Facel Vega Excellence History

Unveiled at the Paris Auto Show in October 1956 and entering production in 1958, the Excellence was the boldest statement Facel Vega ever made. Built on an elongated FV coupé platform stretched to a 125-inch wheelbase and nearly 17.5 feet overall length, it wore tailfins, a wraparound windshield, and a pillarless greenhouse — American proportions dressed in French couture.

Power came from a succession of Chrysler V8s: the initial 392 CID (6.4 L) Hemi (360 hp) was followed by the 361 CID (5.9 L) and then the 383 CID (6.3 L) Chrysler 'Wedge' engines, all mated to either a Pont-à-Mousson four-speed manual or Chrysler TorqueFlite automatic. The pillarless body — while elegant — compromised structural rigidity, giving the Excellence a softer, less assured ride than the coupés.

At roughly $12,800 (equivalent to four Citroën DS saloons), the Excellence found very few buyers, and only 156 were ever completed across its six-year life. Production simply ran out of customers rather than ending at a defined date; the last cars were finished as the company collapsed in 1964.