Whether it’s just adding a set of aftermarket wheels or going deeper with powertrain and suspension mods, many automotive enthusiasts take great joy in customizing their rides. Some take it further than others, but only a rarified few dive from the highest board into the deepest end of the customized-car pool. And that’s just where you’ll find the builder featured here, the very ambitious Scott Woodard.
Back in the mid-2000s, Scott had an idea to customize and modernize a Volkswagen Karmann Ghia. He didn’t just want to give VW’s classic sporty coupe a mere restomod treatment, however. He wanted something completely bespoke, something nobody else had, and he wanted to do it himself.
He already had a touch of experience with the craft and had built heavily customized VWs in the past. What he didn’t realize, though, is that he was about to embark on a journey that would push his fabrication, design, and engineering skills to the limit. In the end, he’d get exactly what he was after. A stunning Ghia sitting atop a modern Mercedes SLK320 chassis and drivetrain.
Why choose a 1974 Karmann Ghia? Woodard liked the design but saw the opportunity to make a few tasteful modifications to suit his liking. Here’s how he introduced the idea to a group of enthusiasts on TheSamba.com back in 2006.
I love the looks of the 50’s, early 60’s sports cars but want something different. I have a 356 Speedster replica and really enjoy it but want to build something front-engined. Nice 50’s corvettes and mercedes are going for big money so I’m thinking about going a different route. I have some experience modifying vehicles and doing bodywork and I don’t necessarily want info on how hard it will be to build ( I know what is involved) but rather a critique on the style. It will be front engine and rear wheel drive and is based on a karmann ghia body style. Here are a couple of photochops I did to get an idea of what I could do. Input very welcome, positive or negative.
For those wondering what his renderings looked like, here you go:
Scott also posted a video of him working through the idea, and it’s kind of amazing to see how basic the Genesis of this concept car was.
To put it mildly, reactions online in 2006 were a wide-ranging mix of good and bad. In fact, the very last response sort of encompassed both reactions. “Wow … Just, wow … May God have mercy on your soul …,” the poster said. That didn’t discourage Woodard though. He continued mulling over this project in his mind. By 2022, he’d made some significant strides.
While the body above doesn’t look amazing in terms of condition, that was somewhat intentional. “I did not want to start with a nice Karmann Ghia since I knew I would be cutting it up but the amount of bodywork on every single panel had me regretting that decision,” Woodard tells The Autopian. It’s clear to see that by 2022, he’d crafted the new grille and freed the body from its original chassis.
On the flip side, he’d decided very clearly that he wanted to use a Mercedes-Benz SLK as the chassis and drivetrain which explains why the body features the tri-star badge on its front grille. Of course, old car bodies and new car underpinnings don’t fit perfectly with one another very often. That led to another challenge for Scott. “A lot of thought had to go into being able to access any parts of the engine bay for maintenance and the Ghia has a very small hood. Because of this, the body had to remain removable,” he says.
The melding of the two cars virtually actually ended up being the most rewarding part he reports. “I found designing the car to be the funnest and easiest part. I enjoy playing with programs like Sketchbook to see if things fit and visualize modifications. I really do not think I would have had the guts to try it without that helpful tool.”
Scott made massive progress over the twelve months between April of 2023 and 2024. He modified the body not just to accept the slight styling changes he wanted but also to fit the chassis altogether.
By May of this year, he had added fender flares to deal with the wide track of the SLK. Then, in August he painted it gloss black which created a new problem.
“I missed small blemishes everywhere even after using polyester primer and blocking for days,” he said in a post. In an effort to get the project over the line without having to go too far backward, he repainted the car in an off-white gloss color. Now, it’s a genuinely stunning one-off creation that looks classic but rides like a modern grand tourer.
While Scott enjoyed building the car virtually, physically putting the Ghia body onto the SLK chassis and mating everything up proved to be the toughest part of this job. “Building the car was an absolute ton of work. I wouldn’t say anything was prohibitively hard but every step took so much time and it took a lot of motivation to keep going,” he said.
What would he do differently in the future if he had to build another? “I would definitely start with a cleaner body if I were to do it again, but I already have my next project planned which is a mid-engined Opel GT in the Dino 246 style.” We can’t wait to see that one come to fruition too. If this Ghia SLK is any indication, it’ll be a head-turner.
All photos by Scott Woodward, and here are a few more for you:
I LOVE Karmann Ghias, so this hurts a little bit. However, I think it’s overall pretty damn attractive. Like others have said, I don’t care for the Ghia tail lights being retained. It would have greatly benefitted from bullet style taillights in my opinion.
The biggest flaw to me is the transmission. A car that looks like that deserves much more than a boring Merc slushbox.
It does look cool, I agree with others that the fender flares could have been integrated more smoothly. I would have changed the tail lights. As longs as the builder likes it, that’s all that counts.
Neat idea, but the flares and the late model taillights spoil the aesthetic for me.
The silver render at the bottom of the 3 pics is my favourite. I like the coke bottle curves it has going on.
Love it!
The stick-on fender flares really do not help the body design any. I imagine they were a necessity to accommodate the track width.
on the picture without any fenders the car looks totally like 911
Shows how much work is required to make a VW product worthwhile and decent looking.
Most of the changes make it look worse. The Karmann Ghia is a stunner. Plus, let’s not pretend that VW hasn’t made some lookers over the years.
Mk1 Bus, all three generations of Scirocco, Mk4 Golf (R32 especially), B3 Passat, B5 Passat… heck, even their form-follows-function things like Vanagons and Transporters have a good look to them.
With exception of some of their recent styling, I’d say VW generally has better looking cars than most brands.
joke of the day
Everybody’s entitled to their opinion. But…woof, you got some stinkers in that list. B3 Passat? Looked like a kids’ toy that came from the cheapest possible plastic injection mold.
Cheers, really enjoyed the laugh you provided here xD
Lol hilarious. 10/10. No notes
I actually liked the body the most without the paint, with all the different base colour panels welded together, in which you still could see the original panels of the Ghia.
Sort of Mad Max / Rat look with a little bit of style.
Wow. That’s stunning, and genuinely impressive craftsmanship. I’d argue the finished product improved on the renderings by a lot. And the choice of colour was good too, even though it wouldn’t be a favourite of mine. If I was nitpicking, I’d say the rear end might be improved with a thin bumper, but it’s gorgeous enough as is.
There’s a youtube channel, invision prototypes, that does amazing body swaps, in a hotrod vein. ’40 Ford and matching pickup on modern Mustang chassis. ’51 Ford on an Infiniti. His standard is that it has to look factory in all aspects. Great craftsman, explains what he’s doing really well, seems like a nice guy. I have lost man-days there.
Two great tastes that taste great together – that Karcedesman Bia turned out pretty sweet!
This is a stunning combination of the best parts of both cars. Absolutely beautiful result befitting the years of hard work that Scott put into it! Congratulations, and good luck with the Opel GT project!
I was skeptical with the early images, but in final form with cream paint it’s pretty stunning. Kudos sir!
Amazing work! I love everything about this but those fender flares. I get that he had to do something like that to fit those wide wheels and tires, but they just look waaay too stuck on to such a lovely smooth and well-proportioned shape.
Same with the lower air intake.
Agreed, though I don’t mind it as much as those flairs.
Waste of a good Ghia.
Wow. Frickin’ nuts, but in a good way.
Please accept this Mercedes hood ornament for a job well done…
I must say this car breaks my brain. Never before have I noticed how much in common the 300SL and the KG had in common, and I can’t unsee it now.
Seriously, if he adds gullwings my brain might divide itself by zero.
As many have commented, the fender flare/wheel arches are sort of the fly in the otherwise very lovely custard, or is it ointment?
It seems like given the amount of re-proportioning and sectioning that went into this, splitting it down the center and widening it would not have been that big deal.
Günter Artz dressed up a Porsche 928 as a Mk1 Volkswagen Golf, widening it considerably. I believe the Porsche factory did something similar for an early 928 test mule, but they have resources far beyond those of mortal men.
If you want a front engine Karmen Gia (itself a copy of some Virgil Exner Chrysler concept cars that Ghia constructed) why not a Volvo 1800?
But really, congratulations to the builder, chef’s kiss!
Buddy dropped the body of a Karmann Ghia on a wrx chassis scary machine
Yikes!
Somehow I have a difficult time envisioning WRX bits fitting under the hood.
Sounds fun in a doing shots in a biker bar with your exhibitionist girlfriend and her sister sort of way.
Gorgeous car!
I want to like it… but the wheel arches kill it. Especially in the rear.
The fenders could use to be blended in, the rear especially, which would probably give it a 427 Cobra feel, but I’m amazed at how much I like it. At first, I thought he integrated the very front clip of an old SL on somehow, but it appears he just added the grille to the KG and I can’t believe how well it works. It helps, probably, that I have little love for either original car.
I like this. Definitely an improvement over its donor car.
Love the seeing people make their car dreams a reality. Always happy to see the creative hard work that people do.
Good on him! I love these kinds of builds. Not every aesthetic choice is the same one I’d have made, but that isn’t important. I totally hear him on the “using a better body” though. I’m 3 years in to a similar style build (I call them chassis pan swaps, using both the chassis and floorpan/firewall of the donor car), and probably 2 of those years are just rust repair. Hard to keep motivated!
The wheel arches really ruin the look.
They’re unobtrusive enough looking at it from side profile, but the view from the front is pretty bad. They look very tacked-on (as does the lower intake). The KG already has pretty defined haunches.
Overall 10/10 execution, but 7/10 result. But I’m sure he loves it and that’s what matters, so good for him and I’m happy it exists.
Like a double chin