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Classic Daily: 1970 VW Karmann Ghia

This 1970 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia has served the seller well as his daily driver since 2007. This, frankly, blows my mind, because any classic car used on a daily basis in my part of the world would become a rotten pile of dust in short order. It helps that the VW lives in Sonoma, California, which clearly enjoys the kind of weather we should all hope to live in someday. The Karmann Ghia is nicely presented as is, and some minor sorting could make it even better. Find it here on craigslist for $6,900.

Thanks to Barn Finds reader local_sheriff for the find. To me, this is one of the best views of a Karmann Ghia, as you get the full impact of the body’s many curves and those gorgeous chrome bumpers with overriders. I love seeing these on their factory steel wheels with polished hubcaps, too, and this example looks extremely straight up and down the sides. The seller does note it comes with a salvage title, but he can find no evidence of major accident repair, and suspects it received this branding due to theft-related issue in the past.

That’s actually exactly what happened with my 1995 BMW M3 that I purchased out of California, as it, too, had a salvage title because the original seats were stolen out of it. Speaking of seats, a thief would be doing the next owner a favor if they yanked these buckets out of the coupe, as the driver’s seat needs re-doing and you may as well get the passenger side done at the same time. The KG retains its original wood-look dash applique, but the seller recommends that it, and the door panels, be replaced or restored.

The seller notes the engine is the correct 1600cc unit, but it’s hard to discern whether “correct” means “numbers matching.” Still, it obviously runs well enough to use daily and the manual gearbox is said to shift smoothly through the gears. The seller notes that the original color was red but it has been repainted; more importantly, he doesn’t see any rot-through or other corrosion on the vulnerable floor panels. This has the look and feel of a car that could present quite nicely with some minor elbow grease; anyone agree?

Comments

  1. Avatar JudoJohn

    I agree, this could be a decent driver/looker with a little work. Not sure if the salvage title would be an issue or not. Haggerty values a condition 3 (good) at $12,400 and a condition 4 (fair) at $6400. A bit overpriced, IMHO. However, it’s worth what a person is willing to pay. If it were closer to me, I’d go look at it.

    Like 6
    • Avatar Paul Hamilton

      Factory accessories features for windows, may not have been in the owners, restorer or in the best interest of a long term results of the car as a finished product…
      Without knowing the details, I would have, installed, likewise…as seen…!

      Like 0
  2. Avatar H5mind

    I doubt anyone could take a crunchy one and turn it into this for the difference in price. “Rust Free” is the gift that keeps on giving foe classic car enjoyment.

    Like 11
  3. Avatar bobhess Member

    Nice car.

    Like 1
  4. Avatar Doone

    Those bumpers look pre 70.

    Like 1
  5. Avatar Little_Cars

    Shouldn’t the windshield and rear glass have a chrome reveal embedded in the center of the rubber molding?

    Like 1
  6. Avatar PRA4SNW

    If this is truly as rust free as it looks, I think that it is at a great price, salvage title and all.

    Like 2
  7. Avatar Tennis Tim

    The bumpers looks like they are a 1969 version

    Like 0
  8. Avatar Steve

    Poor mans Porsche I always loved the Karmann Ghia great German technology.
    Never owned one but always wanted to. So easy to work on great little sports car. This one looks like it could be a awesome project.

    Like 1
  9. Avatar Stevieg

    Once again, I love this little car. The salvage title doesn’t bother me on this one, and I feel it is priced reasonably for what it is. I’d recover the seats & drive it. Good enough for me!

    Like 1
  10. Avatar Car Nut Tacoma

    Sweet looking Karmann Ghia. Assuming all parts are available, I would imagine that this would make a good restoration project. If nothing else, this would make a fun driver.

    Like 0

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