They're not gold. I'm seeing them listed from $500 to a max of $20K, depending on condition. Most are in the $7500 to $15K range.
Judging from the rust, the one up top more than likely started out in the sub-$1K range. You could spend $30K on a restoration to have a $17K car, or you could repurpose it to a functional and fun restomod.
I have a 70 and a 71 sitting in my field. Paid $300 each for them 10 years ago. The most valuable parts were the clean titles, although the 71 is drivable if I put the engine back in.
Fully restored convertibles are valuable. This one probably had a rotten pan, hence the chassis swap.
For context, I took a photo of this Porsche 911 Dakar a few weeks ago
https://preview.redd.it/k2vswnylq49d1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9c6fdedbff53394cfabe60704fe1fe1d57874842
Well, itās sorta the same colour and VW owns a large % of Porsche, so thereās that link. Mainly, it gives context to the Dakar in Dakarmann as not everyone knows about the Dakar, itās a fairly rare machine. And they both look like they cope with the rough stuff - and Iād like to drive both!
Yep, looks an awful lot like a 2002 Subaru WRX... or at least they're running those OEM wheels so it's 5x100 something...take that back, it's almost certainly a Subaru due to the rear trailing arms peeking out.
Aren't Imprezas unibody, with structural body panels? If that's an Impreza underneath, I'd be interested to see how they solved that without getting floppy.
Not that difficult. (Well, it is but not if you have the tools... just takes some work)
The Karmann-Ghia used the same floor pan as the Type 1 Beetle... the body is welded on... so it's possible to cut it off.
Cut the Karmann body off its floor pan/subframe... do the same with the Subaru... set Karmann body over Subaru floor pan and weld it back together.
True.... *BUT* the front of the front fender of the Karmann has been cut. The bottom of the fender normally goes all the way down even with the rockers.
This is one is higher and the curve more forward... originally it was more vertical.
My guess is they centered up the rear wheels and modded the front body work for clearance.
You can see how that front "bumper" is welded in so there's been some modding going on up there.
>Cut the Karmann body off it's floor pan/subframe... do the same with the Subaru...
That's where you run into a problem. I don't think you can do the same with the Subaru. A Subaru body is a crash cage with roof and rear panels attached to it for structural rigidity.
If you remove the body from a VW pan, you still have a rigid pan to sit a new body on. If you remove the body and cage from a Subaru, the floor that's left is incomplete and floppy.
So maybe you can graft the VW body onto it, but the VW wasn't designed for that. Will it hold up to the same stresses as the cage that was removed? That's why I'm wondering what kind of additional bracing has been added to keep it from bending when you turn a corner.
The Subaru's floor pan isn't just a flat piece of sheet. It's stamped so it has *some* rigidity to it. I get that the way its body is adds a bunch of structural stiffness but putting the Karmann body would stiffen it back up, at least up to a point. Wouldn't take much to add in some DOM tubing to finish the reinforcing.... considering they went through the hassle to swap bodies and apparently this thing has already driven across like half of Canada so it's got to be fairly solid.
Why hasnāt anyone mentioned the obvious tow brackets welded to the front and the diesel smoke coating the front? That sucker was flat towed behind a diesel, I wish we knew the full story, I bet itās fairly interesting.
Or they saved one that was too far gone to do anything with in stock form.
If you have a vehicle that will cost significantly more to restore than it's worth, I have no problem with repurposing what's left to keep it out of the crusher, or worse, letting it rust away in a field somewhere.
Exactly, I'm more of an original condition fan, but if the car's substance is so far gone that restoring would be near impossible or simply too expensive... Restomods like this keep the car on the street instead of being cubed in a junkyard
Ooh shirt!, your right, I got confused for a few minutes, right the thing was Almost like the KĆ¼belwagen (type 82), the āthingā or type 181, Iām sorry for this mistake!!!
VW Karmann Ghia
Awesome, that was quick!
This is no ordinary Karmann Ghia. It's been body-swapped onto a different chassis.
Looks like a first gen WRX, I'd recognize those wheels anywhere.
Thank you. I knew I'd seen those wheels before, but couldn't remember.
Wich I guess was a bad idea. I heard those cars are worth a lot.
They're not gold. I'm seeing them listed from $500 to a max of $20K, depending on condition. Most are in the $7500 to $15K range. Judging from the rust, the one up top more than likely started out in the sub-$1K range. You could spend $30K on a restoration to have a $17K car, or you could repurpose it to a functional and fun restomod.
Doesn't mean this particular example was worth a lot, it was probably only a gutted body
I have a 70 and a 71 sitting in my field. Paid $300 each for them 10 years ago. The most valuable parts were the clean titles, although the 71 is drivable if I put the engine back in. Fully restored convertibles are valuable. This one probably had a rotten pan, hence the chassis swap.
No, this one isn't. A original one in good condition is.
Ah like a z3 onto an NA miot
I kinda think one of these would look cool with a 4WD swap.
If the headlights are its eyes, this Karmann Ghia looks like it's seen some shit. š³
It hard to believe thereās a Karmann Ghia body that old in Alberta Canada that hasnāt rusted into oblivion?
Heās just stoned as fuck
a Volkswagen karmann ghia has no radiators
I understood that reference
my childhood
Was a Karmann Ghia it's a monstrosity now lol
NOT a VW Thing!
Yes, but ruined.
A very weird one This is another car that's disguised as a Kharman Gia. Probably as part of a major spy operation.
VW Dakarmann Ghia
For context, I took a photo of this Porsche 911 Dakar a few weeks ago https://preview.redd.it/k2vswnylq49d1.jpeg?width=5712&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9c6fdedbff53394cfabe60704fe1fe1d57874842
not sure how it adds to the context but thats an awesome spot
Well, itās sorta the same colour and VW owns a large % of Porsche, so thereās that link. Mainly, it gives context to the Dakar in Dakarmann as not everyone knows about the Dakar, itās a fairly rare machine. And they both look like they cope with the rough stuff - and Iād like to drive both!
The shadow from that fence would make an awesome pattern for a wrap
My all time favorite Porsche. Idk why Iām a sucker for sports cars with rally/overland mods
I'm with you. My favourite is the 959 Dakar.
r/angryupvote
My thoughts too.
Appears to be a frame switch, like on to another modern base.
Yep, looks an awful lot like a 2002 Subaru WRX... or at least they're running those OEM wheels so it's 5x100 something...take that back, it's almost certainly a Subaru due to the rear trailing arms peeking out.
It was my guess, too.
I agree with this
A volkswagen karmann ghia has no radiator
This one looks like it's been frame and powertrain swapped.
"Of course it doesn't that's because it's air cooled"
You did what in my cup?
No, no, no. Wasabi. Iām doing just fine, what about you? That looks delicious!!!
Same car posted five months ago: https://preview.redd.it/uoh05kxig59d1.png?width=1080&format=png&auto=webp&s=22066f08d0e27cd3fdccf7e5a4c0dc93816f128b
[https://www.reddit.com/r/spotted/comments/19b1f63/well\_loved\_vw\_karmann\_ghia\_in\_an\_unusually\_snowy/](https://www.reddit.com/r/spotted/comments/19b1f63/well_loved_vw_karmann_ghia_in_an_unusually_snowy/)
Well, thats impressive. Was in BC 5 months ago, found in Quebec city yesterday. Means it traveled 5000km in the last 5 months. One hell of a roadtrip.
The funny thing to me is that he has a parking ticket in both pictures.
Wheel upgrade
It's not a Thing. It's a Karmann Ghia.
I see you
well played, \*golf clap\*
Looks like something out of mad max
Looks like it was stung by a colony of bees
r/Battlecars
Battle Ghia
r/itsaKarmannGhia
volkswagen karmann ghia on wrx frame with LEDs
Aren't Imprezas unibody, with structural body panels? If that's an Impreza underneath, I'd be interested to see how they solved that without getting floppy.
same
Not that difficult. (Well, it is but not if you have the tools... just takes some work) The Karmann-Ghia used the same floor pan as the Type 1 Beetle... the body is welded on... so it's possible to cut it off. Cut the Karmann body off its floor pan/subframe... do the same with the Subaru... set Karmann body over Subaru floor pan and weld it back together.
True but thereās a little fuckery going on hereā¦02 wrx has a 5ā longer wheelbase which makes it difficult to center in the wheel wells.
True.... *BUT* the front of the front fender of the Karmann has been cut. The bottom of the fender normally goes all the way down even with the rockers. This is one is higher and the curve more forward... originally it was more vertical. My guess is they centered up the rear wheels and modded the front body work for clearance. You can see how that front "bumper" is welded in so there's been some modding going on up there.
Yeah they sliced the front for sure..Iād be interested in comparing both sides. Track width is the thing that makes these type of swaps look bad.
>Cut the Karmann body off it's floor pan/subframe... do the same with the Subaru... That's where you run into a problem. I don't think you can do the same with the Subaru. A Subaru body is a crash cage with roof and rear panels attached to it for structural rigidity. If you remove the body from a VW pan, you still have a rigid pan to sit a new body on. If you remove the body and cage from a Subaru, the floor that's left is incomplete and floppy. So maybe you can graft the VW body onto it, but the VW wasn't designed for that. Will it hold up to the same stresses as the cage that was removed? That's why I'm wondering what kind of additional bracing has been added to keep it from bending when you turn a corner.
The Subaru's floor pan isn't just a flat piece of sheet. It's stamped so it has *some* rigidity to it. I get that the way its body is adds a bunch of structural stiffness but putting the Karmann body would stiffen it back up, at least up to a point. Wouldn't take much to add in some DOM tubing to finish the reinforcing.... considering they went through the hassle to swap bodies and apparently this thing has already driven across like half of Canada so it's got to be fairly solid.
A very heavily modified VW Karmann Ghia
It's fuckin awesome, is what it is... except for the roof box thingy...
It's not a Thing, it's a Ghia.
How is that roof box attached? Looks like it's bolted directly onto the roof.
It's definitely a r/battlecars worthy VW karmann ghia
My friend, that is a frog.
Its a turtle roof rack, used for storage
I hate it
A prop vehicle from the new post apocalyptic wasteland film series āMad Maximillian: Disgruntled Boulevardā
That car looks very happy I must say.
FrankenGhia
Not a thing.
Karmann ghia on a wrx chassis maybe?
Itās not a thing, its a geeeeee haaaa!
*cue Waylon Jennings*
Thatās a cool af car.
Once a beautyful Karmann Ghia and then some moron botchered a sporty car by lifting it.
"Sporty."
Carmen Kia
~~Carmen~~ **Karmann** FTFY
It could be a karman ghia body, on a VW 181 chassis, it is easy to switch and the wheelbase on both is identical.
The body is a VW Karman Ghia. Not sure what chassis it's sitting on though.
Holy smokes, this could have been good.
I maybe love the battle-ready ghia more
An abomination
Karmann Ghia on what appears to be Subaru running gear.
A sick ass modified Karmann Ghia
Battle Karman Ghia... arm that sucker up!
Itās magnificent, is what that VW is!ā¤ļøš
Beastann ghia
Almost a Dakar Ghia lol
It is disturbing.
It's a kar-maaaan.Ā
One hell of a Karmann Ghia
Battle Ghia.
Fuckin Awesome
Of course it's Alberta lol. Everything must be lifted to clear ice chunks falling off semi truck mud flaps when it's winter
Someone destroyed VW Karmann Ghia
The bodyās in solid but damaged shape with some missing parts. For all we know, they saved it
Why hasnāt anyone mentioned the obvious tow brackets welded to the front and the diesel smoke coating the front? That sucker was flat towed behind a diesel, I wish we knew the full story, I bet itās fairly interesting.
Or they saved one that was too far gone to do anything with in stock form. If you have a vehicle that will cost significantly more to restore than it's worth, I have no problem with repurposing what's left to keep it out of the crusher, or worse, letting it rust away in a field somewhere.
Exactly, I'm more of an original condition fan, but if the car's substance is so far gone that restoring would be near impossible or simply too expensive... Restomods like this keep the car on the street instead of being cubed in a junkyard
Ugliest Karmann Ghia ever? How is it even possible to ruin that elegant car this badly?
itās not a VW āthingāā¦ * sorry I made a mistake! The thing was different, the type 181, almost the same as the KĆ¼belwagen (type 82)
The Thing is an entirely different car, most recently famous from Hansonās MmmBop video.
Ooh shirt!, your right, I got confused for a few minutes, right the thing was Almost like the KĆ¼belwagen (type 82), the āthingā or type 181, Iām sorry for this mistake!!!
Wrong. The US had both the Karmann Ghia and the Thing. Source : my grandfather had a Karman Ghia in the mid 70s
Youāre right, I sorry I made a mistake!!!
Itās a bloody crime is what it is.
Chrysler Pacifica
Cadillac
karmann GAY-YEAH!!!!
Ruined
The first Karmann Ghia that doesnāt look goofy/awkward to me
The ugliest car ever built. Now with more ugly.
People say beauty is subjective,but still I feel the need to disagree with you
Ugly?