Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC 145: the strange coupe from Brazil

There are things in the history of automotive design that are difficult to explain, and one of the typical examples of this is the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC 145. The background of this little-known car dates back to 1962, when Brazil became the second and only country in the world after Germany to start producing the Volkswagen Karmann Ghia Type 14 sports coupe. It enjoyed good market success and only a few years after the start of production, Brazil decided to present its own more modern vision of its design. Thus, in 1970, the new TC (Touring Coupe) model debuted, and the most interesting thing in this case is that the main “culprit” for its exterior design was none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro himself bobina aprindere valeo pret.

Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC 145: the strange coupe from Brazil

The result of the complete modernization of the body is undoubtedly quite controversial. And while the front has a somewhat modern, even slightly pretentious look for its time (although quite different from the typical sporty look), the design of the rear is unfortunate. When viewed from the side (and with some imagination) you can detect some resemblance to the Porsche 911, but it is rather within the limits of good wishes. And all this is really inexplicable, considering that in those years Brazil made some of the most stylish and spectacular sports cars in Latin America.

The Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC 145 uses the platform of the 1600 Type 3. The 1584 cc air-cooled boxer engine is from the same model, which has undergone additional tuning. Although the TC 145 delivers almost double the power of its original Type 14 predecessor, there is still a lot to be desired. In the early 1970s, a top speed of 138 km/h and a modest 65 horsepower (48 kW) at 4600 rpm were far from sufficient for something that pretended to be a sports coupe. If this car had been equipped with a standard Porsche engine, things would probably look a lot more optimistic, at least in theory.

From a modern perspective, of course, every classic sports car has its own charm. An additional advantage of the TC 145 is the fact that the majority of the produced copies were intended only for the local Brazilian market, and only a few were exported abroad, making it a great collector's rarity.

This exotic Brazilian Volkswagen was produced between 1970 and 1976, with a total of 18,119 units built during that period.

Car parts AutoPower
Car parts AutoPower

The result of the complete modernization of the body is undoubtedly quite controversial

The Volkswagen Karmann Ghia TC 145 uses the platform of the 1600 Type 3