I love your Ghia!
Are you sure you want the GTI seats? Rather than the 911s' You may be right
Are the GTI seat bolsters a little wider/lower? I fit the seats of Chris' 996 just fine, but if I were a tad heavier/bigger it would be a tight squeeze.
I owned a GTI with these seats and they were comfortable for me. If I have one thing going for me is that I do have a small butt😅
Well losing weight might allow me to fit 
Man it Looks Great! Enjoy The Ride!!
Congrats on a great car Rich. I love your attitude about the sorting hiccups.
Here’s a few photos of the interior.
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Regarding the GTI seats: why in the name of all that’s good would you want to screw up perfection? Just leave the (perfect) 911 seats where they belong, and put the GTI seats in your son’s GTI where they belong.
I'm a closet Ghia guy and have been working on them for about the past 10 years but mine don't look nuthin' likeRich's.
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Meade:
You aren't alone. A lot of us would love to have your car as well.
Nice car, Meade! Tell me more.
Hey Meade, I have been looking for one for a while now. Convertible or Coupe I am not sure but in any case they all need pretty much a complete redo even if they are well preserved. Any suggestions? Ray
Meade, have a look at this one ,,,,https://auburn.craigslist.org/...ghia/6986365823.html
I saw that one on the Atlanta CL also and that's in much better shape than mine...but mine's prettier. I'm also listed on the Atlanta Craigslist...with more pics. I have the engine that USED TO BE IN my Beck, with Weber's etc. It was the 1915 engine that CB Performance put in the Becks. Mine's for sale for around 7500. Check out the ad; it ain't purfek. but it' got a killer paint job on it and everything works.
Meade
Send me the link maybe that is my solution to towing my roadster
picts of the pan ?? How much rust repair did you do ?
Seriously, Ray... That's a really good idea.
I decided the same thing and bought a never-started CMC kit to build up a second Speedster, one for New England and another for South Carolina, with the idea that I could give up the towing back and forth. Got it about 1/3 built and then got hit with some massive family issues which made staying in South Carolina impractical. The second car got sold to the elves at Merklin's House of Magic and is now somewhere else (finished), while we no longer have the SC place.
By the time you buy a suitable trailer and tow vehicle, you will have sunk a lot more than buying a used Ghia to putt around with. The savings would buy a LOT of Fish Tacos at Capt. Jack's Seafood Shack.
Fish taco's lol that made me laugh Gordon ...
Meade how is it in much better shape?
IaM-Ray posted:Meade, have a look at this one ,,,,https://auburn.craigslist.org/...ghia/6986365823.html
No bondo in that nose. 
Something is seriously amiss... it would seem this car is missing a couple of kidneys.
This is EXACTLY why I'd love to see somebody splash a fiberglass mold of a pre-1970 Ghia (no love for the big taillights). I'd rather have one than a 356 coupe-- there's more room in the engine compartment, more room inside the car, and the lines are better (in my opinion). However, every car out there (and I mean every last one) is a bucket of oxidation, covered with filler and a nice coat of paint.
I'd pay more for a replica than an original.
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Yes that would be really nice I too find the engine compartment awesome.
Further: there is a front FG available for a Ghia but I would love to have one as well.
So my only consolation is to have one redone but I know that whatever I buy I will be chasing the RustBug. Stats show that 60% of restoration is in body work.
So my Dream Ghia would have what RIch's front suspension but I would want Full Subie so if the Mandeola would work that would be nice too.
I would probably redo the whole interior as well because I need to drop the seats and move them back as well. Power windows, AC etc. The dash might look at lot more like a version of the 356 with a valence for AC vents, just saying.
And you'd be absolutely welcome at any VW gathering, @Stan Galat.
I wonder what a mold would cost.
Had two Ghias back then, and loved them both - coupe and cabriolet.
Sweet driving cars, but underpowered with the stock engine.
But in reality a 356 was somewhat underpowered at 60hp, fun to drive but underpowered in the least.
FYI, I have been looking for a GHIA on and off for a while but Stan is right there are very few that do not need a complete rebuild.
You can find some but in reality if your OCD like me you know that the small amount of rust and issues that for some seems very liveable with, is a can a worms if you start to open it up and will require you to pour in thousands. Rich has been fortunate to have found his guy who is obviously a kindred spirit doing the work.
Most cars need new pans and the body needs to be lifted to get at the rust.
So pan replacements are not cheap nor easy to do even if they can be done with the body on which to me is not the real way to do it...
The unfortunate situation, is that you have to breathe reality into the number that they are asking for their cars.
The education is painful for the seller, but it is a reality check which is hard to swallow for the dream car gone bad.
Just saying.
Correct, Ray. A "rust-free" Ghia means "only a little rust in the battery box, and around the windshield, and on the bottom of the doors". I have KG saved as a search on both TheSamba and ebay. Typical descriptions read as follow (copied and pasted from an actual ad):
"Needs headliner (have one but don't like the color so I didn't install), needs driver seat cover (my dog chewed it up before I could get it installed), some trim pieces installed (have most, just not installed), some rubber weather stripping installed (also have this, just needs installed)."
A translation would read:
"I'm not very particular about anything at all, and I'm fairly lazy besides. I have a friend who's pretty good with Bondo, so we filled all the rust and shot it with shiny paint. A family of small rodents has taken up residence in the heater channels, but I'm lazy (see above), so I can't/won't be troubled to eradicate them. I'd post better pictures, but... see above."
These kind of cars are $10k and up. Decent cars rarely come up, and when they do-- the owner has dechromed them, or shot them with '90s pink and teal paint, or installed a furry dashboard. I'd like a body with a painted dash, in a muted German color, with all of the trim. It's like looking for a particular needle in a stack of identical needles.
I was dead serious about a FG replica. I'd like a pre-'70 coupe, with a sliding ragtop. I'd buy one tomorrow if one was available to buy.
Me too Stan.
I do not want to recreate my IM but in reality the KG with that engine compartment would be awesome to drop in a Full Subie drivetrain.
Stan Galat posted:Correct, Ray. A "rust-free" Ghia means "only a little rust in the battery box, and around the windshield, and on the bottom of the doors".
I was dead serious about a FG replica. I'd like a pre-'70 coupe, with a sliding ragtop. I'd buy one tomorrow if one was available to buy.
BTW, anything I have seen the rear seat pan area needs help and essentially I need to be a friend to a media blasting shop... I need a bigger garage or maybe a friend like Rich's
"Rust free" means that the rust comes with the car for free.
Good one.
So here is someone claiming to have had a full restoration ..... Check out the pict...
Does it seem funny that the emblem is not removed and the bondo is not smoothed out in that area to you:?
I mean you can grind it off and then fix it right then GLUE one back on with 3M...
So what else needs to be re done or are the corners cut everywhere like this.
Give me a FG car any day.
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The only deals out there are the one's that already have the pans replaced and chassis rebuilt inclusive of rear bushings, seals beam etc. Sheet metal work , body work and paint is super expensive . Three months ago I found on eBay a 1967 Titled Beetle rolling chassis with new adjustable beam , all brakes, powder coated chassis w/ Wolfsburg heavy gauge pans, rebuilt rear suspension, rebuilt swing axle trans, Empi polished wide five aluminum wheels and new tires , a fresh type 1680 cc stroker engine and two rebuilt like new 1967 basket weave seats all for $2,200.....Sold the seats, Empi wheels and tires for $900. so that left me with a net purchase price of $1300. ... That was a smoking deal ~
I have some Ghia experience over the last 30 years or so. I bought this 1958 LowLight around 2003. Car came from California, supposedly the land of rust free cars. This is what was represented to me as "professional bodywork, ready for paint". Notice the 1/4" or more of bondo around the tail lights. This should just be 20 gauge sheetmetal. Here are the results of removing all the filler, welding the torn metal, a lot of hammer and dolly work. The rest of the car was similar. Took about 2 years of my time to really be ready for paint.
Personally, I'll never buy another half-a$$ worked on project again. I'd rather see all the rust and damage that I will be dealing with upfront!
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Oh Yeah that is exactly what I mean. I saw a 1970 close up and it had so much bondo on the driver's side and the guy still was dreaming that it was mint... I mean the door line did not line up with the body... I mean my name is Tucker... not ...S......
Sometimes you can fly here there and everywhere and get there and the pict looked good but the truth is far from good.
Li=RIck looking good.
I used to do body work when I was much younger. I don't think I have the patience to start doing it again at that level
In any case I would rather keep passing up on make work projects.
@LI-Rick: EXACTLY!
Excellent work, BTW: please splash a mold.
There are deals on flights to the UK .
So here is an example of an advertisement that is interesting..
"All original SURVIVOR !! This car is back on the road for the first time after being kept in a shed since 1984. This is one of the most solid original Ghias' you will ever see. It has an extremely solid body and floors with virtually no rust. It has the original paint and patina as shown.The original seats are an excellent condition. The engine is very original. The car was completely gone through by Vintage Works in Safety Harbor and was given new brake system, muffler, shocks, rubber/vacuum lines, rebuilt carburetor, and tires. The gas tank was pulled and the electrical system was given a once over. It runs great and drives better. Tight steering and smooth shifting give it a very nice ride. This car would be a very easy restoration or drive it as is....Finding convertibles in this condition is rare...They are only going up in value. Offers will be considered after car has been viewed in person."
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