・Repainted 4 years ago

・Enthusiast owned 

・Well presented 

・Rebuilt gearbox and differential

The British Army started World War II with no Jeeps, and so were getting their jeeps from the United States, which, in the early days, were the American Bantam. When the War ended, the British Army decided they needed a Jeep, but it must be better. Along came this design by Sir Alec Issigonis (the designer of the Austin Mini), in the early 1950’s. The small military vehicle was designed as the replacement for the Jeep, which was to become known as the Austin Champ. British through and through, the Austin Champ was a British design, powered with a Rolls-Royce engine. The design of the Champ was so impressive that it was even capable of going up to six feet under water whilst drawing in air via the folding snorkel. Another unique feature for the 4x4 is that it has 5 forward and 5 reverse gears, making it capable of achieving over 50mph in forwards or reverse. 

The seller of this 1953, Austin Champ has been the owner for the past 15 years. A couple of years into the ownership he did sell the vehicle to a friend, but then just a short time later he bought it back, in February 2012. This has put extra owners on the log book, when in fact the seller has been 2 of them. 

Being a huge fan of the Champ, this particular one was intended to be one that wouldn’t be sold. He has restored the Champ to a lovely condition and moved away from the usual shade of green in favour of Farina Grey.

The Champ was always in excellent condition to the underside, mechanically and exterior, hence the reason it was being kept. The colour change was completed around 4 years ago and since then regular servicing and maintenance has been carried out, ensuring the Champ always wanted for nothing.

 
So why the reason for the sale of the one he always wanted? Well, another Champ has come along for the seller, which he has purchased and is now concentrating on, meaning that this one is up for grabs.   

The V5 is present and shows 6 previous UK keepers for the Champ. 

There is no real paperwork for the Champ, other than a couple of old MOT certificates.

Inside, the Champ has been finished in satin black and has retained the original switchgear and instruments, which are reported to be working correctly. The odometer is showing a reading of  27,516 miles.

The seats have been recovered in brown vinyl, which is a nice contrast against the ???? Grey exterior. Also nice to see present is the rear seat which was often removed to give a larger load area.

  

The paintwork on the Champ is finished in Farina Grey paint code GR-11, which as mentioned, was carried out 4 years ago. There are a couple of chips here and there as you would expect, given the fact that the seller has used the Champ whenever possible. 

Starting with the front, the grille has a couple of small holes in the mesh, which could be easily replaced.  

The headlights and indicators are free from any chips and splits. The bonnet aligns well with the wings. The windscreen frame is in good order, and easily folds down for the full open top experience. 

Around to the sides of the Champ, and the wings are nice and straight with no obvious dinks to mention. The same can be said for the sides of the vehicle and the rear arches. You will notice that the driver’s side wing has the snorkel in place, which would be moved to the vertical position when being used to go through water. A nice touch and in place, are the shovel mounted to the driver’s side, and pick and handle mounted to the passenger side. The roof pulls up with ease and hooks into the windscreen frame, which is then tightened with the side bars that hold it taught. There is a small mark just above the window where it has got caught on something. It has not gone through, but is quite thin. 

Around to the rear is all as you would expect, with no damage to report. The lights are free from any splits, and there is a Jerry can and spare wheel, which has a new tyre. The wheels are the original split rims which have been repainted in the body colour. The tyres are matching and are like new having not covered many miles.

The Champ is fitted with the amazing Rolls-Royce 2838cc 4-cylinder engine, which produces 80bhp at 3,750 rpm. A fully enclosed engine capable of being submerged up to six foot underwater, (providing the snorkel was used). 

The engine fires up first time in this 1953 Champ. The tickover is nice and smooth with no unwanted noises from the Rolls-Royce engine. It has been fitted with a new exhaust around 4 years ago, so this looks to be in good condition. The transmission in the Champ is a work of art, with 5-forward and 5-reverse gears, you can go either way at a great pace. 

The seller reports that the gear change is nice and smooth, thanks to the gearbox refurbishment. There are no noises coming from the differential as this was also rebuilt at the same time as the gearbox. It has also had the 4 gaiters replaced on the drive shafts.

Helping the weighty 4 x 4 come to a halt, the brakes have also been given a clean bill of health, with an overhaul ensuring everything is as it should be.

A British military classic which has been given a fresh makeover 4 years ago by an enthusiastic owner. The Champ was bought with the intention of never letting it go, and so everything that was needed to be done has been done.

Ready and raring to go on road, off road or even underwater, the choice is yours, what will it be?

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