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My sr20det Datsun 510 build saga...


SSSEXXX

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These parts are sexy. nice find on the wheels.

 

Where did you get that blank plug cover? I was thinking about running a titek one but I like yours a lot better.

 

 

Thank you sir!! I have some more goodies on the way from ground control and troy ermish, but am going to take a break to do some work on the car this weekend. My poor wallet may need a month or two before we start talking again. Want to get the brakes, suspension and wheels on the car before the engine goes in. I think I under estimated how prepared I was for this project before I began. It also doesn't help that my OCD makes me not settle...

 

PM'd you the source for the cover.

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Thank you sir!! I have some more goodies on the way from ground control and troy ermish, but am going to take a break to do some work on the car this weekend. My poor wallet may need a month or two before we start talking again. Want to get the brakes, suspension and wheels on the car before the engine goes in. I think I under estimated how prepared I was for this project before I began. It also doesn't help that my OCD makes me not settle...

 

PM'd you the source for the cover.

 

It sure is expensive when you do a somewhat nice SR conversion. I know it can be done on the cheap but that isnt my style.

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fisch - thank you man! The build is moving a little slower than I would like, but definitely in a direction that has me excited.

 

Dennis - cheap isn't my style either. My mentality is simple, do it once and do it right. I plan on keeping this car and driving it for years so the foundation, no matter the cost, needs to be one i can build on for years to come.

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you need to get some shit done.

 

Hahaha!! I know man. It has been so damn cold out in the garage that I have been making excuses. I plan on working tomorrow morning and Sunday night though.

 

Need to get the 280zx strut hats off and prep them for powder coating. I can't reassemble the engine until I get the valve cover, lower oil pan, spark plug cover and intake manifold back. They are all going to be the same color red as the brakes.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Been actively looking for this center garnish. I have botht he lights already, just had the garnish stolen. It isn't on eBay, Yahoo Japan, anywhere!!! Does anyone know of a Dato lover that has one laying around in the old garage out back???

 

I could really use it.

 

jccs12.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Did you boys and girls miss me?? Still waiting for that Datsport kit to magically appear. Last time I elect sea mail for anything. Oy!!!!

 

Let's spend some time working on engine break down shall we.... And to remind you where we last left off...

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Ugly I know... so the break down began with that Radiator overflow bottle and its lovely tubes...

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Next that big old, ugly battery. I know, I know... yeah it is still worthy of a picture...

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Radiator and battery out. Progress baby!!!

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Looking at this new view of the engine bay actually made me feel like I had accomplished something. Going to miss driving this girl while she is down and out awaiting for my lazy ass to get that swap done....

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Another view of the now radiator-less engine bay... if you pay close attention you will notice my uber swanky safety glasses. Safety first kids...

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Not going to lie, I have no clue what this little box is. If you recall from page 1 I have no experience doing any of this. My assumption was that it is some type of voltage regulator or just your prototypical "thingamabob." Either way I think it is safe to assume that the sr20det will not need one.... comments???

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So my thingamabob was removed...

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Several things to be seen in this photo and I could really use any suggestions here. The fuel lines and i had a bad experience this night by the way (foreshadowing). But, look at all the rust on the horn bracket. What do you kids do with the horn? I literally tore it off, it was that rusted. Who knows how I will deal with this little gem...

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The other side was not much better, but at least I didn't tear it off. WD40 was nearly useless FYI....

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The aforementioned torn out horn... FML...

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Starting to look more and more like someone is about to be taken from her home.....

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Ah the fuel lines. This was the beginning of a lot of cursing and a lot of fumes and I found that one works quite well when high as shit. Being as how I have never done any drugs before in my life, I can say that I have been high now. I'm sure I lost at least a few brain cells and I didn't have much to lose either, but I digress..

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See, now I thought I could remove the brake lines to the engine and drain the excess fuel in the lines. That little flash of brilliance forgot about one little lovely detail. It is called gravity. I had to drain these little bastards damn near all night long. It was either that or let the fumes build up and have a massive fire hazard on my hands. Safety first, right kids?? So, it was drain, work, dump, drain, work, dump, high, drain, high, high, high.....

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Another thingamabob that I have no clue what does. I didn't even to bother guessing on this one. It is electronic and on the driver's side wall and again I assumed useless for an sr20det...

6729416223_27a7b258a5.jpg

 

Center core support came off next. Now I couldn't tell if this was hacked to shet because a '70+ valence was used on the 1968 or because it was damaged in the lovely front end collision that left me with so much pretty bondo work...

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Another view.. you'll also note that the spark plug cables were taken off in the mean time. No photos of that one, blame the gas fumes...

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Another thingamabob that I have no clue what does. I didn't even to bother guessing on this one. It is electronic and on the driver's side wall and again I assumed useless for an sr20det...

6729416223_27a7b258a5.jpg

 

 

Ignition coil. It makes the spark plugs ... spark.

 

SR20 has different ignition system.

 

Nice build. TBH you are very brave going straight to an SR20 swap with little knowledge... I went in getting an L series running and that was hard enough! good luck!

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Broad world view of the progress, no matter how little you may perceive it to be...

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Sans air filter as well FYI...

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They grow up so fast... er, I mean tear down so fast. Pushed her out in to the sun so she could get a bit of a tan...

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Grimey little fuse box. This will definitely be replaced with a '70+ variant. Sorry purists...

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Last thingamabob of the day. No clue on this one either. Anyone want to help a brother out??

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Then it was back inside the miracle whip to disconnect the fuse box and wiring harness from inside the car...

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Tada!!!!! One Datsun 510 engine wiring harness is out and about. I'm sexy and I know it.... wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, yeah.....

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It isn't a Rolls, a Lambo, Ferrari, or anything fancy, but this little vision makes me smile like it was... every single time...

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This shot looks kind of ominous to me... dark and gloomy... like a beast is on the horizon.... a 325hp beast of an sr20....

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Well kids... time for the engine to come out. Disconnect the transmission, the exhaust, the driveshaft, engine mounts and lift that sucker the hell out. Right??? Help??

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Oh and PS, threw away the JDM sr20det downpipe and miscellaneous attachments. They were so rusted I wouldn't have been able to salvage them...

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Well... hopefully the next time we meet kids the engine will be coming out and I will have both a Datsport kit and a more exciting set of updates. I know this might seem like lame stuff to some of you, but it is a lesson for me every time. There is always something we can learn. I need to go slow so that I can figure out what I am doing and do it in a safe way. I picked up my big brake kit today. Will take photos and post them this weekend. Till next time... as always, questions and comments are much appreciated....

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Ignition coil. It makes the spark plugs ... spark.

 

SR20 has different ignition system.

 

Nice build. TBH you are very brave going straight to an SR20 swap with little knowledge... I went in getting an L series running and that was hard enough! good luck!

 

Thank you sir. I am either brave or extremely stupid. It has definitely been an educational experience that I am glad I have undertaken. That being said, there are times that I feel very overwhelmed with what needs to be done. The idea of what I am doing with such little knowledge is scary. I try to go step by step and research each and every move before I take it. This weeks learning was all about wire tucking and why the fuel lines for the sr20det should feed up the firewall and not the same way as the L motor.

 

Thanks again!!

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6729431907_92d9e3737e.jpg

 

3 wire is Horn Relay, 6 wire is headlight relay (maybe it is 5 wire now...).

 

Leacaon!! Long time my friend!! Thank you so much for that information. So it sounds like I will need to keep these or at least find a much better alternative in the aesthetic department. Wonder if I can install them with the fuse box on the inside of the cabin? Can't imagine why not...

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Man I just gotta say this is one intense and extremely well documented build. Spent the last hour goin thru all your posts and pics. You're doin a freakin awesome job and I envy you. I've always dreamed of doin this to all my 510's. The people here are awesome and so knowledgeable it blows my mind. Thanks god for ratsuners..

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Haha, Ive been keeping tabs, but as I have not ventured down the motor swap road I feel like I may not have the best information for you (Dennis is doing a pretty good job).

 

As for hiding them, sure! I plan on doing the same thing. Im am going to re-do my stock wiring (hopefully by Canby). Things like a newer style 3 prong relay for the Horn will be used (with appropriate female receptacle for the relay).

 

As for the Headlight wiring, well that deserves to be studied a bit. It is called a ground switching system. Why you can voltage check either prong on your headlights and get 12v power. They have constant power, but ground is switched on/off and switched between Low/Hi wires. I want to rewire my car to Positive switching (no real reason other than it makes sense to me), and also to be able to use more universal relays (possibly from a newer Nissan?). At the same time this will allow you actually "relay" your headlights; basically in stock for think of the electricity of going from battery to fusebox to headlights to the headlight relay to the headlight switch to ground. This system is inefficient, so instead you wire up your switch to trigger a relay to turn on the Headlights, this will lessen the amount a connections the electricity flows for your headlights, and will let you run 12gauge wire for them. Also note, headlight switch switches the power (ground) on/off, headlight relay switches Hi/Low.

 

Hope this gives you a few ideas.

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1st question: Yes that was your voltage regulator. You can ditch it since your SR alternator is internally regulated.

 

2nd question: Coil, you can dump that as well since the SR has coil packs and a totally different system.

 

3rd question: Horn Relay, this can be replaced with a new SPDT relay or if you go with a new painless type of system which has an internal relay within the fuse box.

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Man I just gotta say this is one intense and extremely well documented build. Spent the last hour goin thru all your posts and pics. You're doin a freakin awesome job and I envy you. I've always dreamed of doin this to all my 510's. The people here are awesome and so knowledgeable it blows my mind. Thanks god for ratsuners..

 

Thank you sir! I admittedly have a little OCD problem. And this build has been no exception. Almost therapeutic in that I have had to accept things like dirty parts and grime and have the foresight to not continue to clean and scrub the damn car down. No matter how much time you put in, the progess is a slow moving one. If it were not for the help of people like Dennis and Laecaon and more, I would have never been able to do any of this. I have spent a lot of time, money, and energy but have learned more about this car and how to work on cars than I ever thought I would.

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Haha, Ive been keeping tabs, but as I have not ventured down the motor swap road I feel like I may not have the best information for you (Dennis is doing a pretty good job).

 

As for hiding them, sure! I plan on doing the same thing. Im am going to re-do my stock wiring (hopefully by Canby). Things like a newer style 3 prong relay for the Horn will be used (with appropriate female receptacle for the relay).

 

As for the Headlight wiring, well that deserves to be studied a bit. It is called a ground switching system. Why you can voltage check either prong on your headlights and get 12v power. They have constant power, but ground is switched on/off and switched between Low/Hi wires. I want to rewire my car to Positive switching (no real reason other than it makes sense to me), and also to be able to use more universal relays (possibly from a newer Nissan?). At the same time this will allow you actually "relay" your headlights; basically in stock for think of the electricity of going from battery to fusebox to headlights to the headlight relay to the headlight switch to ground. This system is inefficient, so instead you wire up your switch to trigger a relay to turn on the Headlights, this will lessen the amount a connections the electricity flows for your headlights, and will let you run 12gauge wire for them. Also note, headlight switch switches the power (ground) on/off, headlight relay switches Hi/Low.

 

Hope this gives you a few ideas.

 

I'll be looking out for more information from you on how the re-wire goes. Particularly the headlight wiring you are speaking about. It makes more sense to me too. I took a look at my wiring diragram and I almost convinced that there are more effective ways to go about it than what was done in 1968. I am not read up enough on the topic to provide you anything tangible that would be of benefit to you yet, but give me a few weeks to read here and there and maybe we can put our heads together and make headlight magic happen. I am also looking out for some clear 6" lenses to replace the glass from the OEM lights.

 

Thanks for the thoughts. I love this kind of stuff, makes you think and problem solve. Love it.

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1st question: Yes that was your voltage regulator. You can ditch it since your SR alternator is internally regulated.

 

2nd question: Coil, you can dump that as well since the SR has coil packs and a totally different system.

 

3rd question: Horn Relay, this can be replaced with a new SPDT relay or if you go with a new painless type of system which has an internal relay within the fuse box.

 

Dennis to the rescue once again. I have a box of big brakes in my car that you wanted to see pictures of I recall. I'll have them to you soon. What is the word on your build? I see the engine is sitting in the bay and the valve cover is painted to match. Every time I look at your block I wish I would have used that color of engine enamel. Really makes it pop.

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This might sound completely stupid, but does anyone know the proper place for me to jack the Dime up on 4 jack stands? Last thing I want to do is damage to my baby and I can't seem to find a DIY article. I know this is basic fellas, but I just am a little nervous about it.

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For the front I use the the rail that runs about under the middle of the front seats, try not to use the rail unless your stands have a slit in them to go around it, for the rear i use the rear cross member, in the area around the main bolt just in front of the rear wheel. This is what i've used for years. Just remember to go to the rear and push down to see if the car rocks

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