Today's VW is proof that some people can never leave well enough alone. The Karmann Ghia convertible is a rare and desirable car on its own, so a wanklized version should be even more desirable right? Well, maybe, if the price is right.

Have you ever noticed that they only want to remake great movies, and the result invariably pales in comparison to the original? I mean seriously, why no one ever thinks to remake movies that were great in concept but flawed in execution is beyond me.

That's not always the case with cars as you'll invariably get people trying to massage everything from Ferraris to Ford Aspires. This falls somewhere in the middle I think. The Karmann Ghia, especially in factory convertible form, is a car that will these days bring big bucks in its original state. In fact, it's one of those cars that might actually see its value suffer from non-factory modifications.

This one has been modified - however, it seems to be tastefully so - with the goal of the changes seemingly being to imbue the car with a level of performance never considered possible by the factory.

The fun starts - as is often the case with early Vee-Dubs - in da' butt. There you will not find the original 50-horse 1600 puffer, but instead a newish Mazda 13B that's claimed good for 350 supercharged ponies. That's fronted by a Fischer 4-speed, and the car is blessed with discs all around to rein in all those horses. Water cooling duties are apparently handled by a set of subtle openings below the nose.

The ad notes that the car was built with the intention of it becoming a Super Ghia, hence the supercharged mill. It is claimed to have been race prepared so of course you'll note the full roll ca… um, no I guess it doesn't have that. Well, at least it has a minimalist interior with shell seats and no concessions to civili… oh wait, it's all custom upholstery and under-dash A/C in there.

Okay, so maybe it's not race-prepped, but it still looks pretty badass. Also it's offered on the Samba so you know the seller expects to be taken seriously by the Volkswagen elite. It has shaved bumpers and side trim, Foose wheels that don't look sickish at all, and it is a convertible which is the most desirable of KGs to have, unless you're agoraphobic.

That droppable top also a plus for keeping cool as the A/C doesn't look to be hooked up. Come on people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together and fix this air conditioning right now.

This custom Ghia looks to be well sorted aside from that A/C, and comes seemingly ready to rock for $19,500. Now, a stock Karmann Ghia in similar condition would likely fetch as much if not more, so the question is, do this car's modifications add or detract from its value?

What do you think, is this rotary Ghia worth $19,500? Or, does the engine and the price make you go hmmmmmm?

You decide!

out of Florida, or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to my man Marcus for the hookup!

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