Ascort TSV 1300 G.T.

Who’d guess that Australians would create a Beetle-based car with grand touring manners to surpass even the Porsche 356?

Okay, this might be a stretch, but the Ascort TSV 1300 certainly impressed road testers in the late 1950s.

I’m sure that, eventually, an Ascort owner will chime in the comments and enlighten us to its road manners. Does it perform exactly how it looks? A Karmann Ghia merged with a 356, seating four and designed to be a grand tourer, not an Alpine corner carver like the 356.

Apparently, 12 of these fibreglass sports cars were made…again, in Australia. Volkswagen Beetle motors, that were hand-tuned by a man named Oettinger — ever heard of him?

Believe it or not, the hot versions of this car could reach speeds in excess of 155 km/h (96 mph)! 

Who do we have to thank for this incredible machine? A little-known Czechoslovakian transplant to Australia, Mirek Craney, who was reportedly self-taught in just about everything, from plastics design to clock tower repair.

Naturally, approaching the problem of creating a car that would surpass his own Karmann Ghia, Craney used his connections as the importer of OKRASA, er, Oettinger Kraftfahrtechnische Spezial Anstalt hop-up parts to fit a significantly more powerful 1,300-cc flat-four with 54 horsepower. 

Craney also used his alternative materials knowledge to create a sporty-looking, Ferrari Superamerica-inspired body, apparently reinforced for strength over what you'd get from a Beetle. Using floorpans from the V-Dub, the body was then mounted on rubber blocks to dampen vibration, with front and rear luggage compartments boxed in for strength, including polyurethane foam to keep strength as well as reduce road noise. 

Weight was in the region of 657 kg (1,450 lbs.)