Today’s car is a 1973 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC (Touring Coupe) Type 145 Brazilian owned by Orlando. I photographed this car at The Air Cooled Volkswagen Car Show held at The Zimmerman Automobile Driving Museum located in El Segundo, CA. It is finished in Bright Orange with a black Vinyl Interior. It is powered by a 65 hp, 1.6 liter, air cooled flat 4 engine, with a dual Solex carburetors. Mated to a 4-speed manual transmission. Slowing this baby down are disc brakes up front and drums in the rear. It has independent front suspension with torsion arms with an anti roll bar and the rear suspension is independent with torsion bars.
The Touring Coupe was designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro. He was named Car Designer of the Century in 1999 and inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2002. The TC Brazilians were produced from 1972 – 1975 with a total of 18,119 produced. The MSRP ranged from $3,050.00 to $3,450.00. The published top speed is 86 mph. A nicely restored one sold last year on Bring A Trailer (BAT) for $46,000.00
This TC is a rare example of a car that was only offered in South America. Orlando plans on a full restoration starting with the bumpers. You can see the family ties to the Porsche 912. What a great car to take to Volkswagen car shows and it is guaranteed to be a hit and the only one at any Cars and Coffee event. Thanks for riding along. Frank
