constellation

iTrader: (1)

Hey all, i know this is a subaru forum - but honestly its the only group of people that i actually like. Periodically, i'll post pictures of my 02 wagon, and the quiet mods i'll be making to it in the background, but for the most part this thread will revolve around reworking a stock datsun 510 into a monster, a sleeper, or just a tastefully modded sports sedan.

backstory :

I bought this 1970 510 with 77k original miles from its original owner in late september of '05 for $1600. The car itself is in stock (if not a bit degraded) condition - as in all the original parts are there, but 35 years have done a number on the plastic. As i was driving it home, the steering wheel was crumbling under my hands, making huge dust clouds of plastic billowing out the windows. Yuppies were litterally scowling at me driving on the freeway, it was amazing.
The body itself is in a condition you rarely find 510's - straight. Not perfectly straight, but straight enough for a person with now experience in bodywork to fix - which works well for me. It also is completely rust free - even the lower part of the fenders. This fact makes me happy....even thought the car is babyhsit brown.
It appears i have the perfect base to start a nice 510 project - and being a proffessional artist by trade, i'm **** to a fault - but i hope to use that to my advantage while doing this. You know, i want everything media blasted and powder coated and anodized and baptized and circumcized and polished and sprayed in champagne, but we'll see what my funds permit

So, I'm the immediate future - i'm going to replace all the hoses, sparkplugs, wires and working bits so the car is mobile during the proccess. The little 1600 still has lots of life in it, so it will do nicely. I'll take pictures of the rather un-exciting job of ripping out the interior this weekend, and the general tire kicking that ensues when we inevitably get overwhelmed with the amount of work and money needed to complete a project like this. All on film. Ha.

Anyways, to kick this project thread off, heres some pictures of the car as it stands now (as seen in the BAIC post).


Future mods (realistic) :
New interior
New rubber throughout
New windsheild
Rear disc brake kit from maddat
coilover set up from ground control
New bushings throughout
Antisway and strut braces throughout
Panasports - hopefully 16x6.5, so they'll fit. If not, then i'm going to buy the honda offset spacers, then i'll have a massive amount of wheels to choose from.
Body stripped and painted orange - the color of my first 510.

Future mods (unrealistic)
Sr20det swap
f20c from an S2000 + 6 speed


Thanks, I'll be updating this whenever i can.


_ian

bpang1

iTrader: (25)

As your first responder...I'm gonna say it...GET THE SR20DET!!!!!!!!!!!

NeRdY DoRkUs

i think i saw this on ebay. did u get it on ebay?

5LTRETR

well you sound like you know what your doing so ill keep the advice to a minimum. first youll want to swap out that straight axle for an independent one. will improve handling greatly. then swap out the front struts from a late model 280z. converts it to bigger disc's. im sure you know of the trouble with the sr20 swap, turbo clearance and all that fun stuff. weld in an "ikea" brace behind the rear seat back really helps with stiffnes. and will keep a fire from spreading as fast if you get in a wreck. i could go on and on, so if you have any question shoot me a pm. ive done lots of work on 510's we finished a vg33 swap from a 98 pathfinder a while ago, did a 200 hp ka24, and so on. oh and clean car

constellation

iTrader: (1)

Awesome, maybe you can point out some of my inevitable huge mistakes during this process! What do you mean "straight axle?". I thought only wagons had a straight axle? I know for certain that my car is 4 wheel independent. crap, am i misunderstanding something?

As far as the drop is concerned - yeah, an Sr20 makes a mess, and takes alot of fabrication to fit in there - and i'm still not entireley sure what to do about the steering box in that scenario. Thats why i'm kinda tossing around the idea of throwing a honda engine in there, but i'm sure that would be just as big a headache.
Crap, maybe i'll just keep it stock. hehe.
Miata engine?
R22e?
Who knows...

cleofis

iTrader: (11)

i want to say.. 13b swap.

constellation

iTrader: (1)

I think this pretty much sealed the deal for me here.

http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=945476&page=1


drooool....

they say it fits better than an sr20....

5LTRETR

dont go with a 13b no torque. the four doors also came with the straight axle in the back along with the wagons. if youve got an IRS your lucky. and it all depends on what your goals are, whether its auto-x, drag queen or just an all around driver. ive seen several vg30det swaps that make really decent power. you gotta keep inmind the car only ways 2,200 dripping wet.

constellation

iTrader: (1)

Not to get into a pissing match, but my bone stock '70 has IRS, and actually both sedans and coupes always came with them, only wagons have straight axles. Ive owned now four 4drs, ranging from 68'-'72, and none of them had a straight axle. They simply never came with one. I know thats a small point to argue - and i certainly don't mean to sound like a dick. If 4drs had straight axles, i totally would not be owning one. blech.

I've actually driven in a vg30 powered datsun wagon, and it was actually somewhat underwhelming - of course it had gobs of torque - but it seemed to turn gas into noise. Give you all the tell tale signs of great speed while accelerating rather slowly. At this point everything i say about this project is speculation - but the project is certainly moving foreward. I somehow tricked my girlfriend into being really excited about interior work - i wonder when that will wear off, haha. Anyways, i'm calling in sick friday so i can get up to loomis and start throwing myself at the car. keep you posted.

5LTRETR

totaly not an argument. i guess im mistaken. ive never owned a four door and always thought they were straight axles. oh well. there are so many options for the engines it can get overwelming. i kept the L20b in my previous datsun, bored .020 over, custum ground cam, nismo header, nismo dual s.u. sidedrafts off the sss, nismo flywheel and clutch, roadster intake valves, and an r180 out of an older impreza, the thing was a blast to drive. dyno'd at 115whp at troy ermishes shop in fremont. i work at Napa Nissan and my boss is a Datsun Guru. his name is Bill Kenyon if youve done alot of research you might have run across his name. if you ever need tech info or a lead on hard to find parts shoot me a message.

Ryan

constellation

iTrader: (1)

Thanks ryan. I think that alot of people may think that the four door is inferior in mechanical ways, but its actually almost exactly the same - except for the four doors of course. I think the draw to coupes is purely asthetic - as i've heard from a group of crazy hawaiian 510 nuts that the four door is a bit heavier, but much stiffer because of the placement of the B pillar being more towards the center of the car. Obviously i have no way to back that up, but it sorta makes sense. I owned a car much like yours at one time - L20 bored over, hot cam, dual mikunis, disc brakes - the works - and i certainly can attest - They are a goddamned blast to drive.
Thanks for the help though - i'll probably be talking to you in the future.

PeanutWRX

iTrader: (12)

my friend has a 2.3 ford turbo motor in his 510. :P

5LTRETR

i talked to my boss today and he said that you were right only the wagon came with the straight axle UNLESS it was a mexican 510 4dr which had the straight axle. so i was sorta right. but those came with a 1.3L and who in the hell wants that.

HKSwrx02

sweet car. Neighboor of mine has got a very nice one of those. Mabye Ill try to get a few pics of it. Good luck to your project

constellation

iTrader: (1)

whoa, that crazy. I wonder why they did that? Hhaha, well - you still get points in my book.
Anyways - i've got the car down to almost a rolling shell now - except for the engine and tranny - which i'm frantically trying to get rid of. I've been talking to some people about an f20c drop from an s2000 - and it looks like i may make that swap. Sr20det's are cool and all, but i dont wanna mess fitting a turbo in there - getting custom manifolds made and having to worry about the steering box. So, you know. Anyways - i'll post pics tommorow.