Here are 10 used 12-cylinder bargains we found for £15k this week

Let’s kick this 12-cylinder list off with a corker. The second-gen G50 Toyota Century exudes class. Just look at the curtain and upholstery covers on this one. Bidding sits at £12,000 at the time of writing, though if that ends up surpassing our £15k budget, here’s another… if you’re willing to travel to the French commune of Maze-Milon to fetch it.

From a time when BMW’s designers were producing hit after hit, the original 8er still looks as good as anything else out there. In addition to the ‘Calypso Red’ metallic paint and electric sunroof, this one comes with the ‘M70’ 5.0-litre V12. It’s a gem of a powertrain, putting out around 300bhp and 332lb ft of torque. Just one in six cars were originally ordered with a manual ‘box, and unfortunately, this isn’t one of them. Still, you can forgive anything that has pop-up headlights.

A true titan of its era, not just because the ‘M275’ bi-turbo V12 produced a smidge over 600bhp (which made this the world’s most powerful production saloon at the time), but also thanks to the sheer amount of tech on board. From massage seats and TVs to adaptive air suspension and a fridge, this example has it all, and is yours for just £14,450. Just don't blame us when it's time for a service.

At the opposite end of the spectrum sits this DB7 Vantage. It’s had just one owner since it left the factory 21 years ago, and it shows. The interior remains as crisp as a Harvey Specter suit. With just 68,000 miles on the clock and a whole host of options included - like heated leather seats - this is V12 motoring done right. 

What if you want something with 12 cylinders, but a more gentle touch? Introducing the D4 Audi A8. This LWB example is as close to fully loaded as you could hope for, with stand-out features including heated front and rear seats, electric blinds and an illuminated centre console. But don’t be fooled: that 6.3-litre W12 still has 493bhp on tap, which means 0-62mph is dispatched in under five seconds. It might be soft and plushy, but this thing will embarrass a fair few boy racers. 

‘Flying Spur’ has got to be one of the coolest names in Planet Car, and what a car it is. The second of three W12-engined cars we've picked out after our search of the classifieds, perhaps the most amazing thing about this big Bentley is that it has just 54,000 miles on the clock. And though we do have our reservations about the beige/black interior combination, we doubt you’ll care when you’re blasting through continental Europe with 552bhp and memory foam seats to soak away life’s tensions.

We have no reservations whatsoever about this Volkswagen Phaeton’s interior, however. The jet-black upholstery and wooden trim are most exquisite, and the ‘Tarantella’ exterior only adds to the sophistication. Of the big cruisers we’ve listed, the Phaeton is one of the least powerful, producing 420bhp from its 6.0-litre nat-asp W12. But there’s one very big upshot: an asking price of less than eight grand. That’s a lot of car for the money.

The days are getting longer now, which means summer will soon be upon us. Naturally, we see that as an opportunity to justify a convertible, and if you’re going to take the plunge, why not do it with this gorgeous XJS? Its 5.3-litre V12 only puts out around 286bhp, but that’s plentiful for those top-down, warm evening drives to catch the sunset by the beach. And you’ll look effortlessly cool the whole way there and back.

The R129 SL is beginning to appreciate in value. Here you’ll find one of the few remaining SL600s within this week's budget - though it is a high-miler. In any instance, should you choose to preserve its 394bhp V12 rather than use it, the 600 works just as well as a centrepiece for your lawn. 

This one’s over budget, we know, but we think it’s OK to bend the rules for arguably the prettiest car of the Noughties. The DB9 was pivotal for Aston, not only because it introduced a fresh platform for the marque to build on, but also because it was a big sales success. It remained a linchpin in the brand’s lineup right up to its retirement in 2016, by which time an estimated 16,500 units had been shifted.