My father liked the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia and he recommended I purchase the one I owned for a few years nearly 30 years ago.
It was a 1966 edition, dark green with all chrome trim. The windshield wipers didn’t work well, nor did the heater. But the Ghia had its moments. I once drove it round-trip from Sacramento to Las Vegas and managed to maneuver through heavy rain, strong winds and followed a snow plow over a mountain pass on Interstate 50.
A few years into ownership, the Ghia was heavily vandalized and I sold it cheap.
Turns out my father had good taste, similar to readers of The (London) Daily Telegraph.
In its recently released list of the “100 Most Beautiful Cars,” the VW Karmann Ghia was voted No. 32, finishing better than some Ferraris and eight positions shy of the unique Talbot Lago T150C SS.
The London Daily Telegraph's comment on the Talbot Lago was great, succinct commentary: "Commonly known
as the "Teardrop" — a reference to the
elegant shape, rather than the eye-watering prices they fetch at
auction today." The WeeklyDriver.com is counting down the list in 20-car increments and here are the No. 40-21 vehicles on the list, selected among 367 vehicles receiving mentions among thousands of votes.
40. Lancia Stratos 39. Ford GT40 38. Ferrari 365 37. Ferrari 275 GTB 36. Citroen Traction Avant 35. Citroen SM 34. Bentley Continental S2/S3 33. Auburn Speedster 32. VW Karmann Ghia 31. Morgan Plus 4/Plus 8 30. MG-T Series 29. Lotus Elite 28. Jensen Interceptor 27. Jaguar XJ6 26. Iso Grifo 25. Ferrari 330 P4 24. Talbot Lago T150C SS 23. Alfa Romeo 8C Competitor 22. Cord 810/812 Roadster 21. Alfa Romeo
Stay tuned for the top-20 and an expanded report on the newspaper readers’ selection of the Most Beautiful Car.
