Karmann Ghias are always controversial when we feature them on Barn Finds. To some, they offer an attractive body with the simplicity of Beetle mechanical components; sort of a poor man’s Porsche 356. Others can’t get past the plebian origins of the Beetle and just don’t see the styling as aggressive enough for their tastes. Take a good look at this behind the shed find and let us know what side you fall on in the comments! It’s located in Elkhart, Indiana and is offered for sale here on eBay, with an opening bid of just 99 cents. Of course, there’s a higher reserve than that!
The seller shows the car in several states; we’re not sure which is current, but we do know the engine is currently out of the car and disassembled for rebuilding. One interesting point is that the seller is pretty sure the car is a 1968, but the title says 1970. I’ve run into something similar before with a Triumph Italia that spent two years on a dealer’s lot before selling and it was titled as the year it was sold, so this may be a similar case. It might be worth checking on, though. You can see both dents and rust from this shot, but the little Ghia is still basically solid.
It looks a little better on this side. Does anyone know if they came two-tone originally? I hadn’t seen one and wasn’t able to confirm the fact by searching the internet.
I’m guessing the nose has been hit in the past, based on the mangled driver’s side grille, missing passenger side grille and ill-fitting hood, as well as the totally different shine on the two headlight trim rings. However, this shot is here more to show the hole above the driver’s side headlight. I wouldn’t want to leave that one for too long.
Apart from the usual split seats and dash, the interior doesn’t look bad, and the seller assures us that the pan is in good condition. The semi-automatic transmission is unfortunate, though, as I haven’t heard much good about it (although I’ve never driven one). Any Barn Finds readers with experience that can share with us in the comments?
The great thing is that reproduction parts are plentiful and inexpensive for Ghias. Since it’s doubtful that the engine is original, I would probably take the next step and install a manual transmission, unless you folks can convince me otherwise. So is this the Ghia for you? And who can tell me more about the semi automatic?
Source: barnfinds.com
