Hi Guys,

I have been debating my options on how to get the Beautiful B to Sunny Florida where she will permanently reside for 2014. My options are as follows, please feel free to input and offer suggestions if you wish.

The Mileage for the trip is about 1,200 miles. My car has 25k on the odometer and I have had the car now for about 3 months. The trip would take place in early Jan 2014 so I would be leaving frigid MD and heading to sunny FL. The one thing that concerns me is that I dont know the major service history on the car only that it had the oil changed from Bentley on time. The goal is once arrived in FL Bentley will handle her and get her up to date. No lights on and she drives, starts up and has no issues what-so-ever.

On one hand I love the idea of the adventure of driving her myself and taking my time while stopping at nice hotels but dont like the idea of the mileage and potential damage that could occur. The other thing is once I leave the VA area there is no B dealer until Florida however the hauler in option 2 said he travels 95 twice a week so worse case is I break down and have him haul to B.The convenience of throwing her on a train or truck is also nice so you can see the dilemma.

Option 1 - Auto Train via Amtrak. Price is around 800$ for a one way trip. I would drive around 2 hours to Lorton VA and then ride the train for around 18 hours to Sanford/Orlando Florida then drive to South Florida for another 3 hours. This is a nice option as I get a good bit of driving time with her while still not absorbing all the major mileage. 18 hours seems long on the train but the reviews are not so bad and most enjoyed the time.

Option 2 - Auto Hauler - I could hire a hauler to hand deliver her to B of West Palm and I fly down to meet her. Definitely the easiest option but in the back of my head I feel I am missing out on a great drive and experience. Cost for this is around 1k for the haul and my flight to SOFL. This particular hauler was recommend by B of West Palm and is familiar with these cars.

Option 3 - Driver her! This really gets me excited and nervous at the same time. I get nervous thinking about a catastrophic failure on the way and also dont like the mileage and potential damage but I am fairly young (35) and dont know how many other road trips I could take like this. I would be driving solo for the trip and would not try to make it in one shot. I would stop at a hotel most likely or 2 if needed.

With that said.... What would you guys do?

 

Make it a fun road trip for a few days and drive her. It is a Grand Touring automobile

 

Well E....I am in a similar situation. I purchased a new GTC out of New Jersey (Palmyra) and had to get a 2013 Cayenne GTS up there for the trade. This all transpired Monday before Thanksgiving. I wanted to drive up/drive back but I was limited to Fri/Sat/Sun to get this done. A transporter quoted approx. $3500 for the "round trip" door to door of which I was to pay $2000. Patience is NOT one of my commonly practiced virtues and the I was in the grips of a severe Bentley fever and nearing convulsions. I even considered shipping the trade up for safety/mileage reasons and doing the fly and drive back (the Rolodex in my head spinning furiously at all the options). Ultimately my wife, whom exercises better judgement than I, calmed me down and said the man upstairs may be trying to give me a lesson in patience and delayed gratification...the nerve of her. So now I wait for the new arrival sometime next week. To make a short story long...If I had the time I would drive it down myself. I don't care about the mileage as this car will be far from a garage queen and will be my wife's daily driver. From what I have gleaned from Bentley owners and from this site I would place reliability concers very low on my list of factors to consider in your decision. Good motoring!

Robin

 

Having owned at least one of every exotic brand, I bought an 05 BCGT about 2.5 years ago. After doing a safety check and a full 40K service, my wife and I drove it from Toronto, Ontario to the East coast via Quebec, Vermont, New York. We put about 2500 miles on the car and never...and I mean NEVER have I enjoyed a driving holiday like this one. These cars are meant for the open road. I usually drove about 75-80 mph and even got remarkably good fuel mileage. I knew there was a B dealer in Montreal and another one in Boston, but the car never missed a beat. I encourage you to drive the car to Florida. You will really appreciate why these Grand Touring cars cost so much.

 

Thank you so much for the input and my decision is starting to get a bit more clear now My wife and I took the B up to Atlantic City a couple weekends ago and it was an absolutely wonderful experience and I was very comfortable so I think I will make the drive. I am an internet geek at heart and by trade so maybe I will document the experience via a blog of some sorts. Thanks again!!

 

I know you have decided to drive and so I will say good choice. Stop worrying about miles and risk and enjoy the ride.

 

you only live once

enjoy the trip, do some planning so you see some nice sights, stay at nice places, make it memorable

maybe take a friend than hang out in fl for a few days

 

Don't forget about Bentley High Point in NC. I've done many similar trips up/down the east coast and would often stop there to get the car serviced or just checked out. Great dealership with very friendly service department. The way we were packed up they often wondered why we didn't have a suburban instead!

The auto train is definitely fun and a unique experience. Fun (at least different) to travel by train although passing derailed cars off the same tracks was a little unnerving. Be prepared to be hot... the average age on the train is something like 80+ including the babies! The price can easily be justified by the miles not put on the car

Driving would be fun, but the weather might be a little unpredictable then, especially up "north"... even just rain would suck for hours on end.

I would think about the auto train as a nice mix of the two, but driving sure could be fun if the weather was nice. Maybe stop at Bentley High point to have it looked over on the way if you decide to drive and are nervous?

 

Dealership in Tyson corner va, highpoint Nc , charlotte Nc, (brand new) then Bentley Atlanta.and many in Florida. These cars are rock solid and you will not have a problem.. maybe the parking brake light, however if that happens just pull over when you can and engage then disengage keep on rolling.

 

I had no idea that I would be passing so many B service centers, great news and thanks so much. I was just telling my wife this morning I made my mind to take the trip, now she wants to join. I dont know if that is good news or bad haha. Thanks again!

 

It's both, and you already knew that.

 

Enterpriser, I bet all will be fine and you'll not need any servicing. Remember carrying around a toolbox and fuses in the B during the first few months of having her here. My experience with other <cough> Italian <cough> exotics taught me to always carry tools if you know what I mean. Took the tools out of the B months later as all they did was take up space and she has been great all this time. Always got me the destination safe and sound.


In fact don't think we've seen a post here where their B let them down, including one guy who successfully did the Bull Run or some such. The B might be an exotic, yet has all the positive attributes minus many of the usual <cough> experiences <cough> we usually associate with such automobiles. Have a great drive and see all the wonderful sights along the way

 

The only tools I carry in the B are a cell phone and a credit card.

In truth I carry a jacket and hat for when it chills a tad on the top down rides and i don't want to put up the roof yet.

 

Have you ever watched the movie "Yes Man?" It was cr*p but the book was fantastic.

The concept still applies. If you got getting excited about driving her, then the answer must be yes, go for it!