Facel Vega Facel II -American engine quality and European body of a car

In 1950s Daninos who had built bodies for Pancard, Simca and Ford decided to produce his own car. The idea was  to build a very luxurious vehicle, recalling the times of Hispano Suiza, Delage and Delahaye.  The quality had to be perfect and the fastidious motorist had everything he wanted. The first FacelVega came from the factory in Colombes, not far from Paris, in 1954. The car stood on a beautiful tube chassis and was powered by the engine and gearbox of the American De Soto.
   For the first time the qualities of the American engine were combined with the gracious lines of a European body by Daninos. This would be done later by Iso Rivolta, Jensen, Monteverdi and others. After building of about 350 cars, the FacelVega HK500 appeared on the market in 1958. This model was the most popular Facel. Its successor, the Facel II, had a still more beautiful body. The stronger 382.5 cu. in. V8 engine from Chrysler had an output of 355 hp/4,800 rpm. For an extra charge, the Facel II could even be delivered with a 390-hp engine, which Chrysler custom-made for the California police. In this case, the engine was equipped with two four-barrel Carter carburetors.  Most cars were geared by an automatic Torque ­Flite gearbox from Chrysler. But enthusiasts could instead have a completely synchronized four-speed gearbox from Pont-Mousson. The Facel II  had a tube chassis. The car was braked by four Dunlop disc brakes. The steering booster was part of the standard equipment. The wheels with their Rudge hubcaps could be exchanged for spoke wheels for an extra charge. The body of the Facel II is  different from that of the HK500. The roof line was lowered by 13.15 in, the glass surface and the luggage compartment were enlarged and the automatic gearbox was controlled by a centrally -mounted lever.The lower roof looked very good but it had a serious disadvantage. As the floor of the vehicle was not lowered, the sitting cushions took the rap. They became thinner and thus less comfortable. Because of the larger luggage compartment, the gas tank and the spare wheel were placed farther back with. The weight distribution of the car was not very good. The Facel II was a large, heavy car. Despite its weight of 3,417 11b, it was able to accelerate in less than 10 seconds from 0 to 60 mph and its top speed was more than 149 mph. Actually, it was not a sports car, but a genuine touring car which could comfortably cover long dis­tances in a short time. The Facel II was the last large Facel Vega. Daninos was regularly criticized for having built a European car with American technology. Probably because of this: the following model, the Facellia (which was built in 1959) was equipped with a French four-cylinder engine and gearbox. But the car was not good.Although the mechanical parts of the Facellia were replaced with those of theVolvo Amazon and later by those of the Austin-Healey the name Facel was ruined and in 1964, Daninos closed his factory. For about 10 years he had built 2,938 cars. His regular clients included Pablo Picasso, Ava Gardner, Danny KayTony Curtis, Ringo Starr, Stirling Moss, MauriceTrintingant and the Dutch rally rider Maus Gatsonides.