Mud-club

Chat & Social => The Bar - General Chat => Topic started by: chimo on September 05, 2007, 11:20:10

Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: chimo on September 05, 2007, 11:20:10: hi people i wonder if any of you have any info on the austin champ and if it would work as a offroader as i have been offered one i want a vehecle for more extreme stuff and wondered if this could be the right vehicle to adapt
cheers people :D :D :twisted:
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: Eeyore on September 05, 2007, 11:25:11: Probably not, but an interesting question.

Think of an Austin Champ in the same way you'd think of a Series 1, but more rare. It can be made capable, but the vehicle is more valuable kept original and the modification budget spent buying a coiler to start with. You'd end up with a better vehicle.

Champs are little delicate and spares are like rocking horse poop. IMV less capable than the LR Series vehicles, but they do have a certain cuteness to them.

Hope this helps
Cheers
8)
Eeyore
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: Cherry Bomb on September 05, 2007, 11:51:17: Austin Champs were interesting trucks in as much as they used some relatively advanced design details considering what else was available at the time.
Probably the most amazing thing about them was the complex engineering (and advanced physics) involved in achieving a center of gravity approximately 30 feet above the roof of the vehicle!

Unfortunately, the complexity of their design means that they are a bit of a rarity now and parts are very difficult to come by.
(That and the fact that they fell over all the time that is.)
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: Range Rover Blues on September 05, 2007, 15:09:12: :lol:

What they said, very funny.

True though, it'd be a nice thing to own for it's rarity but I suspect from what you said it's hardly going to be concours.

They were an off-road vehicle but to modify as an extreme off-roader I think not.
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: ian_s on September 05, 2007, 22:43:48: a teacher at my school had one, it was amazing offroad. it would do anything my (then standard) series 3 would do, and more.
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: karlo on September 05, 2007, 22:59:48: We had the odd Austin Gypsy where i used to work as well!

(http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/1677/image306bd5.jpg)

(http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/2505/dscf0026vr6.jpg)

(http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/213/dscf0028jp3.jpg)
Title: austin champ as an offroader
Post by: Hobnailkelly on September 06, 2007, 01:08:24: Funnyly enough I saw one on Monday y driving through Ilkley - no roof or doors. Interesting feature: they could go just as fast backwards as forwards!