1958 FACEL VEGA FVS 2

Considered the most successful brand of the century, Facel automobiles’ handmade GT, the FVS, is now a model with very few examples left in the world. Facel SA’s French founder and creator Jean Daninos used the high profits from the production of military vehicle bodies to started manufacture Simca, Panhard, Delahaye and Ford Comete bodies and eventually decided to produce his own car. He placed a three-passenger coupe body on a Bentley chassis and introduced it at the 1951 Paris Motor Show. Though it received great interest, only six examples of this automobile were manufactured and displayed with the name Vega FV in 1954.

Instead of the highly expensive Bentley chassis, for economy the first Facel Vega utilized a durable, channel section chassis reinforced with 3.5 inch members designed by former racer Lance Macklin. He equipped this chassis with the most powerful V8 of the time, the 175 bhp, 276 cu.in. named “Typhoon” engine used by Chrysler Corporation in 1954-1955 for its De Soto cars.

After a decision to stop using Facel as the brand name in 1956, the Facel Vega brand was introduced. With its perfectly-joined body panels, highly-precise doors and excellent workmanship, the Facel Vega was an astonishing automobile. In 1958, only 130 of these FVS 2 models, seen here, were produced. New power plants were introduced, using Chrysler’s newest 383 cu.in. and 350 bhp Hemi V8 engines. The 1958 Facel Vega was able to reach 140 mph.