|
|
Post by CrazyBrit on Feb 1, 2015 18:55:23 GMT -8
Didn't they have to modify (widen) that silver Ghia to accept the Porsche running gear and engine? Laurie suggested it looks like what a Ghia should be, and I tend to agree. What an awesome car in performance sound and looks.  I am partial to a stock Ghia having a different colour roof. That yellow one looks great with its black roof. The Sprint Stars tie it all together. Now I am really missing my Ghia  They widened the rear arches. They pulled them out, but it is so subtle that it looks like it could be factory. I wish mine looked and went like that! But then, they would be supercar status and even more expensive than they already are. They might even cost as much as a Splitty! |
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Jul 25, 2015 21:41:36 GMT -8
This is the stage Brian's Ghia is currently at. All the body work has been completed and is in primer. Brian removed the door hinges on the drivers side and will replace the worn bushings. He was able to get them locally too from a place called Motion Canada, which is an industrial supply shop. Hopefully this will work out well, because mine are shot on my '64 Ghia!
And here is the engine compartment with the new panels installed.
Spot welded in place like original. The bodyman said these repro panels fit very well. They will be properly seam sealed later. Brian is still having a hard time picking the ideal Yellow for this car. He had three different choices sprayed on some old paint cans to get an idea of what the colours would look like on the car. I still would paint it the original colour, but that is just me... Hopefully a decision will be made and the car can be painted!!! |
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Jul 25, 2015 21:46:25 GMT -8
Not a VW but cool anyway. Although Brian is "retired" from being an automotive mechanic; he has a nice workshop at his house and and still keeps busy fixing cars. One of his customers traded him this very neat 1966 Coca-Cola cooler in exchange for a brake job! He is looking into upgrading the refrigeration unit and restoring the finish. Will be "cool" when done...
|
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Oct 25, 2015 19:54:18 GMT -8
Finally a new update! Brian's Ghia is back from the paint shop, and looking great!
Arrived back at his home garage yesterday. The final paint colour chosen is from a recent New Beetle shade called "Sunflower". It looks like a great choice, as it is not as "in your face" as the original colour was. It looks period correct too. And it is nice he stuck with a VW colour as well.
As colour was changed somewhat from original, new paint was applied in the luggage compartment, engine bay, and door jams. It was discovered that the nose had taken a hit and cracked the metal right at the center "rib" of the nose. This was properly welded up before paint was applied. It is fully finished inside and out now, and you would never know.
The engine compartment looks nice now. Brian's original sound deadening material was in good shape, and will all be reused. The wiring was all masked well and just needs to be cleaned.
We pushed it outside to see how the colour changes. It still looks nice and smooth.
Will look nice to see the 8-spokes back on the car. Brian spent a lot of time to get the right colour to paint the spokes and I think he nailed it.
Lots of dust to clean up in the interior. I prefer to remove absolutely everything from the interior while body and paintwork are being done.
Pushed back inside; ready for the big build up... Brian will start with reinstalling the lights and associated wiring. Should go together fairly quickly as most parts are ready to be reinstalled. He still has to get his hands on a new windshield however...
Just to give everyone and idea of what this bodywork cost... The car only had rust in the battery tray/rear valance area. Both these panels were replaced. Otherwise welding was limited to the crack in the nose, and welding up a couple of un-needed screw holes in the luggage compartment. Some light filler work was done over areas where dents were pulled out. The final paint was base coat/clear coat delivered with a "from the gun" finish. Buffing was only done in a couple of areas to tidy up runs. This job cost Brian $6800 in the end, which was $800 more than estimate, although the painter actually wanted $7500. As you can see, bodywork and paint is NOT cheap, so it is highly advisable for everyone to do as much as they can themselves! I think I need to learn how to paint... |
|
|
|
Post by PICTUP on Nov 3, 2015 22:41:37 GMT -8
I was pleasantly surprised to see the colour yellow Brian picked for his Ghia. Car looks great in person and it will be cool to watch the progress as it is put together. You will have to start making regular trips out there with your camera Russ  |
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Nov 21, 2015 20:15:12 GMT -8
So went back out to Brian's place again for some more pictures...
Looks a bit different with the 8-spokes on now... The ride height will be adjusted once the car is fully back together...
One of the first things Brian did was install the rain tray. Those drains on the side caused some problems however. He had bought repro drain tubes through CIP which surprisingly looked very nice. Until he tried to install them... The plastic reproductions were so hard, that they were impossible to mold to the correct shape. Yet another CIP item that was COMPLETELY UNUSABLE. Sadly this won't be the last... I had given Brian some spare tubes, and luckily they were usable...
Brian has started to install his tar boards. Fortunately his are the originals and are in good shape. He is having fun remembering the wiring routing however...
Lots of work has been done to the front however. The front bumper would be on, but he had two sets of rear bumper iron grommets and no front sets... Not sure how that happened...
This is looking nice. The Hella H4s are a practical and good looking addition. The road to Brian's place is VERY dark, so this is a sensible upgrade...
Brian had a lot of fun to get that Karmann badge to fit properly. The factory drilled the holes poorly, thus the badge did not fit in the recessed area very well. Brian did it the right way by modifying the holes slightly to better align the badge. For once this was not the repro part fault, but a problem with the holes in the fender from the factory. It fits very nicely, now.
Not the greatest picture, but this script required a lot of work to make it nice. The repro scripts are hit and miss in both quality and similarity to appearance to the originals. In this case, the original damaged anodizing was carefully sanded off and polished. If you do it right, it will look like new.
Getting ever so closer to on the road again. Should be ready in the spring... |
|
|
|
Post by Brenticon on Nov 21, 2015 20:51:52 GMT -8
Those rims look great ..... Hell, it all looks great.
|
|
|
|
Post by CrazyBrit on Nov 21, 2015 22:16:32 GMT -8
It is looking very, very nice! Would love to see it in person.
|
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Dec 15, 2015 22:42:48 GMT -8
No pictures yet, but Brian is continuing to pick away at the Ghia. He recently located a Pilkington made windshield and will in possession of it soon. His glass guy will take the windshield and install the new German molded corner rubbers onto the glass with the original aluminum moldings. He will then install the assembly into the car. Brian is contemplating removing the dash pads and vinyl trim covering the dash that is cracked. He is considering leaving the trim off and painting the dashboard body colour like the earlier cars. I think that would look good... He will be reinstalling the dash pad after repairing a split in it. Lots to do...
|
|
|
|
Post by PICTUP on Dec 15, 2015 23:52:43 GMT -8
He is considering leaving the trim off and painting the dashboard body colour like the earlier cars. I think that would look good... X2! Wasn't that the fake wood trim? Yech! Can you say Mac-Tac?  |
|
|
|
Post by CrazyBrit on Dec 16, 2015 8:43:01 GMT -8
Mine is painted - it looks waaayyy better IMHO. You spend most of your time staring at the dash, or out of the windscreen close above it, so you want it to look right. The dash on these later cars was black vinyl or plastic, not certain which. The faux wood vinyl stopped with the 1971 model year, I believe.
Note that you need the windscreen out to reinstall the dash top on these cars though. Assuming the late models are the same as my 1971, you can't fit the small metal vent covers at the front of the dash with the screen in place.
|
|
|
|
Post by PICTUP on Dec 16, 2015 9:48:50 GMT -8
Yes, I see that now(shoulda looked at the pics ). Still, yeah, paint. |
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Jan 1, 2016 21:10:55 GMT -8
Don't have a picture update, but I can tell you the painted dash idea is a no go. The reason is that under the padding, there were LOTS of holes in the dashboard that would have to be welded up and filled and painted. These were factory holes, that would look dumb if not filled in. So he will install reproduction black vinyl on the dash face. He has ordered most of the remaining parts he needs to continue on with the restoration. Repairing the dash gets top priority, then the new windshield will be installed next. Should be driving it in the spring if things work out...
|
|
|
|
Post by Volktales on Jan 4, 2016 21:15:35 GMT -8
Was at Brian's briefly this Sunday, and took a few pics...
See all those holes and slots all over the place? Not sure why VW did this, but you can see why it would not be possible to just paint the dash surface instead of using the padding.
I was not aware the reproduction facing would look like this. It appears the same as the original and test fits the dash decently. We will see if it installs well... For over $200 for this flimsy part, it BETTER fit well.
Brian has also been working on other aspects of the interior. This is the rear seat backrest catch assembly. This seat was from the parts car and was better than his original. The retainer catch was not centred very well at all on the replacement seat however. Brian fabricated this nice alloy backing that covered the original offset screw holes and allowed him to fit it properly. The boys at Karmann must have had an off day when they drilled the original holes... Brian has also fabbed up a replacement package tray cover which will be shown once in place. The dash cover is top priority now, because the glass guy is itching to come and install the new front windshield and rear window... Looking good so far... |
|
|
|
Post by Wongai on Jan 5, 2016 13:26:24 GMT -8
Sure is looking good. This thing will be a head turner for sure. It certainly pops!
RIPPER!
B
|
|
