We had restored a Karman Ghia for Andy years ago. Eventually, it was sold in a moment of collection shrinkage weakness… and after a while, Ghia longing returned & regrets seemed to have developed. Simply, he just wanted his Ghia back again. We went to work, found the right match in California, had it shipped then the fun ramped up. Step one, new owner testing: He loved it! ...But… “I'm a perfectionist you know”. We know, after a long list of projects for Andy, we knew just what to do.
Above: Karman Ghia #1 amid restoration (left), then completed, and awaiting judging on a concours field (right). Below: Ghia #1 before it left our showroom, (left) and Ghia #2 found, and shipped back East to our shop in Connecticut (right).
APART IT MUST COME. The objective is a perfect (or very near perfect) Karman Ghia convertible. Below left: Nick has the body off then disassembles the chassis. Below right: Body in bare metal. Bottom left: body shell media blasted & bottom right epoxy primed. Yep, we do find some corrosion damage on this California car? Maybe a past life’s ski trip?
PROGRESS!! Chassis sandblasted & painted, suspension rebuilt & assembled, and shortblock getting reassembled…we are movin’ on!!
California Car ?? As we progress in late winter 20-21 That “California rust” just keeps showing up in hidden areas …must have been several, salty ski trips into those CA mountains? Above left; engine recon in process then below, installed in the restored rolling chassis with rebuilt transaxle & shifter. There it stands, brakes & plumbing done awaiting its surprisingly disadvantaged body’s completion. Finale likely in our next edition.
We’re still under 6 months on the job and here we find a completely restored chassis awaiting a now structurally & functionally restored body shell in paint prep process. Spring has sprung and Andy is anxious to be back behind the wheel of a Karman Ghia once again …more in Mag VIII
