1961 Ghia L6.4 Hardtop Coupe

By 1958, Dual-Ghia principal Eugene Casaroll was ailing, and business for the shipping line that was his bread and butter had slowed. He was prepared to give up production of his Dual-Ghia automobile; not so for Vice-President of Dual Motors, Paul Farago. He and the Ghia designers drew up a second-generation model; a 2+2 fastback coupe with lines refined by Chrysler's Virgil Exner. Ghia hand-built not only the body but virtually the entire car, including the chassis, which was based on 1960 Chrysler suspension components. The venerable 345hp 383cid Wedge V-8 was used to power the unique car. The engine's displacement in liters is what gave the car its 6.4 moniker. This is the 6th of 26 cars built from 1960-1963 at an astonishing $13,500.00 each.

The Ghia-badged L 6.4 was officially a product of Dual Motors, and its existence was the result of a long and fruitful relationship between Chrysler's design boss, Virgil Exner, and Ghia's leader, Luigi Segre. The running gear was all Mopar, with power sourced from a 383 cubic-inch 'Wedge' V8 engine paired with a TorqueFlite automatic transmission. Priced at an astonishing $13,500, production was limited, with just 26 examples constructed.

This particular example is the sixth of the 26 produced and has received a recent concours-quality, nut-and-bolt restoration. Its exterior is finished in warm metallic silver over a parchment leather interior.

This Ghia L 6.4 was originally delivered to Switzerland to an unknown private buyer. At that time, it wore dark amaranth over a camel-colored leather interior. The car remained in Switzerland until about 2000, when it was sold to Peter Rau, proprietor of Touring Garage AG, in Oberweningen, Switzerland. The ownership was then passed to an American collector who cared for it for the next 16 years. Up to this point, the car was never restored and remained in its original condition.

Following restoration, the Ghia was awarded Best in Class awards at the 2021 Audrain Concours d'Elegance and the 2023 Arizona Concours d'Elegance.

By Daniel Vaughan | Dec 2023