WARNING.— The person in whose name this vehicle is displayed may or may not be the current owner of the vehicle. Readers are warned, therefore, that this entry is not proof of ownership.
Details
- Registration Mark
- RIN 921
- (a) Type:
- Karmann Ghia
- (b) Year:
- 1968
- (c) Colour:
- Velour Red under Lotus White
- (d) Paint code:
- L30K under L282
- (e) Engine CCs:
- 1500
History
- (a) Country of origin:
- Germany
- (b) County first reg'd:
- Kerry
- (c) Current or last known location:
- Kerry
Model information
Type 1 Karmann Ghia
Info
Darren O’Rourke posted this photo on his Original Irish Aircooled VW Facebook group so I asked him about it. Darren didn’t have much information about the photo as it was but he was lead to believe that this Karmann Ghia might be owned by our friend and life-long Volkswagen enthusiast John Knightly. Everyone in the VW scene knows John and if you don’t, you should. John has a wealth of Volkswagen knowledge but above all that, John is a very obliging man and will help any Volkswagen owner if they are ever in trouble in the Kerry area.
This photo was taken in Cork in the 1990s we believe. I asked John what he knew of this March 1970 County Kerry registered Karmann Ghia and if he owned it. This was his response:
“Yes, I do own that Karmann Ghia. It’s a 1968 left hand drive (LHD) imported into Ireland in 1970. I was told that it belonged to some executive of the Liebherr crane factory who lived in Kenmare. Apparently they had two Karmann Ghias; this one and a white one, which ended up rotting away in a field. I have photos somewhere and bits off of it lol.
RIN 921 was cherry red with a cream roof. After Liebherr, it was sold to various people in Cork over the years until I bought it off a guy in Macroom for the hefty sum of £450. I have had it for years and have been collecting parts for its restoration.”
Thanks to Darren for allowing us to use the photo and thanks to John Knightly for the information. It’s great to add a story to a single photo. We can only assume that perhaps the colours were Velour Red (L30K) under a Lotus White (L282) roof. That must have looked stunning against the backdrop of the majestic County Kerry. We can’t wait to see RIN 921 back on the Irish roads again some day.
Submitted by: John Knightly
Additional Photos