1967 Austin Gipsy – Project Profile

“That Land Rover looks a little bit weird” would be an understandable statement to make upon casting one’s eyes over this Austin Gipsy because yes, it does look a hell of a lot like a Landy, but there’s a reason for that. You see, the Gipsy was Austin’s rather ostentatious plan to go head to head with Rover and its venerable off-roader with the plan to offer a lower cost mud-plugging alternative. It was a bold move and one that ultimately fell on its face but respect to Austin for having a bloody good go nonetheless.

Produced for ten years between 1958 and 1968 the Gipsy was a successor to Austin’s previous military-spec jeep, the Champ, and it continued very much in the same vein, being as it was designed for both civilian and military use. Taking not an insignificant amount of design cues from the Land Rover it was built to address the inherent weaknesses of the Champ as well as cash in on the success of Rover’s Series Land Rovers.

Contrary to the Landy’s aluminium body, however, the Austin featured steel panels which led to many a Gipsy turning to piles of flaky orange bits. With only a shade over 20,000 having been produced in the first place before the BMC/Leyland merger put a kybosh on production due to both vehicles being produced by the same company, the Gipsy is an incredibly rare beast and very much forgotten in the classic world. Well, we’re here to jog those memories because we have a late model Gipsy available via our online auctions platform.

What is it?

This 1967 Austin Gipsy is one of the last built. A Series III long wheel base model it is fitted with a four-speed manual gearbox and the 2.2-litre, 55bhp diesel four-cylinder (a 62bhp petrol engine was also offered) with just 50K on the clock. Mostly complete, solid and in wholly original condition it’s a running example in need of restoration.

Why is it a project?

With little documented history or maintenance records this Austin Gipsy will need the full mechanical fine tooth treatment. As mentioned, the engine does run and sounds healthy but the advanced suspension system fitted to these cars is a lot more technologically advanced than that found on the Land Rover. The paintwork is in pretty bad shape and there is surface corrosion visible both on the steel panels and underneath and the interior will also require reupholstering.

What should you look for?

This is a Car & Classic auction vehicle and as such everything you need to know is included in the professionally written listing. Not only that but there are also 250 high quality images of the Gipsy included, so if a picture paints a thousand words, well, you do the math.

What should you do with it?

Some people will tell you that this Austin Gipsy has a well-earned patina that should be embraced and preserved. We’re not going to tell you that. Instead we’re going to recommend going down the full resto route with this one. This car is too rare a beast and so a pristine, show-going example would be a beautiful celebration of the marque. Yes, it’ll be a lot of work but this Gipsy appears to have good bones and a strong motor and so represents an excellent base upon which to build and one which will ultimately reap countless rewards. Just be prepared to correct people when they compliment you on your beautiful Land Rover…