JD's 1964 Coupe Project

[Jeromerino]

I figured it might be a good idea to start a thread about Brooke, named for the birthplace of her body, Osnabruck. Picked up on a cold March 1, 2013.

Since picking her up, my primary objective has been getting her to run well enough to drive due to being my primary motor vehicle. She's been tuned up, the oil changed (including the air cleaner), the transaxle gear oil changed, the horn restored (including a new boot), replaced the quarter window adjustment knobs that were decayed beyond being useable, new seatbelts installed, aftermarket steering wheel installed (13" wheel = more legroom), new front turn signal lenses/grommets installed, broken right rear overrider tower replaced (stiffened up the rear bumper that had been a little rattley) and cleaning a myriad of electrical contact points by hand with bronze wool (lights primarily and working on the rest as they present themselves).

Cosmetically, I replaced the aftermarket hubcaps with Wolfsburg logo nipple hubcaps, recovered the rear parcel tray, recovered the dash pad, hand-cleaned the interior carpet and trim (which looks ten times better now), cleaned up massive amounts of overspray from the Earl Scheib-esque paintjob and added a couple of coats of carnauba to the yellowness.

Next up will be a new window regulator for the driver's side, followed by a new front end, treads and then a new powerplant.

Current state:

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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[John Moxon]

You look to be a very lucky owner Jerome...I have a soft spot for the Longs Peak area too.
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John.
Judson Supercharger Information on The Samba
My 1958 Shorrock Supercharged Karmann Ghia
Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery!

[Altema]

[djway3474]

Awe Man, now you have John Denver in my head LOL
Beautiful car in a beautiful location

[Rome]

Snow-covered peaks in the warm springtime are the ultimate driving experience for me. A natural high (no pun intended). Lucky you to have a nice Ghia to enjoy the roads!

[Rome]

Too bad this photo from the German magazine "Gute Fahrt" (theSamba Archives/Magazines/Gute Fahrt...) is in B&W, but it's another mountain appreciation shot.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/magazines/gute_fahrt/Gute_Fahrt_11_57_rear.jpg

[Altema]

[Rome]

Guanella Pass Rd- I've driven it! In 2000 I took several days' vacation based around Ouray. Landed in Denver, rented a Maxima (I wanted a car with decent power), and immediately drove up the Mt. Evans Rd. By the time I reached the summit I had mild altitude sickness, gaining 14,000' in 5 hrs coming from sea-level NY. Afterwards I left I-70 at Georgetown, went south over Guanella Pass, and worked my way to Ouray. While there, took a 4WD tour going over Black Bear Pass into Telluride. At the end of the trip I attended the VW meet at Bandimere Speedway, where I photographed the black low-light Ghia Coupe with the original Webasto sliding fabric sunroof. It's shown here, about 3/4 down the page. Those photos are mine, which I posted to, and were taken from the VW site CommonGear after returning home from the trip.

http://www.karmannghias.org/Webasto.htm

Colorado has so many exciting driving roads.

The German text in the Karmann ad above reads "the car in which you'll enjoy the mountains".

[Jeromerino]

Thanks for the props, y'all.

I think the electrical issue is solved for now, many wires traced and contacts cleaned. A 12 volt conversion just made the list.

The reason the transaxle was a quart low seems to be due to a leak on the passenger side above the axle. That would explain the coating of gunk that I scraped off of the frame underneath it. Any suggestions as to the cause and a solution would be highly appreciated.

The driver's side window regulator has been ordered up from KGPR and is on the way. Jason, tuft testing soon.

I scored a Sanyo FT 222M AM/FM/FM Stereo Cassette player on fleabay for $70 shipped. The control head dimensions are 3 9/16" x 1 9/16" and shaft distance is 5 1/8" center to center, no cutting required. This stereo has obviously never even been mounted and save for a couple of tiny storage wear marks, looks brand-new. Now to figure out the wiring for it, as it only has four wires coming out of it; blue, black, yellow and white. The search is on for a manual...
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[c21darrel]

The most common leak is the trans to axle rubber boot. Its an easy fix to replace boots as replacements have an open side with 6-8 small screws to close it up. A quart low means its been leaking quite awhile or a heavy leak.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=563261

[ccihon]

For that older stereo radio - yellow is industry standard for 12V power (fuse it!), black of course ground, but in the case of these old radios they didn't use a "floating" ground: meaning the negative terminal of each speaker was chassis ground in its own location - not something you see on today's power amplifiers. You also need to chassis ground the radio itself, and plug in the antenna.

Only think left is blue and white - both have to be + terminal for left and right speaker ... blue is more often left but you will know when you hook it up and try the balance. These oldies are far simpler as they use common ground, no fader for rear speakers, no antenna remote switch wire, no interior light separate lead. Best would be to bench test the unit before putting it in the dash, although the KG makes wiring "behind the dash" a breeze.

Good luck finding instructions!

[Jeromerino]

Thank you, gentlemen!

Jason mentioned the transaxle issue may be due to EMPI boots and another peep underneath revealed the truth of that matter on both sides. Time to start compiling another KGPR order.

The electrical issue reared its ugly head again. I'll be testing more wires, the voltage regulator and solenoid later after it cools off.

The blue wire on the Sanyo looks like it may be a power antenna lead because it's longer than the others and has a connector on the end that looks like that's what it's for. The blue wire is a heavier gauge than the yellow, white and black also. I'm not hooking anything up until I know for sure though, not even for a bench test, which will precede installation.

Thanks again for the help!

J
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[Jeromerino]

The electrical problem had me grounded for about a week. Fearing the worst and taking the easiest way out first, I went at the fusebox and all of the ignition contact points with my dremel and a wire wheel attachment. Abracafriggindabra, the starting issue disappeared along with the idling issue. I had already done the light contact points and will be crawling around later this week to finish what was started and clean all of the contacts in the car. Apparently 49 years of carbon and crud buildup are just as detrimental as others have indicated they are on this forum.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[Altema]

[Jeromerino]

Previous incarnations of my professions required that I be a well versed 2-way radio person, so it all made perfect sense to take that first step.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[Jeromerino]

[Jeromerino]

A lot of small stuff to keep her running and look less haggard has been getting done over the past year and now that it's not like a freezer in my garage, I'm back at it. Today was front end stuff, mainly steering componentry. I had been hitting the hardware with PB Blaster about once a week for the past month, so most of the hardware broke free with ease. The tie rod ends are another story though, but they're coming out as soon as I can get them over to a friend's garage that better equipped to handle that task. I keep finding little things that the PO's "mechanic" jury-rigged and they are being taken care of properly.

The new beam/brakes/wheels/tires have been put on hold financially due to needing to get a new roof for my casa Hopefully, with a little overtime at work and a ramen noodle diet, the dollars will come back quickly.

Here she is earlier today at the World Famous Georgia Boys BBQ Smokehouse in the bustling metropolis of Frederick, Colorado.

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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[Jeromerino]

Oh yeah, that Sanyo stereo is in the dash and will be hooked up to the power inverter as soon as my speaker boxes are done. I just need to add the ports, attach the faces and cover them. Pics when they are done.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan

[JonAllenRizzo]

Looking good Jerome!

Sorry to hear about the roof putting the beam and brakes on hold. Can't wait to get the Ghia and The Thing together next week!

See you soon, brother!

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1988 Westy

[Jeromerino]

That was a helluva day^

Dry trails and fresh beer, my friend.

Looking forward to riding around in Das Thing.
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1964 Karmann Ghia Coupe
1971 Beetle Sedan