T34 Perfection
HISTORY:
Volkswagen built mass production vehicles
with progressive refinements each year
but maintaining the general designs
over decades. The result of this plan
was twenty-one million VW Beetles and
thirteen million Transporters were built.
In stark contrast to this plan, the
Karmann Ghia Type 34 models had a limited
production quantity of 42,505 over a
short eight years. Coachbuilt by hand
at the Karmann factory in Osnabruck
Germany, only 28 T34s were made per
day. Styling of the T34 was done by
Sergio Sartorelli at Carrozzeria Ghia
in Turin Italy and had a controversial
beltline design, quad front lights,
and round rear lights. Thin pillars
gave a 1960's cockpit design that was
an emerging trend in both European and
American sports cars. As the most expensive
VW models, T34s were fitted with the
most current technology available in
those days, with more comfort and convenience
features than the austere Beetle and
Bus models. For the first time, T34
models featured a 1500cc engine that
propelled it to 100mph, unheard of for
a traditional VW. Never officially sold
in America, T34s were brought into the
USA privately by gray-market car dealers,
military service personnel, and tourist
deliveries in Europe shipped back to
America.
LEE
HEDGES: Thirty-six years ago, Lee
Hedges bought his first T34 in 1987
and immediately volunteered to organize
the scattered T34 owners around the
world. He founded the first T34 club,
called the Type 34 Registry, with the
intention of registering each one with
its chassis number, owner info, and
restoration history. Then in 2011 he
founded T34 World (www.T34World.org)
which has become the one source for
T34 info and resources worldwide. Today
there are 1785 chassis-registered T34s
in T34 World. Although first impressions
were split amongst VW fans, these days
T34s at the top of most VW owners list
of dream models to own. Having collected
T34s for 36 years, Lee now owns three
T34s in his collection: a Sea Blue 1962
Coupe (the world's oldest T34), this
Ruby Red 1962 Cabriolet, and a Cherry
Red 1965 RHD Electric Sunroof.
DISCOVERY:
This Ruby Red 1962 T34 was first discovered
in 1999, sitting in a yard with horses
in Sylmar California. It had been parked
in 1972 and stored outside with the
driver's window down. The horses had
eaten the dash pads, seat upholstery,
and even the paint off the tops of the
fenders. Lee first inspected the chassis
number and body number to discover it
was #0 001 776. In 1999 it was the world's
oldest known T34 and today it's the
sixth oldest. How it got to Southern
California is a mystery, as the previous
owner did not recall much from 1972
when he bought it. The roof's rear pillars
were rusty and the body had been painted
gold, but otherwise it was relatively
complete, but not running. He had the
T34 towed back to San Diego and began
the disassembly phase. Having already
owned another T34 Coupe, Lee decided
to convert this one into a Cabriolet.
T34 Cabriolet's were first built in
late-1962 and only fifteen were built
before VW halted production. None of
the fifteen Cabriolets were sold to
the public and only six survivors exist
today, all in Germany.
CONVERSION:
The conversion process was done by a
metal fabrication shop in San Diego
with experience creating Carson Top
vehicles. Chassis rails were strengthened
with solid steel bars welded underneath.
The roof was removed, and a metal lip
was created around the rear edge to
prevent water getting in. The windshield
frame was modified to mimic the original
T34 Cabriolet design. But because Lee
lives in sunny warm San Diego he chose
not to have a folding top designed,
instead choosing to have a roadster
design. Over the past twenty-four years
this T34 has remained structurally solid
and has 15,000 miles added to the odometer.
UNIQUE
FEATURES: 1962 model T34s have some
unique features not seen on later model
years. The front nose emblem is a cast
metal rectangular emblem, the KG script
is placed on the left-rear panel (vs
the decklid), and there is a KARMANN
script and small Ghia shield fitted
to the left-side panel under the pop-out
window. A push-button lighting control
switch was used from 1962-64, a collectible
design element. The 90mph speedometer
was used in 1962-63 as the single sidedraft
carburetor 45hp engines were used. An
elegant cloth/vinyl interior design
was offered in 1962-63 as well, creating
a comfortable and cool driving experience.
RESTORATION:
Lee disassembled the car himself and
stripped it to bare metal to discover
the areas needing work. He found only
a few areas with rust which were cut-out
and welded with fresh fabricated metal
panels. Prior to the internet no repair
metal panels were available for T34
owners. After the top conversion phase,
he had a local body shop finalize the
body and paint it Ruby Red, the original
color. NOS seals were purchased from
Lars Neuffer in Germany during a vacation
in the summer of 2000. Bumpers, hub
caps, and all other plated parts were
triple-chromed by Bill & Steve's
in Bellflower CA. The stock early 15"
rims were powder-coated Pearl White.
BF Goodrich 165R15 radial tires were
found at Coker Tire with thin 0.75"
whitewalls. And the stock upholstery
was created by amigo Pedro Sainz in
Silver-Beige and Silver cloth to give
the elegant interior design. The engine
was built by VW Paradise in San Marcos
CA as a 1600cc assembled with 1962 parts
to be as authentic as possible. The
restoration was completed in a year
and over the next couple years this
Ruby Red T34 was featured in several
VW magazines including Hot VWs Vintage
Special, VolksWorld, and Let's Play
VWs.
OPTIONS
& ACCESSORIES: Personalizing
our VWs is a fun part of the process
and Lee wanted only stock accessories
that would have been sold at the VW
dealerships in 1962. For tunes he found
a 1962 Blaupunkt Frankfurt AM/FM model
with German LMU pushbuttons and matching
gray knobs. To keep things organized
he found an ivory Kamei asymmetrical
under-dash parcel tray with nylon netting.
The full-circle bent horn ring was offered
for early Type 3s and Beetles so Lee
added it for added elegance. For safety
he added front lap seat belts, having
survived a 2000 crash in his other T34
Coupe with only lap belts. For better
visibility driving he added dual "cat's
eye" side mirrors to both sides,
usually only added to the driver's side,
having found a RHD mirror in Norway.
And lastly, to provide all the tools
needed while driving he bought a round
plastic Hazet tool kit.
Lee
Hedges
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