Karmann Ghias

The Karmann Ghia was a two-seater sports car marketed by Volkswagen, designed by the Italian firm Ghia, and built by German coach builder Karmann. Over 445,000 Karmann Ghias were produced between 1955 and 1974.

History

In the early 1950s, Volkswagen was producing small, fuel efficient, reliable automobiles (like the Volkswagen Beetle); but as the world recovered from World War II, consumers began to demand more stylish and elegant vehicles. Executives at Volkswagen decided that it was necessary to produce an "image" car to satisfy the demands of post-war automobile buyers.

Volkswagen contracted with German coach builder Karmann to build this car. Karmann in turn contracted the Italian firm Ghia for a sports car design. Ghia took an already made, but unused design (originally intended for Chrysler or Studebaker) and modified it to fit on a slightly modified Beetle floorpan.

The body and nose of the Karmann Ghia were handcrafted and significantly more expensive to produce than the strictly assembly line produced Beetle; this was reflected in the Karmann Ghia's higher price tag.

The design and prototype were well received by Volkswagen executives, and in August 1955 the first Karmann Ghia was built in Osnabrück, Germany. Public reaction to the curvy Karmann Ghia was excellent, and over 10,000 were sold in the first year, exceeding Volkswagen's expectations.

Since the first Karmann Ghias used the same Volkswagen air cooled engine as the Beetle, the car was not suitable as a true sports car; however, the car's styling and "Beetle reliable" parts made up for this shortfall. The Karmann Ghia also shared engine development with the Beetle as the Type 1 engine grew larger with time, finally arriving at an engine displacement of 1584 cc.

In August 1957 a convertible (cabriolet) version was introduced. Although this version is often called the "1958 model" by some, the Detroit automakers' trend of calling models manufactured in August of a year as the next year's model wasn't adopted by Germany until at least 1965. In August 1964, the VIN number of VWs started showing the last digit of the year as the 3rd digit of the VIN. All through production, multiple changes were also made to VWs without regard to the "model year" concept. Especially for these earliest Ghias, "September 1957" would be much more useful as a description of production model than the elusive "model year" that was only used by VW of America in marketing.

The car was slightly redesigned for the 1960 model year. The most notable exterior changes were the car's front "nostril" grilles (which were replaced with a wider design), the headlights (which were moved up the fender), and the rear taillight lenses (which became taller and more rounded, sometimes referred to as "cats-eye" lenses). Cars made from 1955 to 1959 are referred to as "lowlights," due to the lower placement of the headlights, and are much sought-after by Karmann Ghia purists and collectors.

1970 saw larger taillights with integrated reverse lights, as well as squarish wrap-around turn signals, versus the "bullet" style used on earlier cars. The taillights were revised again in 1972, becoming taller and wider, with more visibility from the side. Large safety bumpers were added for 1973. Additionally, 1973 saw the removal of the unusable back seat as a means of skirting new seat belt regulations. Where the seat was once located, there was now a simple shelf with no back rest.

In late 1974, the car was discontinued mainly due to increasing safety regulations and sluggish sales, in favour of it's water-cooled front-drive replacement; the Rabbit/Golf based Volkswagen Scirocco.

Type 34 Karmann Ghia

In 1961, Volkswagen introduced the Type 34 Karmann Ghia, based on its new Type 3 platform. It was the launch vehicle for Volkswagen's new 1500 cc engine. It was the fastest, most luxurious, and most expensive Volkswagen at the time. Due to model confusion with the release of the Type I 1500 in 1967, the public dubbed the Type 34 the "Razor's Edge Ghia" in England, "Der Große Karmann" (the big Karmann) in Germany and "European Ghia" in the United States.[1]

One interesting option introduced in 1963 was an electrically operated sliding steel sunroof — a feature copied from its Porsche cousin which introduced it in 1961. The styling was more squared-off, versus the curved appearance of the original Karmann Ghia, offering more interior and cargo room. This venture into a more upmarket realm with a low volume production car was not a success, and production ceased in 1969 after 42,505 units were built. Today, the Type 34 is considered a semi-rare collectible and a fine driving vintage Volkswagen.

The Wilhelm Karmann factory assembly line which assembled the Type 34 also produced the Porsche 914 — the Type 34's replacement.

Karmann Ghia TC

The Karmann Ghia TC was developed to replace the Type 1 based Karmann Ghia in Brazil. It was built from 1970 to 1976 and given the Type 145 designation. It was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro at the Italdesign studios in Turin, Italy. The TC (Touring Coupe) was based on the Brazilian Type 3, as such, it has the Type 3's drivetrain and running gear.

Trivia

The Karmann Ghia starred in the closing scenes of the film Kill Bill, as Uma Thurman's character The Bride drives off in a blue convertible model of the car.

A pink Karmann Ghia is driven by Andy--played by Molly Ringwald--in Pretty in Pink.

A red, convertible Karmann Ghia stars in OMD's video for 1981 hit 'Souvenir'

From 1967 to 1969, Maxwell Smart drives a Karmann Ghia during the opening credits of the television show Get Smart; however, the car is never used on the show itself, as Max continues to drive his Sunbeam Tiger.

In The Stoned Guest, a "Half-act opera" by Peter Schickele under the pseudonym of "P. D. Q. Bach", a prominent female character is named "Carmen Ghia", in a play on both the Bizet opera Carmen and this autombile.

A character in Mel Brooks's the Producers is called Carmen Ghia after the car.

The song Airhead by Thomas Dolby contains the lyrics: She's an airhead, stungun and mace Kharmann Ghia plates say "Lost in Space"

A blue Karmann Ghia is driven by Mike Myers in the film "So, I Married an Axe Murderer"

A green convertible Karmann Ghia is driven by Tate Donovan's Character in "Love Potion No. 9"