1964 Volkswagen Karmann Cabriolet - Meticulously restored

What you're looking at here is a fully restored and incredibly well detailed '65 Karmann Cabriolet. The subject of a meticulous build in California in 2006 and the property of our vendor since 2007, it has covered fewer than 3,000 miles in this time and, despite beautiful photography, it's even better in the flesh. The car has been fully detailed, even underneath, and the result is breath-taking.

Preferring a sportier Beetle than his original 1952 standard "Split', this car, with its "slammed' stance and big motor was sourced through Randy Carlson's oldbug.com website by our vendor. It was then owned by Chris Morgan on the West Coast, USA. Chris is a recognised restorer and builder of V Dub's and his work has appeared in the likes of Volksworld and Hot VW's on numerous occasions.

Prior to its preparation it had been purchased from an old lady in San Francisco through eBay. The work included having the body and floor pan blasted, then doing all the necessary repairs to the bodywork and finally painting in the special mix metallic blue hue. The floor pan was painted and detailed throughout with powder coated and zinc-plated components everywhere. To get the stance he was after a two-inch narrowed and adjustable beam was installed, along with a full complement of Koni shocks, rebuilt brakes and a set of polished EMPI-style 5-spoke wheels. Chris Morgan also designed and crafted the one-off aluminium door panels that he then had trimmed in a combination of tan smooth and perforated vinyl to match the re-upholstered and modified stock seats. He also whittled that unique boot lid luggage rack out by hand. He then formed the ali brake master cylinder and washer fluid reservoirs under the bonnet, an auxiliary two-gauge pod for under the dash and a couple of other hand formed parts which spice up the interior.

The engine rebuild and preparation was undertaken by a company called Volks Werks in La Habra who created a strong running 1776cc motor with Gene Berg crank, Engle 110 cam, stock heads and dual 40IDF Webers. It is housed within a custom-made aluminium firewall and a set of satin blacked tin-ware, with several pieces handmade to be sure of a perfect fit. The transmission is a 3.88 ring and pinion for better cruising speed converted by KCR Transmissions, California.

An outright show-winner on numerous occasions, and the subject of many magazine features in Hot VW's and Volksworld it is reluctantly offered for sale as our vendor sets about the restoration of his newly-acquired yet very first VW Beetle of 20 years ago. UK registered and road-legal, this beautiful Karmann Cabriolet is undoubtedly best-of-breed and certainly unrepeatable within the modest guide price offered here.

With grateful thanks to Volksworld magazine for their excellent photography, and assistance in the accuracy of this script.