Life is filled with highs and lows. If not for one you can't appreciate the other. Tuesday started out as uneventful as any other day except this one had the makings of being a very memorable one from the onset. Bill ( Stu-d- baker ) picked me up at my house at 5:30 am for a trip to pick up a recently purchased car. It was a relief to see Bill fully clothed as he said he likes to drive naked. Our destination was Dousman ,Wisconsin and a meeting with a fellow HAMBer. Things were going rather smoothly at about 7:15 we were nearing Mliwaukee when my cell phone rang. My daughter Jen called to tell me someone had thrown several landscaping blocks through the front service doors at the shop and one struck the rear glass and body of my Facel Vega causing some significant damage. I cant begin to tell you how bad this felt . We have put 3 1/2 years inte restoring this car and its rarity complicates making this repair a speedy one to make the "Geneva Concours " on the 24 th. I know this isnt a HAMB friendly car but its part of todays story. Jen said she would get things settled on her side and would be in touch if any thing else arose. The rest of the drive was relatively silent until we started to argue with the GPS system. It seems they work better in urban areas and it had no record of the small rural roads we needed to find. As luck would have it we stopped a local county sheriff ( Usually the other way around ) and he even was stumped for a while . So a quick call to John solved the issue.John's place is a little challenging but we dont give up easily. Once we entered the driveway my spirts were lifted. There she was. Ina was awaiting her trip to Chicago. John and I discussed Ina at length before the purchase . I'll be posting a blog so everyone can follow Ina's journey back to health. When I first saw her at the " Cheaterama " in August of 2006 I was ready to make the deal the only issue was I was in the midproject on the Facel and funds werent really available. Thanks to all for their advise and counsel in the last couple of weeks . I promise not to bore everybody at breakfast with the details. A big Thank You to Bill for his help . Who says you cant have this much fun with your clothes on. Well we're all back home safe and sound . It was one of those days we wont soon forget.
At least they didn't break the glass! I've always liked Facel Vegas and wanted to buy one when they were cheap years ago. Good luck with the repairs.
WTF??!! I'm sorry to hear that Larry. Why would some piece of shit do something like that?? Jonnycola sold his Valley Customs car? Suprising, but it couldn't be in any better hands! Can't wait to see how you bring her back to glory.
The Facel Vega is HAMB friendly indeed... A wonderful car and it hurts to see what happened. Bastards. As you already might know no car glass is impossible to get, with a template they can be reproduced in Finland. Its great to see that the Lincoln has come to good hands. I've seen it on E-bay two times and the second time it looked a bit rougher than the first. I'll really be looking forward to see it during the restoration to its former glory.
All the lights and cameras in the world will not stop some asshole/assholes (probably kids) from rock throwing destruction . They were out to destroy something and not steal anything. They were probably there for 6 seconds total.....On another note, the Facel Vega is beautiful!
Good lord, that sucks! Some people are just too stupid and uncaring and really just need to have their asses kicked if you could get a hold of them.
Life is definitely full of ups and downs...the good news is the Facel Vega can be fixed and the even better news is you scored on the Lincoln...the best news is Karma will catch up to the punks who tossed those blocks into your shop coming soon: rodtees.com
Man that sucks about the shop..But at least you got to look at that Young good looking Johnny... And take home a valley custom... I don't know if johnny told you that we interviewed Ina last year...shes a very special lady and I'm glad that your going to take over the build...I would love to come out and Cover the story for Mad Fabricators when your done with her... Good luck.. evel
John mentioned the interview . I'd like to get a copy of the tape if possible . Can you provide a copy ?
Facel Vega not HAMB friendly??????????? It came from the factory with a Chrysler HEMI, any yours has a GREAT restoration, I like it a lot!
I owned a Facel Vega shop in the 90s. When I closed it, I sold the parts inventory to Mark Hymann in st louis mo. He may still have the stuff you need. Good luck
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