521 owner newbie

[joshywooya]

Hey, new to the forums, just bought this datto 521 1972 of craigslist. I used to live in Australia and own a datto 1200 ute, but it turned out to be so rusted out it was to expensive to restore, anyways, I always wanted another one, but after movin to the U.S they obliviously weren't available, so this was the next best thing. I actually havnt seen the car in person, I'm stationed at ft carson, Co, but currently deployed overseas, so when I saw it I got my buddy to go pick it up for me. The craigslist write up says it has an L20 in it, and all that stuff. Hopefully wanna do the disc brake conversion, get some a/c in and some twin carbies. Got ideas for the a/c, disc conversion is to easy and the carbs are just f##@*&@ expensive. Other cars I love are , 1970's corolla, colt, rx3, shiz like that.

 

Cars i've owned (atleast the ones worth mentioning)

-Holden VG ute, V8

-Nissan Silvia (s13) dropped an rb20det in that.

-1979 Ford Escort, 2.0 twin carbs, mate crashed it and I still hate him for it.

- datto 1200, think it was an 80's model

- and now the datto 521

[Tristin]

Looks like a clean truck. Welcome to the forum. 

 

If you want a cheaper option for side draft carbs, look in SUs. They will be about half the price of any Weber/Mikuni setup. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cant wait to see more once you come back home. Stay safe overseas (Im assuming youre in the Sandbox?)

[joshywooya]

Yeh man, in the sand box. yeh cant wait till I get home and get to tinker with the old girl..........and the car too lol. Yeh I saw some su carbs for sale in the ratsun classifieds, but im just not sure what I want to do first. Do I want a/c for the coming summer, do I want to be able to stop better for the even sooner winter, or throw the twin carbs and just have more fun. I should just stop bein a pussy and just do it all at once, from what ive calculated, its doable for about $1000.

[joshywooya]

* if I use the su carbs

[mrbigtanker]

Welcome aboard and first off thank you for serving in our armed forces,secondly nice truck third you dont need A/C get the brakes done and shop for some side drafts.Lower it put some wheels on and lets do it.Can your friend  get some inside shots and the back as well.

[joshywooya]

These are actually just more shots of the advert, I could probably get my mate to take some more if ya want.

 

I think I agree with you about the a/c, maybe that can be a luxury down the road. I think brakes would be logically first, and then the carbs. oh and here is the write up the guy had in the for sale advert, just gives a little more history on it:

 

"This truck has been a daily drive for me since 2006. I hate to sell it but I need to upgrade to a vehicle that has towing capabilities. I have upgraded everything. Let's start with the engine: it's new, upgraded from the original L16-1600cc 98 hp to an early 80s L20 2000 cc 130 hp engine. The motor was professionally built by Bill's Datsun shop in Clackmas, Oregon - you can still get every part for this car from this guy. It has high compression pistons, high lift cam, Weber carb, exhaust header, custom 2" exhaust. This truck is powerful: it will do Vail Pass (11,000 ft) at 70 mph in 4th gear and still gets 28 mpg. Other upgrades include a new clutch, new windshield ($700, had to be shipped from the UK), new brakes, tinted glass, Sony sound system w/ipod port, new paint, new interior. The body is in very good shape for its age, though a little rust on the rocker panels. It has two sets of tires and wheels - it's pretty good in the snow! This truck has a lot of miles left in it. I have at least $9000 into this truck. 150,000 miles."

[wayno]

Welcome  B)

Nice looking truck, if it runs good then maybe the brakes first, but if the carb has issues, get a serviceable set of dual SUs, I went with them first and have never regretted it, well except the set I bought were wore out, but I bought new ones from Nissan, they were having a clearance sale.

Drum brakes work fine if kept in good working condition/adjusted properly, they just fade sooner under certain conditions.

I like your box cover.  :thumbup:

[joshywooya]

Welcome  B)

Nice looking truck, if it runs good then maybe the brakes first, but if the carb has issues, get a serviceable set of dual SUs, I went with them first and have never regretted it, well except the set I bought were wore out, but I bought new ones from Nissan, they were having a clearance sale.

Drum brakes work fine if kept in good working condition/adjusted properly, they just fade sooner under certain conditions.

I like your box cover.  :thumbup:

Thanks man, yeh well the add says the brakes are new, but ill have to see when I get home. I am not dead set on the brake upgrade, maybe I could just throw a booster and new master cylinder on there, and upgrade the brake lines to something a little more beefy???? 

[wayno]

Thanks man, yeh well the add says the brakes are new, but ill have to see when I get home. I am not dead set on the brake upgrade, maybe I could just throw a booster and new master cylinder on there, and upgrade the brake lines to something a little more beefy???? 

 

If your able to do all that I would be interested in how you did it, I have dual SUs, there is no room for a booster on my truck, plus you will have to fabricate a pedestal for the booster, as the clutch master is very close to the brake master.

I did fab up some power brakes on my diesel 521, but the intake manifold is very small, so there was room for the booster, here is my setup on the diesel 521.

 

See how I used the brake pedestal as part of the mount for the clutch master, this made me feel better about how I mounted the brake pedestal to the firewall, as 4 bolts hold it on instead of 2 bolts.

It's very tight in there.

This is my gas powered 521 work truck with dual SUs, see how close the airfliter housing is to the brake master, there is not a lot of room unless I make some custom airbox with the filter somewhere else.

[joshywooya]

hmmmmm, I see your point. I'll definitely document it if I figure it out. Thanks for the heads up man

[joshywooya]

OK, done a little brain storming, I obviously don't have the actual car to reference off, but what about moving the clutch master cylinder 3-4 inches away from the brake master cylinder, and then modifying the clutch pedal to compensate for it, then boom, you can just put the brake booster straight to the fire wall, no extension pieces or anything needed. Then maybe the dual carbs will fit????????????? I made a diagram below of a possible clutch pedal mod. If this can be done, there might be a bit of twist in the clutch pedal, depending on heavy the clutch is.

you get what i'm talking about?

[wayno]

I seen someone weld a piece of metal on the side of the clutch pedal as a mount that basically moved the clutch master over 3 inches, but the brake master was still in the same place, and that is my issue.

I have not really looked into this recently as I now have electric brakes on my trailer I pull around everyday, this has made a big difference in how my truck stops, I don't have the being pushed around issue anymore while trying to stop, so I forgot about power brakes.

I have tried to find that thread that has that clutch pedal mod, but have failed, if I ever see it again, I will mark it to follow that thread, so I don't loose it again.