The Bentley Arnage was for a good period of time the only Bentley model in production. Being the only model, the Arnage had to have a luxury option, a performance option, and a long wheelbase option which was the 2004 Arnage RL. The 2004 Bentley Arnage RL was the last Arnage before still using the original design from 1998 when the model first came out. That makes the 2004 model year very special as it’s the youngest Arnage RL you can buy today. And with its 6.75 liter, twin-turbocharged V8 pulled from the Arnage R, you won't be disappointed with it even today when it comes to performance. And when it comes to luxury, even less so given that the Arnage RL was the pinnacle back in 2004. The Arnage RL with its extra length and legroom was so special in fact that armored modifications were offered from the factory. That's enough proof of just how grandiose the 2004 Arnage RL is. Naturally, its price was astronomical back in 2004, but today, it's somewhat of a bargain. That said, not many people are willing to part ways with their RL so it can be difficult finding one. But every once in a while they do pop up here at Exotic Car Trader so if you are after one, keep up to date with our new entries. Now, let's uncover more interesting details about the 2004 Arnage RL.
Bentley has always had at least two models on offer, or at least two models that are substantially different in some way. However, during the unstable times in the nineties, Bentley was limited to one model only as developing a new one was way out of its budget. The Arnage was then the last Bentley made solely by Bentley before VW acquired the brand. And even though the Arnage used a BMW engine for a short period, the 2004 Arnage RL uses the original Bentley V8 and that's the revised version with two turbochargers. The older Red Label Arnage also used a twin turbocharger setup and the model is often confused with the Arnage RL. Interestingly, Bentley sold only 326 Arnage RL's and that includes the facelifted version which was in production until 2009. That means there are likely no more than 100 2003-2004 Arnage RLs sold. That makes it one of the rarest Bentley models ever, so it's not surprising that they don't come up for sale that often.
The front part of the 2004 Arnage RL interior is pretty much the same as it is in the standard R. That means everything is covered in leather and wood, plus five beautiful gauges in the middle of the dashboard. The 2004 Arnage RL also has a foldable navigation screen that sits on top of the dashboard. We can't say where the unit comes from but from the looks of it, it's likely an early VW unit. Such an old navigation system is more than obsolete today, but it's an interesting conversation piece. Now, the rear of the Arnage RL is what customers paid extra for. The rear seats in virtually all 2004 Arnage RLs are two captain chairs instead of a bench. Between the seats is a wine cooler, and the two seats are fully adjustable. The rear passengers also get their own AC vents and a foldable footrest under the front seats. But again, each 2004 Arnage RL went through Mulliner and the interior is where virtually all customizations happened so it's difficult to say what you can expect from each example. For example, some have integrated laptops, some have computers, some have tables, and some even printers.
Long-wheelbase models were nothing new even back in 2004 as BMW, Mercedes, Jaguar, Rolls Royce, and even Audi made their own. And they are even less of a surprise today as we can find even the smallest sedans with long wheelbases in China like the C Class or Audi A4. But what differentiates the Arnage RL from all of those is the fact that Bentley used the so-called double-cut technique to stretch the wheelbase. That means both the front and rear doors are longer than before which helps keep the overall proportions the same instead of having a drooping rear. That's pretty special as the process is substantially more complicated. It also means that differentiating the Arnage RL from the R is somewhat difficult. The easiest way to do it is to check the distance between the rear door and the rear wheels. On the standard Arnage, the entire rear door curves around the rear wheels while in the Arnage RL, the end of the rear door is almost vertical. Apart from that, the 2004 Arnage RL is virtually identical to the standard R, but every RL is bespoke and goes through the Mulliner customization process so each one is unique in some way or another when it comes to the exterior.
Unlike Rolls Royce cars, Bentley has always had a sporting edge on top of all the luxury thanks to its constant involvement in racing. The 2004 Arnage RL, however, has nothing sporty about it, apart from a massive engine under the hood. The 6.75-liter twin-turbocharged V8 makes 400 horsepower and an impressive 616 lb-ft of torque. That was an earth-moving amount of torque back in 2004 and it helped push the standard Arnage R to 60 in 6.6 seconds. While that doesn't sound all that impressive, it does once we mention that the standard R weighs 2.5 tons. The 2004 Arnage RL weighs 2,654 kg or 5,853 lbs so you can only expect it to be slower in every way. If you are after a fast Arnage, there are better versions out there. Still, it's good to know that the powertrain in the Arnage RL can more than handle its weight, plus the 2004 Arnage RL has the revised 6.75 engine that doesn't share those common head gasket failures of older models.
The standard Arnage R and the top-of-the-line Arnage T models go for around $25,000 to $35,000 depending on the mileage and overall condition. But what a fair price is for a 2004 Arnage RL is virtually impossible to say. With such a small production run, we have only managed to find one that was sold in recent years, and the price isn't disclosed. With nothing but guesswork, we can only estimate that a nice example with low miles would be at least $50,000 or more. That's considering the prices of short-wheelbase models and the fact that less than 100 were made if not less than 50. That said, you can take our Exotic Car Trader search engine for a drive periodically because you never know when one can come up. On the other hand, we almost always have at least one short wheelbase Arnage on offer.
The 2004 Arnage RL and the Arnage R were always overlooked after the Arnage T came out with its 450 horsepower and supercar performance. But today, the Arnage R is virtually just as good, if not better as it's more comfortable and if we keep moving in that direction, the Arnage RL is the king of the hill. Unfortunately, finding one is a nearly impossible task. That said, Exotic Car Trader always has the best luxury cars ever made and we are sure you will find one that suits you. Once you do, Exotic Car Trader will handle everything for you including escrow, transport, inspections, and paperwork making it one of the most convenient ways to buy a luxury vehicle. Exotic Car Trader can also help you sell your current vehicle or trade it with one of our current customers.
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