EPTXDatsun

Thanks! I guess I'll have to do the same. How much did you cut?

Thanks guys. Gotcha. My concern is mainly the center section size as Tom1200 pointed out. I want this puppy to sit nice and low. I will have a look at the snubber. I figure I can always narrow it to my specs and have axles built for the 4x114.3 bolt pattern. Tom1200 is the pumpkin in an area of the cloor that would be simple to modify in case I need more clearance or is it in a structural area?

32 minutes ago, Tom1200 said:

I use a Nissan H190 and my car, being a race car, has been lowered (I think it's 3 inches). The H190 is smaller than the Ford 8.8 and I had to take out the axle/pinion snubber to get and sort of suspension travel (2.5" of bump). The snubber is spot welded onto the car at the end of the drive shaft tunnel.  Keep in mind I have the  radius/traction bars so I don't need the snubber. 

 

You'll need to measure; I raised the rear end up (I disconnected it from the springs) to see what bottomed first, in my case it was the snubber. Currently the axle housing comes within about 5-6mm of the floor when it hits the bump stops.

 

A Ford housing is a good choice; while the H190 will fit but it's 3" wider than stock and can result in tire clearance issues (I uses a very short 20.6 Hoosier race tire to solve that) plus things like the LSD are expensive ($1300-$1500 used). You can buy the Ford stuff all day long for reasonable prices.

 

The only down side to the Ford axle is weight. I think they are about 140lbs, where as the Datsun H190 with alloy diff it 98lbs (using the Z alloy drums)

So i am resurrecting my long-dormant project that involved swapping an F20C in to a '72 Datsun 1200. I am looking into a rear end upgrade, particularly the Ford 8.8 but not sure if it will physically fit underneath. Do I need to modify the floors to make it fit or would it work as-is if I have the vehicle lowered by 2-3"? TIA

Damn dude sad to hear you gave up like that, sounds like you were taking on too many projects at once, if I were you I would just get a harbor freight spray gun, buy the paint yourself with half mineral spirits spray it yourself with a bit of 2000 grit wetsanding in between coats for good measure, it already seems prepped for paint and with a nice cheap spray would be worth alot more in the long run if you do decide on selling it in the end.

Nah, it ain't about the money. Hell, the rims/tires on my E63 AMG wagon cost more than what I have into this car. It's the combination of my OCD coupled with the time and headache of a large-scale project that I just don't want to deal with anymore. I know it will be worth a lot more finished, but I'm moving on. I already have my Japanese fix taken care of with my '76 Mazda RX3 Coupe. It's on ebay right now open to offers. If someone wants the car only that's fine too as I can just put the F20C in my AE86 Corolla GT-S.

I'm gonna try fleabay and see if there's any bites. Up for grabs in case any of you guys are looking for another project. 

Thanks, guys. No worries. My ad on Craigslist got flagged. Did some research and looks like overzealous assholes are policing CL and flagging project vehicles because they believe they belong in parts section. I'm just gonna hold onto it for the time being and keep collecting parts to finish it. 

Thanks, guys. We'll see what happens. I put it on CL to see if there would be any bites but then the ad was flagged for removal for some reason.

If it doesn't sell, I'll just continue stacking parts and getting it ready to finish eventually. I took a look at it this morning and most of the work that was done was of decent quality and it's pretty complete.If it doesn't sell, I'll just continue gathering parts and eventually get to it. I don't need the money, the space isn't an issue, and the wife doesn't care what I do. It's just a matter of lost interest due to so much time wasted. I just need motivation, lol. 

Great car. Love the Nova.

In the other hand. Is there is any reason shop don't like to even touch  a imported car?  Jap in this case. They act if they going to get some terminal disease  if they work on a Japanese car.

Money is money. You quote your job fairly and You should  care less  if it is a Jap, Korean, o whatever that may be.

That happens to me couple of weeks ago, when I try to get my ID Tag refurbished. They simply say no.  When in there wed they stated they would be able to do to any car and model.

Well, that is how thing goes.

Good Luck with the 1200.

Thanks. It's all good. I'm gonna put it up for sale and see if anyone bites. If not, I'll be having it built locally where I can at least monitor progress. My favorite part about the Nova build was that every time I dropped in say, every other week, I saw progress. It was the first shop I've experienced this with which, sadly, is rare. It was pretty disheartening to go twice in 6 months to the last shop the 1200 was at and only see it under a thicker layer of dust.

Oftentimes, builders prefer to stick to what they know, which is why some are hesitant to try different stuff. I'm sure shop that built my Nova would do it since it would be a cakewalk for them and it is, at least, "vintage", lol. While the work they do is not cheap, you get what you pay for. Although the quality is worth it, I dont know if I want to be sinking $40k+ into a 1200 either, lol. 

I know it's a bit of a hike, but I know a good guy here? 

 

I feel you, though. The guy who did my last Nova wouldn't touch a "thin, flimsy old Jap car". Hell, even the guy doing my Roadster had to be talked into it...   :rofl:

Yup. I've been working on him.

Next up is my '57 Bel Air Rag. It was an impulse buy at Barrett-Jackson and when I finally pored over it, decided it wouldn't be worth keeping unless I redid the body/paint. Figure I'm way past the point of no return (I'll probably lose every penny I put in it going forward) on the 1200 and my plans for the Bel Air will actually increase the Chevy's value so that goes first. Because, well, priorities. 

It would be worth it because the work is second-to-none.

Is there any decent reputable shop left?

Hate when that happens. Keep pressing on, it doesn't look too far to finished.

Good luck on that EPTXDATSUN.

Hope You took good care of the interior as they look really good.

Are You planing on mod the interior too?

There are good shops, which is why what happened with my Datsun in inexcusable.  My Datsun would have been a little brother to my Nova. Here's the funny part. I know this is off-topic, but shows an example of a good shop vs the BS I put up with on the Datsun. I had this car finished in a period of 14 months, of which 5 were attributed to parts delays. 

 

Ended up with this (LS3, TR6060, 9-inch, 4-link suspenion, mini-tubs, audio, etc.)

 

Thanks, guys. I have some big plans with this car and don't plan to be too slow with it. Paint should be done in a couple of weeks and then its on to the suspension and engine swap.

Hahahahaha

It's not for lack of resources, just terrible judgment in picking shops.

Well, three shops in a row let me down. First one didn't do the job correctly, second one called halfway through the project and told me to get the car out because they were shutting down. Picked it up from the last shop in pieces with body work only halfway finished after 2 years.   :no: I'm thinking about just cutting my losses and letting it go. 

At least it's back in my hands but motivation to complete is at an all-time low. 

Going back to this car, does anyone know what size those wheels/tires are? Look too big to be 13's but are they 14's or 15's?

Kinda reminds me of this car...  B)

 

My money is on custom. Seen lots of 1200 flares. None exactly like this. 

Yeah, me too. I wonder if they pie-cut the steel and shaped it or molded aftermarket fiberglass flares on. Best looking sedan ever, IMO. 

Has anybody seen these installed on a car?:

http://www.datsun1200.asia/category/select/cid/323/pid/8945/language/en

Kinda reminds me of this car...  B)

 

I know it's an old thread, but does anyone know what kind of flares are on this car?

Who rebarreled them? What size tires do you plan to run?

Mattndew, I agree. I think it's a good fit for this little car.  :devil:

Don't worry, KT1200. I'm 600+ miles from you, so you'll have North Texas and I'll take West Texas, lol. :thumbup: 

I've had MUCH more powerful (1k+whp) cars, but something tells me this one will be just as much if not more of a handful especially with what I want to do. My plan is to get it dialed in and overbuild the driveline so I can turbocharge it and bump it up to 500whp eventually. At a minimum, a rollcage is definitely in the plans.

This car had been on backburner but I'm bringing it back.  

After 1 1/2 years I got a call a couple weeks ago from Wrenchpro to tell me they were being shut down by the city. We had 2 weeks to pick it up unfinished. Sucks, but oh well.

Before sending it to them, I had started the bodywork but decided against finishing it due to the fact it was going to get a little cut up from the swap. 

One of my many automotive hobbies includes lowriding and I'm an Imperials Car Club member (58-64 Impalas are one of my major weaknesses).  I called a club brother in our L.A. chapter who owns a body shop in Hesperia and he offered to help us pick it up and store it. Well, I figured it needs paint and it's out there anyway, so he will be finishing up the body work. It will be finished Porsche GT3 RS Orange. It may be overly ambitious to shoot for the JCCS '14 but we'll try! Here's how it sits:

Work has begun, er, continued on the body. I'll post more pics as it progresses. 

Still have it. Open to offers. Don't let this one end up rusting out, use it for your project!

Still have it. Make an offer. 

Dang...that's the exact set up I need for my 1200 coupe, to bad I'm low on funds

I'm open to offers. I dropped an F20C in my car, so I don't have any use for the A12. I want it to go to a good home more than anything. It would be a true waste to scrap it since it ran really well. 

4 speed I presume.

Yes, 4-speed.

Still have it. Haven't had a chance to post pics, but SoCal guys can see it at WrenchPro in Santa Fe Springs. Only reason I pulled it was to swap for an F20C. If I was planning on staying with an A12, I wouldn't have dreamed of swapping it.

To think so many were totalled and scrapped for far less. 

I recently did an engine swap and have no need for my A12. It is complete engine and tranny. Located in Santa Fe Springs, CA. It was running perfectly, except for some hesitation with throttle before it was pulled. Purred at idle. No smoking and the tranny shifted beautifully. My guess is the fuel pump might need replacing or rebuild which caused the hesitation. Then again, it might have simply been a fuel filter issue. Too late too tell since we pulled everything at once and didn't notice. Otherwise no issues. I'll post pics shortly. 

Asking $350