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AUSTIN cHAMP
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275987576226?_trkparms=amclksrc=ITM&aid=777008&algo=PERSONAL.TOPIC&ao=1&asc=20221115143056&meid=42cea747d65245cb93f96076056bf870&pid=101612&rk=1&rkt=1&itm=275987576226&pmt=0&noa=1&pg=4375194&algv=RecentlyViewedItemsV2&_trksid=p4375194.c101612.m4236&_trkparms=parentrq:0ddc514a18a0a77347fa2fa6fffed426|pageci:81c2646d-3e8f-11ee-9454-da498057ba25|iid:1|vlpname:vlp_homepage
hI, ANYONE GOT ANY EXPERIENCE OF THESE/COMMENTS... ESPECIALLY THE PRICE OF THIS one. Will include side screens. Engine is new TIA
hI, ANYONE GOT ANY EXPERIENCE OF THESE/COMMENTS... ESPECIALLY THE PRICE OF THIS one. Will include side screens. Engine is new TIA
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Comments
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A bit academic, as it was sold a month ago.
IMHO an interesting curiosity, only to be considered if you’ve money to burn. (Like most “classic “ vehicles TBF.0 -
Did not sell. Just 'ended'0
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It looks like rather a niche vehicle to ever make serious capital growth.
Just my opinion - I know nothing.0 -
Way too much money in my opinion. It's a mixed bag... Upgrades so not 100% factory fresh condition.
It's one of those vehicles that you know when you want one but personally I would want it to be totally original
except those areas where you cannot see the upgrades. Fit an alternator inside the dynamo housing for example.
The extras like USB etc I would rip out because its unknown, I would want to redo all that myself if I wanted
it to have USB.
If your buying join the clubs, for me it's going to be a good few years before I think it's worth £19k.
If you or someone else thinks it's worth £19k then the price is right.Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...0 -
My dad drove one when he did his national service, back when everything was black and white!
He learnt to drive in one in Germany, well actually he could point out the front from the back so they gave him a driving licence!
They aren't as popular as the Willys jeep but are a bit more complicated and a lot more expensive to run and repair.
They are also incredibly thirsty, fuel consumption wasn't really a consideration for the designers and they tend to do fractions of a mile to a gallon.
They were launched a few years after the Land Rover and the British army preferred that because it cost half as much, usually had a roof, doors and windows, was way easier to repair and service in the field and was a fair bit more reliable, which made them a bit of a lame duck with the military.
They made around 11,000 but that was far short of what they expected and planned to make.
But saying that I believe a few saw a bit of action around the world, like in Korea.
Some ended up in Africa where militants and mercenaries got hold of them, this was obviously long before the Toyota Hilux!
They did make a few civilian versions and I think both military and civilian versions came with either the RR B40 engine along with the Austin Atlantic 4 pot, most of the Austin ones were exported though.
The civilian version didn't take off or last long as the Austin Gipsy replaced them, which was another poor relation to the Land Rover.
From what I remember, the drive chain was always a bit of a bug bear.
They did suffer a lot of transmission wind up which caused a lot of damage. This then lead to some poor repairs, leaking seals, water ingress etc made the problems worse and until a few years ago wrote cars off as the costs were to high to repair.
Reverse isn't part of the gearbox, it's part of the transfer box. So you select reverse on that and still use the 5 gears in the gearbox to drive, making is 5 forward and 5 backward.
A fair few famous car designers and engineers had a hand in it's design, like Alex Issigonis, so some of the engineering is to be admired, a little.
Like a lot of military vehicles, a lot of the value is in the history.
Stuff like this was generally storage fodder, vehicles laid up "just in case" that was then sold off and converted to "dad's old regiment" colours and spec, when in reality they were nothing more than a forgotten 1/4 ton truck from a storage shed.
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We used them a lot in the 60s and early 70s for floating bridge exercises in Germany. Very strong RR engine but the transfer boxes were a constant problem. Plus the engines did not like the low octane army petrol.0
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What do you actually WANT?
If you really really want a perfect Austin Champ, that's probably hard to beat. Cheaper than restoring one. But you wouldn't be asking the question here.
If you want a classic workhorse, buy an old Landy for a fraction of the price, and you won't feel guilty about getting it muddy or scraping it on a gate or chucking logs in the back.
If you want a summer weekend toy, you can find something that's a damn sight easier to find bits for, and a damn sight nicer to drive.
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knightstyle said:We used them a lot in the 60s and early 70s for floating bridge exercises in Germany. Very strong RR engine but the transfer boxes were a constant problem. Plus the engines did not like the low octane army petrol.
They were fitted with hand throttles, so with a snorkel and a bit of waterproofing you could drive them stood up underwater, through rivers etc.
Though with the money spent on that new engine, I wouldn't want to be the first to try it.
A lot got dragged out of storage for the Nation Service lot and TA's to use or more correctly abuse.
For me they are a nowhere car, no doubt a nice one though.
You're unlikely to want to off road it too much.
Due to it's age you're not really part of the battle recreation brigade either.
It's not a period correct show car.
And no way is it a flash cruising toy, unless it's a very slow cruise between petrol stations.
You could spend the same money on restoring a pretty Land Rover 2A and probably still use it for three of the four things above, maybe the fourth if you sling in a more modern engine.0 -
It looks well over priced to me, I'd have put it at £14-£15K (I wouldn't pay more than £10K tbh)- but I guess they are worth what someone is prepared to pay.Back in the 70s there was always one or two in every scrapyard, the transaxle used to fail for lack of maintenance, they needed quite a lot (like a LandRover really) but were a bit awkward to do, I'm guessing the advertised "Top access point" is a way to get at the transaxle for maintenance. If you paid more than £100 for a runner back then (the floors were always rotted out), you were done!The independent suspension let squaddies go much faster off road (the limiting factor is what an 18 year old's back can endure) so there were some spectacular roll-overs that wrote a few off in service, (although not as bad as the US M151, which had a swing axle at the back and killed so many troops that when they were disposed of they were cut up to stop people driving them).I'd have one if someone offered me an absolute bargain- I could sit on the bonnet like Julian Cope, but tbh I'd never use a sub 10 mpg vehicle, and there are plenty of other toys I'd rather clear the garage out for.I want to go back to The Olden Days, when every single thing that I can think of was better.....
(except air quality and Medical Science)
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Some price context :
https://www.brightwells.com/timed-sale/5375/lot/657622
£8k at auction, reserve met.
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