79 620

[integradude19]

Well I've been hanging out around here since just after I got my first 620. I've finally got around to uploading some pictures so its about time I introduce me and my truck. I like to refer to her as my significant other. A little background on the truck: My step grandfather bought it new in 79 to have as a good little truck for fishing trips, camping, etc. Well when my grandfather stopped driving, about 1997 or so he figured my step dad could use it as the same kind of truck. So we brought it home and used it as a spare vehicle when needed. After we had it for a year or so the motor blew. So my dad found a used motor to replace it. He stuck with an L20B. It had seventy thousand miles when we got it. It was never used much until my oldest brother needed a vehicle for high school. He drove it into the ground for two years. Never did anything to better the truck or care for it. My dad tried to keep up with the maintence as well as he could. Then my second oldest brother needed a vehicle for high school. So he drove it even further into the ground for several years until finally blowing the second motor at 100 thousand. My dad was very angry at the two for ruining such a good truck and said no one drives it. So it sat for a couple months until a friend of his offered him an '80 parts 720 for a 100 dollars. Well he took the motor from the 720(L20B) and put it in the 620 after rebuilding it. The motor would not run. It would idle for 5 seconds or so then die. He is a full time mechanic so he didnt have much time to fix it. So it sat for 5 years and over that time he replaced misc parts when he had spare time trying to get it to run.....until I realized one day how awesome it would be to have it. After some negotiation he said I could take it. But if he didnt like what I was doing with it he would take it back.

 

These are of the day before I took possesion.

 

So after I got it to my work, an automotive shop, I started from the top. And got it running and have been replacing everything mechanically I find wrong or broken over the past several months. Ive changed every single fliud in the vehicle. So I guess you could say this is a full restoration..but I still want to keep everything I can orginal. Now for what everyone loves...PICTURES!!!

 

First day at my shop.

 

First wash in over five years!

 

Then I took off the camper.

 

Second wash.

 

Then I got snow tires so I figured it would be a great time to get all the original rims on.

 

And then my friend said, "I have these three inch drop blocks and I dont have my toyota anymore..'" So I loosened the torsions to the lowest possible while saving the locknuts and I pulled the front bump stops.

 

I got a set of chrome trim rings with the truck and I thought they would look great with some flat red paint.

 

Brought it home to show my dad and he couldnt be happier that I saved it and am loving every second with it.

 

I finally found my camera so Ill take a bunch more pictures tomaro. And I have a great big thank you to this forums search button. It has helped me so much to get this truck from brocken and destined dead for 5 years to major head turner/daily driver. Thanks guys! Alex

[bonvo]

i love stories like this reminds me of how i got my first 610 nice truck man keep up the good work

[ej257lover]

That truck looks gay..

you should give it to me

[integradude19]

Your a jerk ej25...but thanks for the blocks. ;)

[pharouh]

Another 620 saved! :thumbup:

[Braden]

good story, great truck, what i wanna know is what was wrong with it that your dad couldnt get fixed? you said he is a mechanic but you had it fixed in no time?

[datzenmike]

Nice truck. Also nice to at least know the history, even better to have it from in the family.

[integradude19]

Well it ended up being servaral little things that my dad didnt think of. For one, the positive battery cable was corroded under the heat wrap so it wasnt letting it crank. The vaccum advance on the distributor wasnt screwed into the weights. The firing order was backwards. The plugs were shot, they barely even sparked. The fuel was pretty much pure laquer. The cat was plugged. And almost all the vacum lines were cracked or hooked up wrong. It only took a couple days of working on it after I got off to get it to fire. Then I got it to idle. Then I got it to rev. Took about 2 weeks to actually be able to drive it down the street.

[integradude19]

Here are some more pictures. Got bored last night so I went for a drive to see what I could snap.

[74datsun620]

Nice truck good that you got a family member back running

[white93yota]

it remind's me of my first car. a 1977 datsun 620.it was orange had a l20b and a 5-spd.it handleded like it was on rails!!!it was geared so low i couldn't make 50 m.p.h. without being in 5th gear.i didn't have a gearshift knob the original broke.so my dad was innovative he ripped off the gear knob off his snapper mower and duct tape it!!! i miss that truck!!! it's lowered has a 32/36 webber and a cherrybomb glasspack!!! it's loud as hell!!! i might get another 620 one day!!!

[banzai510(hainz)]

What was wrong with this that a professional mechanic coundnt fix this.

How you get it running and what was the symtoms. What you said sounded like a carb proplem maybe the float or idle jet

 

http://olddatsuns.com/620tech.htm

 

I would roll it as it is on the outside and make upgrades if any needed to motor electrical.

maybe get some H4 lights and relay harness.

 

As for your brothers ? When you get something Free they wont take care of it.

 

Those other motors what blew? head gaskets are EZ to change. At least if not full of emission shit in the way( Later L motors)