1961 Facel Vega (Facellia) project car - $80,000 Sold on BaT for $8,600!

[Leif in Calif]

A Facellia is related to a Facel Vega as a Mercedes 190SL is related a 300SL, with a corresponding price points. I remember looking at a 190SL with Ford 289 in it back about 1972.  That was a very bad idea and so is this. Looks like this car could still become a nice example of a Facellia, but that's a $+/-50K car. (More pics in ad but they aren't good)

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/d/santa-rosa-1961-facel-vega-facellia/7633263789.html

1961 Facel Vega Facellia ll Convertible Roadster. Only 320 ever made. It was made in Paris.
This is a classic, rare car that has been stored in northern California for the past 25 years.
It has less than 5000 miles on it.
We have all the parts, all the chrome pieces and all the upholstery and a bunch of extras. There's too much to list but you can see in the photos all the items we have.
The motor installed is a 350 Chevy Z28 350350 hp 4 bolt Mains, but you'll have to finish hooking it up.
The transmission has been upgraded to GM 5 speed.
We have a 12 volt Chevy Posi. Its been narrowed and has Henry axles and 456 gears.

FYI, 60 years ago these Facel Vegas were recalled from the factory because they were sold with bad four cylinder engines.
The buyers were offered a choice of engines from Volvo, Austin Healey, Sprite, Austin Martin and Chevy.
This car ended up at Alice Brooks Chevrolet on Van Ness Ave and got a small block installed Chevy in it,
I bought the car from David Ford as he was in the process of putting an original four-cylinder back in the car. He had a heart attack and died. And I bought it from his widow. It has been parked in the corner of my shop from 1993. I worked on it occasionally.
The car is black with red leather, silver hard top and original 2100 miles.
Due to illness I have to sell the car.
It’s a cherry car and the paint is excellent and so is the chrome.
Interior is excellent too.
I’m unable to complete the car so I’m selling it as a project. (415) 652-8009

Edited August 4 by Leif in Calif
sold (see edit history)

[alsancle]

This is is a perfect description: "A Facellia is related to a Facel Vega as a Mercedes 190SL is related a 300SL"

[alsancle]

This is the 300 SL version that Bonhams sold at Amelia in March.  It had the very rare 4 speed and was over the top cool.   Sadly it was also rusted and had no run in years.   Somebody paid 81K for that.   I think the subject car is worth 1/3 of that.

 

[Leif in Calif]

My friend the Facellia owner pointed out lots of mis-information in this ad. He says over a thousand were produced and there was no such thing as a recall in this period. The original engines were repaired by the factory to start and then most were converted to Volvo. The Chevy V8 must be significantly heavier than the original and about 3 times as powerful so it would take a lot of re-engineering. Here's a better picture of this model:

 

[alsancle]

Facellia  factory engine (which is why you see a small block in the subject car)

 

 

Facel Vega Factory engine:

 

 

Edited June 16, 2023 by alsancle (see edit history)

[Crusty Trucker]

7 hours ago, Leif in Calif said:

This car ended up at Alice Brooks Chevrolet on Van Ness Ave...

 

 

More misinformation!

The dealership was ELLIS BROOKS Chevrolet, the largest Chevrolet dealer in the San Francisco Bay area and most of the west coast. It ceased selling new cars in 2008. Its incessant radio and TV commercials still ring in the heads of many folks, "See Ellis Brooks today for your Chevrolet", to the tune of "See the USA in your Chevrolet". (Apologies to Dina Shore)

 

 

 

https://www.hudsonjet.hetclub.org/ellisbrooks.html

 

 

 

Edited June 17, 2023 by Crusty Trucker (see edit history)

[Leif in Calif]

1 hour ago, Crusty Trucker said:

The dealership was ELLIS BROOKS Chevrolet

Yes! I remember their ad where Ellis him self said "I'll give you five pounds of Hills Brother's Coffee if you can beat our deal". 

Not exactly "betting the ranch". 

[Fossil]

2 hours ago, Leif in Calif said:

"I'll give you five pounds of Hills Brother's Coffee if you can beat our deal". 

Would you really want to buy a car from someone who made you listen to ads like that? If you had problems with a used care you had just purchased from him he'd probably offer you a 5lb can of coffee to make it right. 

[Leif in Calif]

A real lesson in the relative value of a "project".  Damn near 10% of original (silly) asking price. 

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1961-facel-vega-facellia-4/

[1939_Buick]

4 hours ago, Leif in Calif said:

A real lesson in the relative value of a "project".  Damn near 10% of original (silly) asking price. 

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1961-facel-vega-facellia-4/

 

Far more appeal in EU.  Likely to get a Volvo engine if it goes to EU.  The trim will be important.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facel_Vega

Quote

<snip>

Famed engineers Charles Deutsch and Jean Bertin were called in to solve the issues, but it was not enough and the engine was pronounced a disaster and the Facellia with it.^[11] The updated Facellia F2 was presented at the March 1961 Geneva Motor Show. Company president, Jean Daninos having been obliged to resign in August 1961 in response to the company's financial problems, the new boss, a former oil company executive called André Belin, gave strict instructions to the after-sales department to respond to customer complaints about broken Facellia engines by replacing the units free of charge without creating "difficulties".^[12] The strategy was intended to restore confidence among the company's customer base.^[12] It would certainly have created a large hole in the income statement under the "warranty costs" heading, but it may have been too late for customer confidence.

 

Volvo engine

The troublesome powerplant was replaced with a Volvo B18 engine in the Facel III, but the damage was done. Production was stopped in 1963 and despite the vision of it being a "volume" car, only 1,100 were produced - still enough to make this Facel's highest production number. Facel lost money on every car they built, with the luxury car side of the company being supported entirely by the other work done by Facel Metallon.^{[citation needed]}

The small Facellia met with little success and the losses from this, due to strong competition at the luxury end of the market, killed off the business which closed its doors at the end of October 1964. What was, according to some, the best small Facel, the Facel 6, which used an Austin-Healey 2.8-litre engine, came too late to save the company with fewer than 30 having been produced when the financial guarantors withdrew their support.
<snip>

Edited August 4 by 1939_Buick (see edit history)

[Bloo]

On 6/16/2023 at 2:06 PM, alsancle said:

Facellia  factory engine (which is why you see a small block in the subject car)

That's already been Volvoed.