holyhalloweenbatman Posted January 7, 2013 Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 I'm trying to go look at a '73 620 on Tuesday. The add on craigslist claims that the truck has a 2.0 liter in it, but the VIN that the guy gave me over the phone is PL620428331 and according to this thread http://community.ratsun.net/topic/16103-how-to-read-620-vin-numbers/ that code corresponds the the 1.6 if I'm understanding it correctly. So my question is where is the serial or engine number on the actual engine and how do I read it to make sure it's a 2.0 and not a stock 1.6? Any advice would be very much appreciated. I'm brand new to the Datsun scene so I apologize if this question is stupid or has been asked before. Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted January 7, 2013 Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 1. There is no VIN number per se. PL620 is a model Type number per Datsun. 2. The serial number is just that, a serial number. It does not indicate the type of engine. There are two: serial Car Number and serial Engine number. They are not matched. 3. the P means Premium engine. Not the base engine: * 510 base engine was L13. Premium = L16 * 620 base engine was J13. Premium = L16, L18, or L20B depending the year. Look at the underhood plate, which has a Car Number, an Engine Number and a Type. These numbers should match the Car Number stamped into the firewall sheet metal and the engine number stamped on the engine. Quote Link to comment
DanielC Posted January 7, 2013 Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 Looking at this picture, in about the center of the picture are two bolt heads close to each other, between the distributor base and the fan. The L-20-B block is about 3/4 of an inch taller, and to accommodate the extra height, Datsun added an extra bolt to the timing chain cover on each side of the engine. the L-20-B engine is the only four cylinder L engine that did this. You will get other replies, about the engine serial number being below the #4 spark plug, but it is much easier to look for the two bolts. Quote Link to comment
holyhalloweenbatman Posted January 7, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 Looking at this picture, in about the center of the picture are two bolt heads close to each other, between the distributor base and the fan. The L-20-B block is about 3/4 of an inch taller, and to accommodate the extra height, Datsun added an extra bolt to the timing chain cover on each side of the engine. the L-20-B engine is the only four cylinder L engine that did this. You will get other replies, about the engine serial number being below the #4 spark plug, but it is much easier to look for the two bolts. Are these the bolts you're talking about? Quote Link to comment
DanielC Posted January 7, 2013 Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 Yes, I was too lazy to circle them my self. Quote Link to comment
holyhalloweenbatman Posted January 7, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2013 No problem. Just wanting to make sure I knew what to look for. Thank you very much for the advice. Quote Link to comment
Esteep Posted January 11, 2013 Report Share Posted January 11, 2013 The engine should have the engine code printed on the block somewhere on the right. I posted some pics on an old ad when i was selling mine. Quote Link to comment
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