Big Rolls-Royce coupe’s are a thing of beauty and grandeur, but are an experience savoured only by a select few. Take the latest Phantom Coupe for example; with a sticker price that starts at £313,000 and a roadside presence to wow visiting dignitaries, it represents the pinnacle of the development of the luxury automobile. Owning a Phantom Coupe seems so far out of reach that it scarcely bares the consideration of most, however you might one day be able to pick one up for less than the cost of a new Ford Focus. Or, for whatever the equivalent of a Ford Focus will be in 2051.

 

 

As abstract a situation as that may seem, this is the exact opportunity presented by the ‘barn find’ Rolls Royce Camargue currently available via online auction with The Market.

 

 

Believe it or not, but this was the most expensive car in the world in 1983, which kind of explains why just 531 examples were produced in the eleven years from 1975-1986. You’ve just gotta look at the spec of this car, with that gold Spirit of Ecstasy and the cream and red leather trim, and marvel at how imposing it must have looked parked in Mayfair all those years ago. Oh, how the mighty have fallen – have a look as past auction results below.

 

The Market are suggesting a guide price of around £17-20,000 for this shabby but original and impressively complete example, which presents a handful of rather interesting opportunities for the savvy buyer/restorer. The first scenario is that it enables a rather low entry point into the otherwise exclusive world of Rolls-Royce Coupes. Have you just retired and are looking for a project? Put in the hard yards at your leisure, and in five or ten years you’ll have a collectable showpiece to be justifiably proud of.

 

Or are you a collector with a little more cash to spend? Splash out on a lavish restoration and the result will be nothing short of spectacular (we’re picturing this example in a deep gunmetal grey, to really make that original red and cream leather pop). The polarising looks of the Camargue have kept values low for all these years, but time heals all wounds, and we are sure that those elegant Pininfarina looks will come to be viewed as distinctive and iconic as the Camargue matures into classic status. The low production numbers should help with this, too.

 

 

The cost of a decent restoration would make it unlikely to recoup the investment in the short term, but prices are slowly rising, so play the long game and we’re confident that the value will eventually catch up and justify restoration. After all, the title of World’s Most Expensive Car doesn’t come easily.

Bidding ends at 7pm on December 13, 2017. View the listing here.