By Jay Hirsch
Founded in 1939 by Jean Daninos, Facel was a metal-stamping company that built bodies for Panhard, Simca and Delahaye. Facel is short for “Forges at Atliers de Construction d’Eture-et-Loir.” In English it means forge and construction workshop of the department Eure-et-Loir.
In 1954 the company decided to go into production of its own cars. The first models made were a two-door, pillarless coupe and a convertible. Chrysler V-8 engines were used. The car was called the FVS — Facel Vega Sport — and were marketed to “the owner of grand touring cars.” The cars were French built with tubular frames. The Facels also had American Influences in the subtle tail fins, the use of chrome, and available automatic transmission, power windows, air-conditioning, and wrap-around windshield
The interest and success of the two-door was not lost on Daninos, and in 1958 a large four-door, pillarless model named the Excellence was introduced. The rear doors were “suicide”-type doors, as the doors opened towards the rear of the car for ease of entry and also to make a design statement. Unlike most four-door, pillarless cars there was no post between the front and rear passenger compartments. The 1957–1958 Eldorado Brougham had the same design, as did many Lancias from the late 1930s into the early 1960s.
The interior of all Facels were outfitted in soft, supple leather with a faux wood grained dash. This was not done out of cost savings but as a design element and ease of maintenance. No wood to worry about over the years
The first 1958 Facels had the Chrysler 392 Hemi. V-8. By the time the Excellence was into full production, the 392 Hemi was replaced in 1959 with the Wedge V-8. Only seven Excellence vehicles were built with the Hemi V-8 out of a total of 154 built.
The Facel seen here was bought by its owner, Fred Kanter, in 1971. It is one of 17 Facels that Fred had in his collection. The Excellence has power steering, power brakes, Torque-Flite push-botton transmission, wool carpet, power windows, reclining front passenger seat, air-conditioning, AM/FM radio, and a sunroof. The bumpers are stainless steel, and the lower moulding on the side of the car is aluminum. With its re-worked 383 V-8 Chrysler V-8, top speed was 125 mph. With a height of only 55 inches, the Facel was all European, and that 124-inch wheelbase made for a smooth American ride
It was in October 2017 that Fred Kanter decided that the Facel needed to be brought back to all its 1961 glory. If the name Fred Kanter seems familiar, he and his brother Dan own and operate Kanter Auto, one of the world’s largest supplier of vintage auto parts. The restoration was done at Kanter Auto Restoration, part of Kanter Auto.
The car was stripped down to bare metal and refinished in this elegant shade of blue.
Being that all Facel Vegas were custom ordered there was no paint color that was not available. This Facel was originally green and then repainted in the late 1960s a dark red.
The new leather interior was duplicated exactly to the design of the original leather, as was the hand-painted faux-wood dash — when new, Facel Vega pointed out that the dash was hand-painted wood grain.
The speedometer is in MPH, an indication the car was sold new in the United States. In 1961 the Facel Vega Excellenc cost $12,800. The two-door FVS was $9,750. The original 7.60 x 15 tires have been replaced with 235/70 x 15 radial tires. Although Fred is a fan of white-wall tires, in all the photos of Facels from 1954 to 1964, very few had white-wall tires. To Fred the white-wall tires distracted from the design of the car. Black-wall tires, to Fred, were the spirit of the car — elegant, sporty, and european in style. In June 2018 the restoration of the Excellence was completed as seen here,
At a cost of $12,800 for a car in the early 1960s there was not enough demand to keep Facel alive, and 1964 was the final year of production.
One of the ads for the Facel Vega said: “For The Few Who Own the Finest.” •
