Austin Gipsy, Landrover and Champ compared

These pages are from Motoring Which? of October 1965.

While on holiday in the Netherlands I got to go for a country drive in Chris Linford's Series 2 Austin Gipsy. Nice!!

Costa Rican Gipsy

Interesting how this leaf-sprung Gipsy seems to sport a Landrover rear tub!

Austin Gipsy driving movie clip

On holiday on Vancouver Island Glenn Kemp took me for a ride in his Austin Gipsy on the Old Nanaimo River road! A cool guy, driving a cool truck!

Gipsy Targa Coupe de ville

This Gipsy lost the front part of the hardtop roof. Effectively turning it into an easily convertible Targa top. How about that?
And when the heatwave hits us, the whole hardtop will come off!

Testdriving a series one Landrover

The article in the previous post compares the Austin Gipsy and the Landrover. Really interesting and it made me look into Landrovers some more. It seemed to me the Series one is the one to go for, so when a nice 1954 Series one was advertised I decided to try it and see if I they would make a nice pair.
The first thing that struck me was how small the Landrover seemed compared to the Gipsy. Was the Gipsy aimed at the series one or the series two? Or was the series two Landrover a response to the larger Gipsy? I was always under the impression that Rover was hardly worried by the Gipsy and never feared it's competition.
But looking at the series one Landrover and comparing it to the Gipsy one could think otherwise.
Off course the Gipsy has a steel body and the Landrover's "Birmabright" fixes some of the ugly rust problems, but looking at various Landrovers I would think rust still is a big problem, although not as visible. Worse, as I have only seen one holed chassisframe on a leaf sprung Gipsy and never on a Flexi, the Landrover-owners I spoke to seemed to think nothing of changing outriggers and rear members and all Landrovers I saw had repairs to the chassis. Also fixing the bulkhead seems to be a regular issue.
The ride of the series one was really harsh compared to the Flexi and mechanical noise was also much more obvious too. The Landrover is clearly an older concept compared to the independent and rubber setup on the Gipsy. The steel body on the Gipsy is more like a car and feels stiffer and rattles less. Changing gears on the Gipsy is also smoother, though engaging 4wd on the Landrover seems more refined with that smooth yellow knob to push. The Gipsy feels like a heavier car and the Landrover is definitely bouncier.
Articulation, well that is much better on the Landrover where the Gipsy lifts a wheel as soon as there's a ridge to cross. The turning radius on the Landrover is also a pleasant surprise compared to my Flexitor Gipsy(and later series Landrovers too..). The later leaf sprung Gipsies have the same great articulation as the Landrover and the turning radius has also been improved beyond the Landrover's. But really the Gipsy is all about that crazy independent suspension, so changing that to a leaf sprung setup seems to chane it into something other than a Gipsy.
But really I can't choose. They are both great vehicles aimed at the same market by two very different companies. If only the Gipsy would have had better articulation and that little thing with the wheels would have been sorted before production I think the Gipsy could have given the Landrover some real competition, before the Japanese rode into town.

Yes, trying out an old landrover was very useful in learning to appreciate the innovations of the Gipsy, though the craving to add a series one Landrover has not yet dulled....
What can I say? A couple of weeks later I was driving this Landrover home to park it in my shed. Right next to my faithful Gipsy. What a way to solve a dilemma!

Austin Gipsy versus Landrover test 1959

Here's an article from an Australian magazine in 1959 comparing the Austin Gipsy and Landrover.
" As I see it, the Gipsy suffers from over-simplification, which knocks it a bit from the point of a pure work vehicle. The Landrover suffers from a stupidly complicated engine and also costs more...."
Read the article here!

Austin Gipsy in "Paperback Hero"

This is a movie we need to see! "Paperback Hero" has an Austin Gipsy and shots of beautiful Australian scenery! Look at that left front wheel and how she's fighting the steering wheel. Looks so familiar!

reporting snow in Canada

Our correspondent in Canada reports a foot of snow. After a sunny
spell winter has suddenly returned to Vancouver Island.

Wadham-Stringer Austin Gipsy Ambulance FCG 74D

For quite a few years now, we have seen an old Gipsy Ambulance dumped
in a field, near to a steam rally we attend, as we have a Fire
Appliance, we ( my daughter, son & son in law) thought it might be
nice to have this, making up a fleet of emergency vehicles, also with
me being a retired ambulanceman a good project, we have tried to
purchase this vehicle before, but not having much success, until it
came up on eBay a few months ago, I had to pay a lot more than its
true worth considering its condition.

Well now I have it home, and have done some research it has turned out
that it is the Proto-type of the Wadham Stringer Ambulance's built on
an Austin Gipsy, what a rare vehicle indeed! "Also now cheap at the
price," The Ambulance body has not suffered too much from the UK wet
weather, but the Austin Gipsy front end has really taken a beating.

The Austin Gipsy owners Club (UK) Mike Gilbert's has even managed to
send me a copy of the original drawings for our Ambulance, what a
scoop,
I have had members of Hampshire Ambulance Service contact me as this
is where it First worked, giving me all sorts of information, and I
have spoken to one of the original body builders.
So I'm more determined to get this restored and back on the road.

Though after a weekend of finding how bad the metal work is I don't
think it will be ready for a year or so. Though if I can find a good
front end, I might do a swap, bringing forward our re-build.
The wings on our Ambulance have been modified – well in truth they
have been made by the Body builders as they are more like a Landrover
style having square sharp edge to them and no vents, but this is
correct from some of the information people have told me, they still
have the Gipsy front curve!

I know I'm mad but I think a nice "Police" Gipsy could be the next
project? Then we would have a true emergency Fleet. I will keep an
eye open just in case one turns up. But this one must be completed
first.

Alan Dunderdale