Vehicle Description
1967 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia Convertible
The first Karmann-Ghia was introduced in Europe in 1955 and arrived
in America as a coupe in 1956. The convertible soon followed in
1958. It cost $300 to $400 more than the coupe, but was sportier to
convertible-loving Americans, for whom it initially was built. The
slick little car was sold through 1974. Sales totaled an impressive
387,975 cars. And it could have lasted several years longer, except
that the Karmann coachworks of West Germany needed more space to
build Volkswagen's new Scirocco coupe, which lacked the
Karmann-Ghia's flair.
This is a two owner from new, purchased at Hershey Auto Mart in
Hershey, PA 22 years ago car. It is in the early throes of a
restoration, with some tack welded body panels and smaller repairs
to remediate rust. A rebuilt engine comes with this car but is
currently not installed but looks brand new! It will take some TLC,
but for an individual who views this restoration game as a labor of
love, step right up!
Exterior
All metal was carefully sandblasted, and any areas left not sound
were filled in or have a panel tack welded to them. There will be
some considerable grinding to be done on these panels, but with
some patience, skimming then sanding, it will be the curvaceous car
that Pininfarina had in mind when the pen was put to paper.
Currently there is a coating of epoxy primer to keep the rust away
while the car undergoes other tasks. It's all there body wise just
in need of some extra skills to smooth everything over. Plenty of
extra parts are also with this purchase.
Interior
For this interior and starting at the dash which has nearly been
completed, we see a nice application of quarter sawn and stained
sycamore wood. It has suffered some cracking from the drying
process but still presents well and offers a nice background for
the original VW gauges. The steering wheel is also original and
shows some pitting and dimpling on the shiny parts but has the
original Wolfsberg castle badge in its center. A radio is
installed, and the glove box lid has been left to eventually be a
contrasting and most likely body matching metal paint. New
floorboards have been installed and are now painted black but no
carpeting as of yet. White vinyl low back bomber styled buckets are
in, and are in need of a recovering, showing some of the padding
under the cracked and material missing seats. In the back is a
bench which will also need recovering and has some padding, but it
looks somewhat uncomfortable! The convertible top is all dry rotted
and the frame will need work, but it is now tucked in behind the
rear bench. Doors are all metal with no panels covering them at
this time. This is a great open palette as right now you can pick
your color and material, so put your creative cap on and upholster
away.
Drivetrain
As the consigner states the engine is not currently installed
within the confines of the car, however it is with this car and
appears totally restored. A 1500cc engine it will be, and it is fed
by a 1-barrel carburetor. When you open the rear deck lid, one can
see the bell housing for the transmission which is a 4-speed manual
transmission, not known what condition it is in.
Undercarriage
In back, on the body panels it is a bit "rough and tumble" showing
where the exterior repairs were performed, and some surface rust
has invaded on these newer unprimed surfaces underneath. From the
engine bay forward though, new floor pans, nicely painted black
with no rust can be noted. Independent suspension which has not
been restored (and may not need to be) is on all 4 corners, and
disc brakes are upfront, and drums on the rear. Also noted are
15-inch wheels with brand new tires wrapping them still with the
mold nipples all over them.
There will be some work to smooth over the exterior repaired
surfaces, and the interior is currently an open palette limited
only to your imagination. A project and it is obvious for the
learned restorer what you will be up against, but it is certainly
not a lost cause. A newly rebuilt engine will come along for the
ride to your shop or garage or shade tree, and you can begin the
transformation. A two-owner car from a desirable year due to the
federally mandated crash bumpers soon to come, it's in its purest
design form. We give you a classic VW sports car with an Italian
design influence. I don't know whether to drink a stein of
Hefeweizen or raise a glass of Montepulciano.. I know..... let's do
both then go for a cruise and enjoy the fruits of your efforts.
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 600 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,
Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia
on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is
www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914.
Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the
vehicle in person.
