Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Karmann Ghia


Volkswagen was a catalyst of sorts for German production cars and remains deeply ingrained in Germany’s automobile history. Volkswagen was aptly named the ‘peoples car’, after being commissioned to produce Germany’s first economy car that was accessible to all people- the Beetle. Car ownership was rare in this era due to a limping economy and a market primarily dominated by sports cars, then the war ended and the standard of living was increased alongside the economy, which prompted Volkswagen executives to add a halo car to their lineup. They commissioned Wilhelm Karmann for the design, a coachbuilder, who in turn contracted the famous Italian firm Ghia.

The Karmann-Ghia initially cost $2,245, which was $900 more than the Beetle and quite expensive for the time. This was the result of craftsmanship on tier with high end manufacturers. In contrast to the Beetles machine-welded body with bolted-on fenders, the Karmann-Ghia’s body paneling was butt-welded, hand shaped, and smoothed with English pewter in a time consuming process. The cabin featured a sportier dashboard and was furbished with high quality seats that rendered the new halo visually incomparable to VW’s old economy car.



The Karmann-Ghia was introduced to America in the early 1950’s. The Beetle was still relatively new here, but the Karmann-Ghia offered a welcomed image refresh for Volkswagen. Sumptuous Italian styling, quality workmanship, and durable mechanisms were evolved from the ever reliable Beetle and gave the Karmann-Ghia significant value and appeal.

This special Volkswagen was easy to buy and service, unlike most foreign sports cars, because many areas of the country had a conveniently located VW dealer.  Many of these Karmann-Ghias have survived to this day, but mostly in warmer climates without salty, rust-inducing roads.


Karmann-Ghias have been steadily gaining notoriety as collectible classics. The average cost of one in good shape has nearly doubled in recent years, but good deals are still bound to be had. Now would be an excellent time to capitalize on the rise in popularity of this classic before the price becomes legendary.


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