Melvin Bacani's 1969 Ghia Profile

What my Ghia looks like

To view a picture in full size, click on the shrunken version. More pictures are on the way...

Some Vitals

1969 Karmann Ghia Coupe
Chassis Number - 149 043 921
Engine Number - H5474642
Color - Smoke White
Original engine, interior, and color
Date of original purchase - October 3, 1968
Date obtained - January 8, 1994: note: I bought this car in Tupelo, Mississippi where Elvis was born on his day he was born (scary)...

Short summary of work to date

Replaced the starter (after having to push start it in Battle Creek, MI)
Rust Proofed car @ Rust Check (car didn't know what all that white stuff was)
Replaced the generator & regulator (after getting stranded in Chesterton, IN at 1 am)
Put in Halogen lights (and what an improvement that made)
Replaced lower door hinge (after door blows too far open in the Windy city)
Replaced oil cooler: (my first actual crack at doing engine work myself - wasn't as painful as I thought)
Finally fixed that gas gauge: (and what a difference knowing how much gas is left makes...)

How I obtained my Ghia

Well, even before I had driven a car I fell in love with Karmann Ghias. Don't really remember when I first saw one, but by the time I reached the driving age, I knew I had to have one. The search for a clean Ghia up in the midwest is a fairly futile battle. Either the owner wanted $10,000+ for the car, or the car had holes big enough to fall through.

Luck had it that my brother was down in Mississippi visiting with his girlfriend. Well, turned out that my brother's girlfriend's brother-in-law (phew...) had purchased a Ghia and wanted to sell it after less than a year of ownership. I saw some photos of the car and knew I had to have it. I ended up driving down to Mississippi and picking up the car. And so, the story begins...

Current Status of my Ghia

After changing the oil cooler, the car runs much cooler. I may still have a temperature problem. One thing I did notice is that my thermostat doesn't seem to expand as much as I think it should when the vehicle gets hot. So, maybe this will the next item to get replaced. On the electrical side, I'm going to find out why my rear/driver's side brake & tail light doesn't work. Probably the ground in the back, but it was starting to get too dark to finish this one at home. In the end, I decided to leave the car in Illinois because here at Michigan I don't have much time to work on it while I'm at school...

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Last Modified: Jul 28, 1995

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