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'69 4 door dime - DD project


Plusnone

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Hello ratsuneers.

I've been a long time lurker here and finally found me a another dime to get rolling and thought I'd better become contributing member (oics oics oics)! 

 

I've loved Datsuns for days and have been itching to get back into one for a while (and get my boys 5 yrs and 8 yrs wrenching on it with me!!!!) . I had a '71 wagon that never ran years ago, a 260z set up for autocross that I put a ton of miles on over a few years and then started a chevy 350 swap (not for autoX, haha) and new interior/wiring/ etc.. just prior to the 2008 crash which was also the year my first son was born. So after selling that and becoming a "responsible" member of society for the past 9 years, I finally thought I better pick up a Datsun before they top the $10,000 mark for a hacked POS. Needless to say, I got something I think will fit the bill. I inquired about it in the CL thread (CL add posted by ArchetypeDatsun http://community.ratsun.net/topic/55571-post-craigslist-ebay-ads-here/?p=1443527). And yes hobbes_the_cat, it is a model year '69 (not '68 as stated by the seller) however it was sold in '70 so reg'd as a '70. But I'm going to see if I can change the reg. year because thats the only way you can use "69" in a personalized license plate (keeping the CA blue plate for the foreseeable future, love those). Oh, and the510keeper... I found that elusive 4th gear the PO didn't think existed, hahaha.

 

I digress, I posted in here a while ago and I am still waiting for a final signature for the title transfer to finalize, it's a mess I can get into another time (don't worry, haven't paid anybody yet either....) A big thanks to Draker, shacks510, flatcat19, The Taterhead, datzenmike, and KoHeartGPA for the early words of wisdom and warm welcome.

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/71054-picking-up-a-dime/

 

So seeing as how I'm actually not working on it until its in my name I thought I'd at least get started with some as-is oics and some of my plans / aspirations for the car and any questions I may have pertaining to getting this thing driving.

 

From what I can gather so far this is what I'm working with:

 

L18

W53 head

weber 32/36

electric distributor (w/ stock points coil - notice the ballast???)

stock mani.s - either from the 510 or the L18 swap donor, haven't looked yet

aluminum core radiator swap?

stock 4 speed trans

swazi wheels (or as my son said "pinwheels") with unused kumho 195/55/r15s (from 2008) w/ ~1/4" spacers on the front

chopped springs w/ bumpsteer spacers but no other suspension mods (I'll get into this later...)

no body damage from any accidents - just rust

full trim package 

some random seat swap

hacked dash wiring

SSS badges on grille (metal) and side vents (plastic) - obviously not a real SSS so I'm not sure about running those badges, yet

70-71 JDM grille

hasn't driven (or been started) for years, not sure how many - i.e. this may just be a complete rebuild for the motor/trans/????

 

some pretty bad rust on the rear quarters - hoping a patch panel will do the trick here eventually, gonna try to halt the rust and leave it a bit ratty and just DRIVE it.

pass floor rusted through in a couple spots

trunk spare and drops rusted out 

previous vinyl top removed - gotta clean it out of the window rubber and patch a few small holes in the roof

 

I'm in the East Bay and would love to meet up with some of you folks, I'll be checking the events pages but please point towards any meets or events although I'll be without my dime until she's up and running.

 

Also, not sure why everybody obscures their license plates, but I figured I should follow suit - at least 'til my title is squared away.

 

Pleased to meet y'all. On with the oics!

 

bringing her home - nice and wet

IMAG2350_zpsyzm2shyt_edit_1483601400879_

 

home... dry and dusty

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and rust...

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love these wipers

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IMG_4341_zpsjmosb7yg.jpg

 

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passenger floor

IMG_4345_zpsafcp75ua.jpg

 

anyone golf... are these garbage?

IMG_4347_zpsa7o26jgm.jpg

 

ill fitting rear seats

IMG_4348_zpsspz7cc1d.jpg

 

nasty trunk

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IMG_4377_zpssllq5j3i.jpg

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Good looking Car! Congratulations, looks like it need some love though.

 

You mentioned having the registration changed to the 69 model, is this possible?

 

Good luck with your build, I'll be watching.

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Good looking Car! Congratulations, looks like it need some love though.

 

You mentioned having the registration changed to the 69 model, is this possible?

 

Good luck with your build, I'll be watching.

See how your C-Pillar vents are plastic and the screws are visible? This is an early '70, not a '69

 

Just like my 2 door

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Nice car. My previous 69 was made in 10/68 and still had door pulls instead of armrests and didn't have license plate lights in the tail panel. Anyways I pulled a perfect 69 dash pad out of it and is still in my garage storage if you're interested (car is gone). Looking forward to this build, congrats.

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Good to know. Door tag says manufactured in something like 9/69... But it is currently reg'd as a 70.

9/69 is a 70 dude. my truck was 10/72 and it's a 73, my s10 was like 8/95 and is a 96. i figured this one out when i was doing the clutch on the s10 and had the wrong parts because of the wrong year. latter half of the year for make date is the next year model 

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9/69 is a 70 dude. my truck was 10/72 and it's a 73, my s10 was like 8/95 and is a 96. i figured this one out when i was doing the clutch on the s10 and had the wrong parts because of the wrong year. latter half of the year for make date is the next year model

Yep, makes sense! I know that with later model cars, wasn't sure about old datsuns. Thanks fur clearing it up for me. Guess I got an early 70 then. From everything else I read, the side lights, dash and speedo, ignition on the left of the column, etc... Thought it was a '69... Oh well, there goes the personalized plate I had in mind...

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Nice car. My previous 69 was made in 10/68 and still had door pulls instead of armrests and didn't have license plate lights in the tail panel. Anyways I pulled a perfect 69 dash pad out of it and is still in my garage storage if you're interested (car is gone). Looking forward to this build, congrats.

Thanks! Interested in that pad, however I should put what little money I have into getting it driving first. PM me what your asking for it. I also might try a custom clean up/patch and recover myself. I'm fairly handy with that stuff. Although my wife has a permanent aversion to expanding spray foam after I was reshaping my 260z dash, hahahaha.

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Yep, makes sense! I know that with later model cars, wasn't sure about old datsuns. Thanks fur clearing it up for me. Guess I got an early 70 then. From everything else I read, the side lights, dash and speedo, ignition on the left of the column, etc... Thought it was a '69... Oh well, there goes the personalized plate I had in mind...

i could be wrong, definitely could be wrong. but that's just the little knowledge i have

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Titled year, and body style do not have to match.

 

That car is in fact a MY1969. Small front lights, 68/69 front side markers, 69 only rear side marker, 69 dash, 68/69 stainless rear door trim, 69 grill, 69 antenna... it goes on. This car is 100% a 69.

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i could be wrong, definitely could be wrong. but that's just the little knowledge i have

Well, I'll dig in a bit more before I write it off completely. Still have to see if I can convince the dmv to change the reg year for my plate idea to work. Only way I could do it would be with some supporting documentation... I'll post here when I find out more.

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Titled year, and body style do not have to match.

 

That car is in fact a MY1969. Small front lights, 68/69 front side markers, 69 only rear side marker, 69 dash, 68/69 stainless rear door trim, 69 grill, 69 antenna... it goes on. This car is 100% a 69.

What about the C-Pillar vents? if it had the smog stuff still, it would be '70 specs, not '69

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What about the C-Pillar vents? if it had the smog stuff still, it would be '70 specs, not '69

 

Late 69 could have had those.. hard to say. Or retrofit..

 

Things get weird on late year builds.. but that is for sure.. 69.

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Good looking Car! Congratulations, looks like it need some love though.

 

You mentioned having the registration changed to the 69 model, is this possible?

 

Good luck with your build, I'll be watching.

Thanks! I'm looking forward to getting her on the the road! Def in need of some love, but Ima gonna give it to her!

 

As for whether I can get the reg'd year changed, I have no idea. Just figured I'd have a decent argument that these classics are very specific year to year, and the door tag with supporting documents (lists of year to year variations from reputable sources like ratsun!) would help. Also the pre 17 digit vin should help confuse the matter. Then after it sits as a 69 for a minute, personalized plates with a "69"!

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There is no question that your newly arrived 510 is a 1969 model.

 

Back in the day, Datsun would stamp the data plates at the port of arrival, and models left over would get moved to the next model year. In the early 70s Nissan actually ended up getting in trouble for this and had to end the practice. I had heard (and seen examples) of this many times in the roadster world, but let me provide you a real-world example with 510s.

 

About 10 years ago, I was at a U-Pull-It yard in Eugene, Oregon.  They had two, 1969 green four-doors identical to the one you just purchased.  As I was curious about how close they were in serial numbers, I compared the VIN numbers and found something strange.  The one with the lower VIN number had a later "production date" (also a different style stamp on the plate as well).  I actually pulled the data plates off of both cars to show this example:

 

PL510-096254   Production date of 9/69

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PL510-099628    Production date of 7/69

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Different stamps, different ports--

 

Congrats on the new car-- looks like it will be worth the effort to bring back to life!

Michael

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