The beginning
A rusted out 1967 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia.
A 505 cubic inch Dodge Viper V10 .. When finished its a 650 hp 650ft/lb monster.
The first cut
All the floor, firewall, bulkheads were cut away and thrown in the dumpster.
Getting a feel for size
The engine and transmission is 2/3 of the cars size. It required a custom made frame with a hidden roll cage to handle the power.
Lights
The lights are from a new Mini Cooper.
Wheel tubs and fuel tank
All the sheet metal in the rear. Fuel tank holds about 11 gallons. Good for about 100 miles.
Interior sheet metal
The first roll cage was removed and a new one made that ended up being almost completely hidden.
Grilles
The original grilles were too small to cool the Viper engine so the new ones are 250% bigger made out of 2 in thinck billet aluminum.
Billet aluminum
These monster billets are the start os the rear end housings. The Ghia has the first of 4 prototype rear ends that can take over 1650hp.
Machining the housing
The center of the billet rear end housing. The rear end took about 500 hours in CAD time and CNC machining.
Finished rear end
The center of the Ghia's billet aluminum IRS. The first 4 of these rear ends cost over $60,000 to build
All kinds of shiney
Slowly taking shape.
Thermostat housing
The factory viper thermostat housing could not be used. A custom designed housing was made. This is why this car took so many hours... I had to redesign nearly every component and scratch build it all.
Starting to paint it
The inside is painted in Metalic Charcoal. exterior is blue ecstasy pearl and charcoal.
Assembly time
Starting to assemble the Ghia. This is 1 month prior to the 2013 Detroit Autorama.
Body is back on
Head liner is installed prior to body going on and wiring started.
The logo
The Blue Mamba logo is machined into the valve cover with an eye and then airbrushed for a 3D effect.
3 Years later
The steering column, Gauges, Stereo, Engine management screen and steering wheel, Rack and pinion, Shock absorbers, Wheels and brake calipers are the only bought pieces. Everything else on this car is custom made for it and is not sold anywhere by anyone else.
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