Here is a French car brand that has been somewhat forgotten, Facel Vega. And this is somewhat normal given the short existence of the brand and the few cars produced (approximately 2,900 cars). During the Bonmont Sale, Bonhams will offering up this stunning 1964 Facel Vega Facel II Coupé with an estimated price of $US 180,000.

"The HK500 was the most interesting car we ever made but the Facel II was the best. It was totally elegant." – Jean Daninos, founder of FACEL (source : Bonhams.com)

If you want to see some of the cars sold during this sale on June 20th, here's a follow-up :

Model	Estimated Price	Post
Lamborghini Urraco P300 Coupé	$US 150,000	More

History of Facel Vega II

First the story behind Forges et Ateliers de Construction d’Eure et de Loire aka Facel Vega, it was founded in 1938 as manufacturer of steel furniture, especially machine tools for the aircraft industry. After World War II, in 1945, Facel began to build car bodies for Simca, Ford, Panhard and Delahaye thanks to Jean Daninos (1906-2001). In 1954, the first model was introduced during Paris Salon, the Vega, a luxurious four seater with a 180 hp DeSoto Hemi engine.

The Facel Vega Facel II was produced between 1962 and 1964. It should be the car that would save the company from bankruptcy. But it wasn't the case... Only 182 examples were produced.

The Facel II was very expensive (same price as a Rolls-Royce) but as stylish and luxurious with high performance, many stars or racing drivers bought one including Tony Curtis, Ringo Starr, Sir Stirling Moss...

Very elegant car and powerful, Facel advertised the car as "The Fastest 4-seater Coupé in the World".

This example was built in 1964 for the North America market. Purchased in 1969 in US, the Facel II remained in the hands of the same owner until 2005.

Specification

The Facel II is equipped with a 6.3 litre Chrysler Typhoon V8 engine producing 335 hp. With a four-speed manual gearbox, the car could reach 245 kmh / 150 mph. With these performances, the magazine Sports Car Graphic described it as a "luxurious brute" 😀.