Bringing my 1969 Karmann Ghia back from the dead

[carmangary]

Hey everyone. I used to be on here regularly back in the early 2000s. I did a pan-off restoration of a 69 Coupe back when I lived in Austin. Around 2011 I moved to NC and had to shift to restoring the house I bought and the Ghia has pretty much sat in the garage since then. In fact, it hadn't been driven since around 2014, if I had to guess.

I decided to revive the thing a week or so ago and it is pretty sad. After replacing the battery I noticed it said it was out of fuel, so I added a couple gallons. It said it was still out so I went ahead and filled it up. Big mistake. Even though I sealed it with POR-15 gas tank sealer back in 2004, the tank was completely gummed up and rusty. Luckily, VW gas tanks don't hold a lot of fuel so I only wasted about $30 on gas.

I pulled the tank and let it soak with acetone for a week but I think it is beyond salvage so I bought a new one from CIP1. Supposedly, their best powder coated one, but I feat that it will be thin junk like all repo stuff these days.

I'm also replacing some rubber on it that dried out or came loose from old glue. Dealing with the rubber was probably one of the biggest pain points of restoring a Ghia.

Anyway, it is sad to see that a lot of good parts sources are gone. KGPR is now Airhead Parts and it is hard to tell what is good from junk on their website. You can get parts from Amazon now, but I imagine they are junk.

I ordered a rubber seal from M&T Manufacturing and compared it to one of the ones I bought when I restored it. The M&T one is definitely thinner. Who knows which one is correct.

I'll try to snap some photos and add them here. Sorry for the rambling message. Just thought I would say hi and share my experience with with Ghias in 2025. Times have changed.

[carmangary]

Oh, I forgot to mention that I have a bunch of original Ghia parts that I will be selling. Stay tuned.

[Era Vulgaris]

Where in Raleigh are you? I'm south of downtown near Garner. I'm in the final stages of a body-off bare metal restoration on a 66 coupe, and have gone through all of this parts buying in the last few years. If you need advice on seals or parts to buy, I've probably bought most of them and sold the ones I wasn't happy with until I found the good stuff.
Hit me up some time if you want to have a beer and chat Ghia parts.
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Currently own:
66 Karmann Ghia, L390 Gulf Blue, under construction, here: www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=760505&highlight=
99 Mazda MX-5 10AE, Sapphire Blue Mica, 6 speed, LSD

Previously owned:
98 Porsche Boxster, silver, 2.5L -- 67 Karmann Ghia, Black, 1500sp -- 98 BMW Z3, Atlanta Blue Metallic, 2.8L I6 -- 75 Porsche 914, Laguna Blue, 2270cc -- 72 Porsche 914, Signal Orange, 1.7 FI -- 74 Karmann Ghia, Black, 1600dp -- 74 Triumph TR6 with O.D., sapphire blue

[carmangary]

I live a couple miles north of Crabtree Mall. I know the feeling of buying parts from different places and using what is good. I was going through my spare parts tonight and found 3 sets of door rubber that goes on the roof that I didn't use! I think I have what I need now.

I fell from a step ladder years back and landed on the Ghia's front fender and cracked the paint. I had to get it refinished so had to take off everything off the front. I'm just now getting to the point of installing it all again! That's when I found some rubber needed to be replaced for various reasons.

[carmangary]

The Ghia is back on the road. I got a Wolfsburg West tank and it fits well and the filler neck lined up better than I expected. I haven't decided if I will trash the old tank or not.

One thing I did notice about the WW tank is that it doesn't have the tube inside of it like my original does. I can't see the tube but I can feel it. I think it goes from the smaller tube exiting the tank to the opposite side of the tank to vent when filling the tank maybe? Anyway, it works fine but I am not sure what to do with the tiny vent on the right side of the tank. My original didn't have that vent.

I spent a couple days chasing electrical gremlins. Most were due to fuses corroding. I kept my car in my garage the entire time. I guess it is more humid in there than I imagined.

It's running a little rough. It hesitates when stomping the gas. I have a 34pict3 and SVDA distributor. I figure either the accelerator pump isn't working well or the distributor vacuum advance isn't working like it should. I'll eventually figure it out.

One thing I found that really bothered me was that the German braided fuel line under the fuel tank was crispy. It cracked when I bent it. I thought that stuff was supposed to be good!

Time for bed. Stayed tuned for more.

[Teeroy]

If you run ethanol fuel, the braided line needs to be inspected yearly or replaced with multi fuel rated hose. Or better yet run ethanol free gas
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Pres. Rivercity VW Club www.rcvwclub.org
Founder Derr Wheat Panzers (DWP)
ARR #3
www.autosportsnorthwest.org

[carmangary]

That's good to know. I didn't replace the fuel line at the back of the car. I better check that more closely.