Ghia Project begins

[mg50]

Picked up a project '71 KG today. As with my S.Beetle project I'll be asking a lot of questions so go easy on me. I'll research past threads as best I can.

It threw a rod so I will be pulling the engine to see how much damage was done.

Looking for the case number in the spot where it is located on my beetle it looks like it reads Firing Order.(?)

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1971 Super Beetle & 1971 Karmann Ghia

engine rebuild: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=775424&highlight=

[Era Vulgaris]

[mg50]

I'll need to have it hauled 80 miles to my house to really get a good look at things.

And then to figure how to get it out of the street drop off, up my sloped driveway 30 feet and then turn and go another 40 or so feet on a gravel drive into the new garage I built. I'm thinking I can maybe tie a strap to it and pull it with my 4 runner close to the garage, then find 3 friends (or make 3 friends!) to help me push it in.

here is a shot of the engine bay. Any observations on parts such as carb type? I see it has an alternator. Didn't the originals have a generator in 1971?

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1971 Super Beetle & 1971 Karmann Ghia

engine rebuild: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=775424&highlight=

[obus]

[Braukuche]

71 would have a generator. Alternator is an upgrade.
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Go Reds! Smash state!

Retirement is here!
1956 Ghia
1959 SO-23 Westfalia
1960 double cab
1960 Baja Bug
1963 stretched double cab
1962 Golde sunroof Ghia
1963 356 B coupe
1963 Notchback
1967 21 window less rusty now

[jason_hamilton]

I can tell you right now you bought it off someone who doesn't know vintage VWs at the least. I'm looking at the routing of the battery ground cable.
You have no reason to think it's anything more than a no-start until you investigate on your own. These motors don't just throw a rod...
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Jason Hamilton
1969 Karmann Ghia coupe
@MiddleAgedHoon

[mg50]

[mg50]

Attaching my new tow bar to a 71 Ghia:
I have a 71 super beetle. Being unfamiliar with Ghias, will the front attachment areas be similar to what I see under my s. beetle?

S search mentioned ghia grease fittings being in the way:
"The brackets hit exactly on the grease fittings. If I move it off the grease fitting on one side it gets hung up on the suspension on the other."

Someone mentioned removing the grease fittings.

I intend to use an 18" hitch extender and avoid sharp turns.

Going through all the details of this because I'm an old guy with no helper. When I show up at the car's location I'll have to figure out on the fly how to attach the tow bar. Maybe I'm overthinking this. Happy holidays to you all.
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1971 Super Beetle & 1971 Karmann Ghia

engine rebuild: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=775424&highlight=

[jpajya]

Several years ago, I towed my 70 Ghia from PA to VA using an Empi VW tow bar, and did not have an issue with clearance between the grease fittings and tow bar brackets. The brackets were positioned on the outside of both grease fittings.

Below are a couple pics.
Unfortunately, the fittings aren't visible in the pics with the tow bar mounted, so the last two photos may give you an idea of where the grease fittings were positioned with respect to the bar brackets. A close fit, but not problematic.

And yes, 18" hitch extender worked very well, as did the Harbor Freight LED towing lights.

Faced a similar situation as you describe with getting it into a garage at destination. Was able to pull the car high enough on the hill to get enough momentum with 3 or 4 pushers to get it inside.

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John
'70 Ghia convertible

[mg50]

[jpajya]

Great to know you've got it in hand and stored in place. My apologies for not getting the pics to you earlier in response to your questions.

Smart that you had the foresight to make some adjustments to maneuver the dip. I remember the Ghia was a pretty easy tow, but was always worried about the turns and dips along the way.

Looking forward to following your project and will try to be more timely if I have an opportunity to assist.
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John
'70 Ghia convertible

[mg50]

[mg50]

Just for the record, I think an 18" hitch extension is a bit much and 12" would have been fine to avoid hitting the car on turns.

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1971 Super Beetle & 1971 Karmann Ghia

engine rebuild: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=775424&highlight=

[jpajya]

Agreed. After seeing your photo, I re-looked and realize now that I used a 12" hitch extender from Harbor Freight. The extender was coupled with a 10" ball mount that had a 2" drop. Worked well for SUV towing.

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John
'70 Ghia convertible

[mg50]

Looking for help in identifying the very dirty steering wheel. I was planning on replacing with a stock wheel but I think I'll see how the wood cleans up with some 0000 steel wool and cleaner.

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1971 Super Beetle & 1971 Karmann Ghia

engine rebuild: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=775424&highlight=

[jpajya]

Not familiar with it, but did a quick search and found what was listed as a Grant walnut wood steering wheel at https://www.gmsquarebody.com/threads/grant-walnut-wood-steering-wheel.22955/
This is the only wood steering wheel I saw that has the 4-hole chrome posts like yours. The mounting hardware visible in your photo resembles Grant's as well. (Of course, this assumes that the guy who posted the thread is correct in stating it is a Grant wheel.)

Can't see the pictures unless you're registered to the gmsquarebody.com site. A workaround to that is to go to https://duckduckgo.com/?q=gmsquarebody+Grant+walnu...;ia=images, and the first two images listed look the same as your picture.

There's also this Grant wheel on eBay, but with 3-hole posts. https://www.ebay.com/itm/263909993111?mkcid=16&...media=COPY
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John
'70 Ghia convertible

[yorkjj]

Repairing and restoring vintage wood steering wheels can be onerous. Take a look at this video from a professional furniture restorer.


Link

[mg50]

[SandHamwich]

Looks like a Superior “500” steering wheel. They can be had for not much money in decent condition if you want to retain the look.

[Era Vulgaris]