4 replies to this topic

[Yves]

While looking for old french car makers, I discovered this web page on a project I heard about in that time :

http://www.facel-veg...o.fr/lemans.htm

Here is a quick translation :

"Le Mans" prototype

Even if Jean Daninos (the creator of Facel Vega) don't think it's necessary to participate to car racing to prove the car's quality, he suggest to study a mid-engine Facel Vega for the 24H 1964-1965, related to the problem at the launch of the Facellia [/i](the small coupé with an home made engine which was very, very unreliable not yo say worse. It was later replaced by a Volvo engine)
He asked to the lab to see how to build a car based on a Chysler V8 and specially developped for the 24 hours race. Chrysler accepted to loan 5 engines of 6400 cc, 465 cv at 6200tr/mn. A gear box has been designed by Valério Colotti and the prototype delivered to Facel.

This car was equiped with wheel and disc brakes specially designed by Dunlop and delivered to Facel. The top speed was estimated to be 330 km/h.

Close to be finished (80%), the protopype has been put back in pieces and engines, gearboxes and other elements returned to their supliers.


As you can see, a nice car :



Y.

[dretceterini]

I know nothing about this project and find it very interesting. The car seems to have a shape similar to a Lamborghini Miura!

[ray b]

MY Dad had a HK-500 1958 with the 392 hemi,and a Facel-2 with a 413 wedge
but I have never heard of one in a race, did they ever????

[dmj]

Facellia was introduced well before 1964-1965. Actually, by that time FV was more or less gone. So either it was planned quite a lot of time in advance either it was wrongly attributed to be "related to the problem at the launch of the Facellia". Actually, i don't see how a Chrysler engined racing car could improve public of Facellia at all... Facel had no problem with its bigger, Chrysler engined cars at all (except chassis and body flexibility of Excellence) - all problems that eventually led to demise of marque were related to lesser, Facel engineered cars (later to be replaced with Volvo and Austin-Healey units). So I doubt this could be the right way to raise its profile.

[bobbo]

Wow! Another "Might - Have - Been" to play with!

Can you imagine, say, about 1967 - 68 Le Mans, with a few of these Facels, Ferraris, Ford GT-40/Mk IV, etc., all competing in the same race? And, IIRC, there were a few Corvettes running, too.

Could have been interesting . . .

Bobbo