For sale: Custom-built Bentley automobile, mint condition, just 13,000 miles, owned by a reclusive performer who used it to squire fellow pop stars to and from his private amusement park.
On Wednesday, singer Michael Jackson’s prized 2001 Bentley Arnage Red Label Turbo will go on sale to the highest bidder as part of the 33rd annual Barrett-Jackson (no relation) Classic Car Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, billed as the largest event of its kind, organizers said.
No details on the value of the luxury sedan were given, but a spokesperson for the Barrett-Jackson Auction Company said Tuesday no reserve price has been set.
It was not immediately clear whether proceeds of the sale would go to Jackson, who was listed by the auctioneers as the current owner of the car. But the entertainer reportedly faces a mounting debt and escalating legal bills related to the cost of defending himself against child molestation charges.
The automobile, customized to Jackson’s own specifications, includes such features as dual DVD players; TV reception with three flat-screen monitors; a Sony Playstation gaming system and individual airplane-style audio controls at each seat; Dolby surround-sound custom stereo and CD changer; built-in telephone and, of course, blackout tint on the windows.
About 13,600 miles are on the odometer.
The specially outfitted car was used to chauffeur an all-star lineup of recording artists to Jackson’s Neverland Valley Ranch near Santa Barbara in 2002 to record a charity single he composed, titled “What More Can I Give.”
The auction company said a number of the stars recruited to join in the song and accompanying music video autographed the interior roof of the Bentley, including Beyonce Knowles, Reba McEntire, Tom Petty and Jackson himself.