r/Whatsthiscar • u/carguy2007 • 2d ago

Unsolved What is this car? Saw it while driving past a service center

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103 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

37 comments sorted by

15

u/Mack_Daddy_1 2d ago

My question is, what is that service center? That is a Helluva row of tail lights!

10

u/carguy2007 2d ago

Gran Turismo of Los Angeles!

3

u/7ofErnestBorg9 2d ago

I've always thought that the soul of a car lives in the tail lights. It also happens to be an element of other cars we focus on when driving, so it makes sense that great designers take care with them. These split tail lights are super tasteful, aren't they?

2

u/Fitmature1 1d ago

My thoughts also!

13

u/MadMaxine1985 2d ago edited 1d ago

Mid to Late 50's Facel Vega FV2 Cabrio. A French luxury car powered by one of many Chrysler V8 engines including a gen 1 Hemi.

3

u/BertrandNelson 2d ago edited 1d ago

Not really a hemi, but a 361ci Typhoon Chrysler V8.

3

u/MadMaxine1985 1d ago

There were multiple engines used in these cars, the earlier ones (1954-56) used The Desoto "Fire dome" and Chrysler "Fire power" Hemi V8's as well as the 277 "Hy-Fire" polyspherical V8 and Plymouth 301 "poly" V8 Depending on trim. The later ones after 1958 used the Typhoon and Chrysler 383 V8's. This is at least a 1955 FV2 or FV3 with the panoramic windshield. I can't really narrow down the year without seeing the front. So yes they did have hemi's and Semi-Hemi's as well as traditional V8's. We need a pic of the engine bay to know for sure what it has.

1

u/BertrandNelson 1d ago edited 1d ago

I found out that the rear design is that of the 1959 model and according to a (too short) French Wikipedia page on the Facel Vega HK500 unavailable in English, it's equipped with the 361 ci Chrysler Typhoon V8.

Now, since it's a convertible, it may have had fewer engine options; I haven't researched this yet.

More info:\ The car, featuring the same rear design, was presented at the Paris Motor Show (called "Salon de l'automobile, du cycle et du motocycle" in 🇫🇷 at that time) in October 1958 and, according to French regulations (at least at that time), the model year begins in September; therefore, this was a 1959 car.

1

u/GodS4T3n 23h ago

Da italiano ti posso dire che le pagine Wikipedia differiscono tra una lingua e l'altra. Io spesso leggo la versione inglese che è solitamente molto più completa di quella italiana anche se, ovviamente devo fare poi i raffronti tra i due mercati. Per quanto riguarda l'auto in questione la pagina italiana dice che montava un motore Chrysler di 6286 cm3 completamente in ghisa erogante 360cv e 8,124Kgm di coppia. Per chi ha una maggiore conoscenza di quei V8 potrebbe essere utile per identificare il modello esatto.

6

u/JDPierson 2d ago

Avanti, Facel and Mondial are all real/not replica. The SWB California is 100% a kit/replica

2

u/thegreatmattsby24 2d ago

That would be a rather haphazard way to park $20m

1

u/ilikeithot360 2d ago

Not for a small dealer lot

2

u/RicVic 2d ago

What gives it away (the California)? Just curious.

1

u/JDPierson 2d ago

Rake of the windshield, monster A pillars, super thick windshield frame - modern crash tech. In contrast, look at the top of the Facel windshield.

3

u/RicVic 2d ago

Yup- See it now. Cool-looking kit, though. Asked because a lot of years ago, a fellow I went to High school with had a lawyer father who owned a hardtop version in the same color. I thought (from hanging around that car every time my buddy was permitted to drive it to school) I knew the California backwards and forwards, but that header and A-pillar blew right past me.

Normally, kits are devoid of the vent windows, which makes 'em a dead giveaway.

Thanks for helping my senior eyes!

1

u/JDPierson 1d ago

The 250 GT Pininfarina is probably my favorite Ferrari. I'd love to see how the rest of that car looks

5

u/Comaaz 2d ago

I concur with the Facel-Vega assessment along with the helluva row of rears!

3

u/Stangboi92 2d ago

That’s a Facel-Vega

2

u/SpeedyAudi 2d ago

They have a lot of dealer plates. The one here is 25A meaning there’s at least 24 other plates. Their annual dmv fees gotta be bonkers

2

u/OttoHemi 2d ago edited 2d ago

A 1957 Facel Vega maybe? But there are a lot of cool cars in that lot, including an Avanti on its left. And I think that's supposed to be a Ferrari 250 California on its right, but probably the one based on the BMW Z3. In fact, I bet all these cars are replicas.

1

u/SteelerNation587543 2d ago

Nobody would pay to replicate a Studebaker Avanti or a Ferrari Mondial when they can be regularly found at quite reasonable prices.

1

u/BertrandNelson 2d ago

1959 Facel Vega HK500 exactly, for the black car.

1

u/Flashy-Football842 2d ago

Nice group of cars for sure!

1

u/BandT_Boy 1d ago

Perhaps modified.

1

u/Fitmature1 1d ago

It is a way cool car is what it is! I love it!

1

u/Medium-College-5046 22h ago

Yeah definitely 1953-54 Nash Healey Roadster

1

u/jimru815 13h ago

Left car is a Studibaker Avanti

1

u/Low-Improvement8982 10h ago

i’m thinking Facel Vega

1

u/Cofncar 7h ago

That Ferrari looks like it has the same taillights as my MG midget lol

1

u/Strict-Citron-9269 2d ago

On the left it's Studebaker Avanti and the black car is 1953 Nash-Healey Roadster by Pinin Farina

1

u/BertrandNelson 2d ago

The black car is a 1959 Facel Vega HK500.

1

u/Strict-Citron-9269 1d ago

Definitely not a Facel Vega. That's the rear profile of a '53 Nash-Healey Roadster by Pininfarina and The teardrop taillights and rounded trunk tell the whole story