We track down one of our old feature cars and drag it from its resting place
VolksWorld’s Vault
Jules Kennon’s Ghis as originally featured by us way back in 1995
Here’s the car coming out of the garage it’s been sitting in since 1999
ack to 89 encompasses many styles, including racecars. While the Show ’n’ Shine is where many legendary cars were awarded, the racecars are also unforgettable in their own right. Jules Kennon’s ‘Karmann Addiction’ is one of those cars. I remember seeing Jules’ car debut at the Karmann Konnection swapmeet in 1994, parked under the foyer at the sports hall. It looked amazing, and I loved the vintage twist with the paintwork. When I suggested to Jules a ‘Where is it now?’ feature on her car, she looked slightly mortifi ed as the car hasn’t been out of her garage for more than a decade. Jules remarked, “You can’t feature it, it’s covered in a layer of dust and I will get lynched!” I decided to drop by to get the history, igniting some enthusiasm at the same time. It was in 1996 that Glenn suggested painting the car black. Shortly before the race season, the car was back in the workshop, having a rollcage fi tted and another narrowed beam, before being painted black. Simple ‘Karmann Addiction’ lettering adorned the doors, but it was felt the black paint was just a little too black. To get around this, Glenn masked up the paintwork and magenta scallops were added with yellow detail, including silver pinstriping. ‘Centreline’ wheels were then fi tted to the front, while the ‘Chromies’ stayed on the rear. New sponsors Rockford Fosgate and URO/ VW Dream Machine logos were also added. In this
guise the car competed at the very last Beetle Bash and was in the September ‘96 issue.
New Motor
A change of engine was also on the cards, with the original one riddled with problems by the end of the ’95 season. A 2.3-litre engine was built, running a personal best of 12.88 seconds at 105mph. In fact, the engine has only been run for a few miles until retirement in 1999. So what’s happened to it since then? Well it’s been sitting in a garage as family commitments and house renovation have taken priority. However, the more we got talking, the more Jules and Glenn’s excitement grew. So much so, that while discussing its future they said they would like to go racing again and would start looking for sponsorship.
The following day these pictures were taken. Glenn managed to free off the seized brakes and roll it out into the daylight. As you can see, the car was under a few inches of dust. However, a few hours later the paintwork from a decade ago was revealed, still looking fresh.
The car may be set for yet another respray and I suggested they can debut at the VolksWorld Show 2011 on the VolksWorld Vault display area, so look out for this legend, and if you would like to sponsor the car, please get in touch at
b289club@yahoo.com. - Stu Betty
VW Dream Machine sponsored the car, but is long gone now
The interior is still in great shape
The car is exactly as it looked in ’99
The original turquoise paintwork can still be seen in many areas
The engine is still the same, but hasn’t been run for years
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