the headlight cleaning brushes is missing.

But that’s about it when it comes to things to complain about. Really not very much at all.

If you’re especially petite, short-sighted or in any way less than adept at route finding, we suggest that you only enter this car when equipped with a map, compass and GPS device.

You could very easily get lost in here.

We’ve never seen a car with more available leg room for the front seat occupants.

If, for whatever desperate reason, you ever need to conceal a couple of NBA basketball players in a passenger footwell, this is your car.

Pretty much everything in the gentlemen’s club-like interior is in very good condition.

All of it was designed to leave the owners and passengers of the time in no doubt that they were in the world’s most expensive and luxuriously appointed production car.

And it’s still mightily impressive today.

The blue carpets, although a little faded, are deep enough to keep your ankles warm.

The wood veneers on the dashboard and door cappings wouldn’t look out of place on a Sheraton table.

The acres of cream leather are sumptuous, inviting and cosseting.

All the uniquely Rolls Royce toggles, stops, levers, switches and buttons are as shiny and classy as the day the good folk at Crewe screwed them down.

The seats, front and back, are exquisitely comfortable.

Yes, there is some light creasing around the bolsters, but who among us could claim any different aged 41?

An ashtray (and cigar lighter) has gone missing at some point, so you’ll just have to make do with one of the 37 others dotted around the interior.

The door cards are good. The headlining is good. The inside of the boot (which looks small compared to the rest of the car but is nonetheless massive) is good.

There is some staining to the lining on the O/S C pillar and there is some superficial rust visible beneath the carpets in the boot.

The electric windows have lost a bit of urgency over the years and now set about their ascent and descent at a decidedly glacial pace.

The undersides of the car don’t raise any eyebrows or prompt a tut. Everything looks solid, possessed of the right amount of structural integrity, and in keeping with a vehicle that’s been well looked after throughout its life and barely used in recent years.

Any rust appears to be of the superficial variety and the liberal coating of Waxoyl seems to have done its job with commendable diligence.

Everything in the engine bay appears to be in its right and proper place.

This car comes with a fully stamped service book (and continuation service book).

It was the subject of a major mechanical overhaul in 2002, courtesy of The Bentley Service Centre. In 2014, it had its bodywork sorted out and resprayed by Strattons.

Yes, these expensive episodes of mechanical and aesthetic attention were quite a while ago, but bear in mind that the car has covered about 8,000 miles in total since 2002.

Also, it’s been maintained, sorted, fettled, serviced and generally very well looked after before and after these dates.

There are bills, invoices and receipts for most of this work included with the car.

It also comes with Rolls Royce’s original build sheet notes, which make for fascinating reading. You begin to understand why they took 6 months to build and were so eye-wateringly expensive.

It has the original Camargue handbooks and an MoT certificate which is valid until 2.8.22.

This 1980 Rolls Royce Camargue is undeniably striking and arguably beautiful in its own unique, unconventional, non-conformist way.

It is also as rare as wisdom teeth on a particularly endangered breed of hen.

You’ll be a long time waiting to find it parked next to another one at Waitrose.

It seems to us to be a car that’s in remarkably good condition for its mileage, let alone its age.

And we’re struggling to think of anything we’ve driven which conveys a greater sense of occasion.

It’s more than just a special car.

It’s a car that will never fail to make you feel special whenever you drive it.

We’re confident to offer it for auction with an estimate of £25,000 to £35,000.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon. Our offices are open Mon-Fri 9.00am to 5.00pm. To arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions'.