1964 | Facel Vega Facel III

Facel Vega Story

The Facels were already more expensive before they even hit the streets. Only the best and most expensive that the market had to offer at the time was purchased. The manual 4-speed gearbox came from Pont-à-Mousson, the clutch from Borg & Beck, the steering from Gemmer, the rear rigid axle from Salisbury. Components that made the Facel Vega almost twice as expensive in England as a comparable Jaguar; you could have bought a nice little house in the City of London for the same money.

Fasel's car showroom was located on Avenue Georges V. The prices in this area were absurd.

But Monsieur Daninos liked things classy - and his customers certainly did too. Potentates such as the Shah of Persia and the Moroccan King Hassan II crowded around the Facel Vega models on Avenue Georges V. Racing driver Stirling Moss also had two Facel Vegas, and actress Ava Gardner bought three of them there. Others: Pablo Picasso, Joan Collins, Tony Curtis, Christian Dior, Herbert von Karajan, Ringo from the Beatles, Sinatra, François Truffaut, Maurice Trintignant, Catherine Deneuve, Louis Malle, Peter Fonda, Dean Martin, Porfirio Rubirosa, Jean-Pierre Guerlain, Guy Laroche, Etceterini, Grace Kelly Princess of Monaco. It almost seems as if the Facel only had famous owners.

And when you look at the performance, you quickly realize the fascination that such a French car exerted on its noble clientele. It ran from 0 to 100 km/h in 8.6 seconds, a Ferrari 250 GT and a Mercedes 300 SL needed 9 seconds, and an Aston Martin DB4 even needed 10. In 1959, Facellia had designed its own 4-cylinder engine with 1.6 liters of displacement and 115 hp. But the pistons jammed because the compression was too high. The engine was built in just two years, too little time for Daninos, trials and extensive test drives.

The Facellia's warranty on 300 engines forced Jean Daninos to resign in 1961 - and the brand finally went bankrupt in 1964.

The Facel III (1963/64) with a new design and Volvo four-cylinder engine also failed to make the change. After the experience with Facellia, nobody wanted to buy Facel Vega vehicles anymore.

What is really astonishing is that the prices for the Facel Vega have not (yet) risen to absurd levels. Only rarely is one of these French wonders traded for more than 350,000 dollars - a bargain compared to the mass-produced Ferraris and mundane Aston Martins Its successor, the Facel Ill, had overcome all the inconsistencies and today, with its Volvo engine, is one of the rarest Facel Vega vehicles, especially the few beautiful, elegant convertibles.

This model was equipped with the four-cylinder in-line engine of the Volvo P1800 with a displacement of 1780 cm3. The Volvo B18 engine in the Facel Ill developed 108 hp (79 kW) and was coupled with a four-speed gearbox, supplied with overdrive. Main headlights supplied by Marchal-Mégalux, radiator grille in the style of the Facel II, The Facel III Coupe was built 624 times, of which only 192 were convertibles, currently 8 convertibles are known.

Petrol engine 1.8 I 79 KW. Length 4120 mm, width 1580, height 1290, wheelbase 2450, curb weight 1060 kg. Production period 1963-1964, genuine leather interior.