620 body on another manufacture's chassis

[mtrboating]

OK, Found your site after trying to get my nephew interested in something beside gaming (throw no stones yet there is more).  Pretty kool site.

He hasn't been interested in getting his DL's or driving so I thought I start a project.  We got some local car clubs and a few decent rat-rods but no ratsun's. 

But since I want it to be a safe daily driver I was thinking (OK now you can throw all the stones) about dropping a 620 body on a newer (within the last decade) driving chassis.  I am also looking for a wider stance for the chassis and doing the rat thing to tie it in together.  Oh yea just 2wd.

I search a little on the forum but didn't see anything and thought I reach out with a post.

BTW, I have no 620 body and no chassis at this time.

OK I am ducking now :w00t:

[Camtron]

I can't speak to practicality, but technically nothing's impossible if your pockets are deep enough. Check out this thread for an idea of what it would take to do it: http://community.ratsun.net/topic/7446-project-mx520-top-secret/?fromsearch=1

[herculesinwyoming]

better yet is a 620 with disk brakes and a modern engine swap, or just fix the l20b plenty reliable engine. 

[Z chopper]

hmmmm maybe a 620 on a D21 hardbody chassis.

[converted_to_datsun]

dude a frame is a frame... it's what's bolted to it that matters. If you get a 78+ you'll already have disc breaks. Then put coil overs on there and sawp in a motor of your choice and bam there's a better truck than you could get with a body swap.

 

And body swapping to stay 2wd... fail. The only reason I'd do that is to do a 4x4

[Justin]

What "converted to Datsun" said.

 

I know it's "nice" to think of old cars as antique and outdated and unable to compete with our modern machinery,

but the actual simple fact of reality is that new cars are unnecessarily complex.

 

Rock a '78/'79 for the disc brakes, get one with an L20, 5-speed, A/C and it's golden.

 

Or find a 620 body and a 2wd frame and see how long it takes to mate the two and get it running.

Not saying you can't, but I just can't fathom ANY benefits (besides learning experience) as to why you'd want to do such a thing.

 

You don't need to re-invent the wheel, just do a little searching.

[mtrboating]

OK good to know 78/79 have disc brakes. I am looking for a solid frame. I feel the passion for the L20. I had a 1980 4x4 and it never left me stranded. Ran 2 in body lift with 1100 RVTs had to trim the edges of the front wheel well and mildly smash in the inner corners on the fire wall. That L20 kept rocking after floating the truck in a deep hole and reaming the sh*t out of it to paddle and reach ground. Blew the head gasket drove it home. I swear I saw minnows. But I digress. I wanted a v-6 and plan on only having the grill and fire wall. No fenders and no hood. Cab and the bed. But I'm looking for a wider wheel base for stability and handling for my nephew, not really for racing but just for daily driver. I figure this will be a 2 - 3 year old toy at best.

[mtrboating]

BTW that was in the 80's. I bought it brand new. I know I'm old.

[datzenmike]

You're not that old. My first Datsun was a 7 year old 510.

 

 

 

hmmmm maybe a 620 on a D21 hardbody chassis.

.

If you like the looks of the 620 (and who doesn't) but like a better ride with huge disc brakes, V6 EFI 5 speed, fit it onto a 2wd D21. You'll have some problem solving getting the electrics connected. I believe the D21 is a wider stance than the 620 too.

[tacocharlie]

again I pose the question of a Toyota 2wd frame. more than abundant aftermarket support than for Nissan, and the dimensions should be quite close. I know around here anything hardbody or earlier is hard to come by, let alone Datsun...hell, mines the only one I know of in this part of the state.

[mtrboating]

Toyota hmmn that's why I bought the Datsun 4x4 in the first place. Everybody had a Toyota. But I think you may have something on availability. But its been awhile for me, is a D21 a newer Nissan truck?

[mtrboating]

Oh yeah thinking outside the box, what about a car frame? Not a unibody though.

[datzenmike]

Name a car with a frame????

[Z chopper]

Name a car with a frame????

mid 80's chevy caprice

[1lo620]

I have a friend who put a 76 Chevy luv body on a 94 toyota standard cab frame.. with a few mods it worked out great..  and I am sure the datsuns arent to far off. I have a toyota canopy of my 620.. my 2 cents..

[Radiant-Designer]

Just throwing this out there too, you can get the disc brake kits for the older 620s... I have a set of the 300zx on my 77 from Beebani, and I love them.

 

I love the fact that I can open my hood and point to anything and have a pretty good idea what it is and what it does, not to mention fit my hands in there to fix something (When the wife asks me to look at her honda fit even for a simple oil change, I cry just a little). Not to mention that when something does go wrong, its easy to diagnose and you dont have a million and one sensors that cause more problems than I think they are worth.  I got my truck from Cali and I must say the frame was near mint! where as out here in New England things dont last too long with the salt and snow.

[mtrboating]

mid 80's chevy caprice

The only thing funny about this is I could "Donk" it out :sick:

[K_trip]

- removed -

[mtrboating]

OK OK the car body just showed my ignorance.  I gotta do some research, my initial thoughts was a S-10 with a V-6, new enough to have EFI and I would be OK with TBI to make it easier to wire up.  But you have me curious about the D21 and we have some posts on a 620 on a D21 chassis?  Then I will look for them.  I need to know more before I move forward as to not make some "costly" mistakes and have to back track.  I will look into Toyota's too since they are abundant also.  I appreciate everybody's insight.

[mtrboating]

I am with these guys ... there are good reasons for a frame swap sometimes, but normally it doesn't make sense - especially mixing manufactures.  An old hot rod saying comes to mind, "modifications lead to headaches".  The more you tweak it to be different, the more you're "out on a limb".  Not saying that's a bad thing, but for a project with a kid???

 

Now another saying comes to mind ... K.I.S.S.

 

Find something with a wheelbase and track similar to what you want to swap.  Here some info, but there's a lot out there:

http://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/wiki/Wheelbase,_track_width,_and_differential_measurements

 

Anyway, you're going to find a few folks talk about Jeep CJ frame swaps, but those are older than what you said you were looking for.  The small 2-door Chevy Blazer and GMC Jimmy have similar wheelbase and track (2wd or 4wd) and the motor/trans are close to the locations on a 620.  The frames are very different, but if you go with some sort of body lift you might be able to make something work.  That's where a four-wheel-drive might be preferred? 

 

Heck, while you're at it ... why not swap everything, motor/trans and all :confused:

Yea that's what I am looking for.  I don't think dropping the body will be a issue since I'm chopping the heck out of the front end and if there is a be gap between the cab

after aligning the bed over the rear end I will just do something stupid with it to emphasize the ratness (new word?) of it. 

 

WHooa Whooaa, not trying to upset the sanctity of the true enthusiast of Datsun 620's but I am just trying to build a cheap ratsun. 

 

As far as the kid, I'm his guardian now and I want to bond with him before he takes off to the real world.  So yeah its for the kid.  Nothing like taking a grinder to some metal to shake off some frustration and lose some troubles along the way, if you know what I mean.

[mtrboating]

OK been absent for awhile when it became apparent that a virtual HS Algebra class became a obstacle prior to moving forward on this project. Yea!, the class was finally completed and I have a lead on a '96 Chevy Blazer 4.3 v6 for $700. Won't be able to find out about it until later this week. If all goes well I'll get it, trailer it home and see if I can work out a deal with the local LQK to strip the body leaving me the chassis, engine and electrical. Anybody ever work with a junkyard for something like this?

[darrel]

Not sure what you're asking. You just want to sell the body and keep the frame and running gear? Without a title why not cut it up and take it to a recycling center.

[mtrboating]

I think the Blazer will have a title.  I was thinking the used auto parts/ junk yard would remove the body for free in turn for the parts?

[darrel]

I don't think they will work that way. At least not the way that you would want to have it done. Like being careful with each wiring connection, body mount, etc.