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HELP ME PLEASE!


zacc

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hey everyone! i’m new to the website, new to the datsun, new to a lot of different things. especially the carbureted things... lol. i got a few quirks with my car but nothing too serious. so i have a 1981 210 and the thing is beautiful. to me anyways... it was in one family it’s whole life and has 75000 something miles on it, and they were letting it go for $1000. had to buy it. anyways, i bought it to learn and this is the most legitimate website i’ve come across dealing with these cars, and as you can maybe tell i need help with figuring out my way around the car. enough about me and the car though, here’s my questions:

 

i bought yellow safe GL4 for the trans and i’m ready to go ahead and change it. already changed the oil, but my problem with the trans is i know that it being sealed i can’t really check it... nor do i know how to fill it. i’d like to know though, cause the way it feels going into second makes me scared. which now that i think about it, that could be a synchro... 

 

i dont have heat. blower motor works fine, but heat does not work. no AC either but that’s cause it got deleted, which i don’t care about at all. is it maybe a heater core...? or a thermostat even? no idea.

 

the thing idles like poo. sometimes if i’m coming to a stoplight and push the clutch in it just shuts off. i just got plugs and wires today so until i get those changed out (which is probably the issue) i won’t know if that fixed it or nah. also my distributor rotor cap is a bit corroded but nothing crazy for a $40 year old vehicle, i took emery board to it and that didn’t fix the thing so maybe it is plugs and wires. i’m also gonna do a valve job on it here soon, but i have no idea what the valves should be at. if someone could provide that info to me that would be sweet!

 

weird question for the WAY distant future, but what’s some of the easiest compatible engine swaps for this car?? it’s got a ton of space in the engine bay which makes me curious, but my bank account slaps my peepee every time i even think about it. i guess it would just be a good plan to have, because this car is in amazing shape and i like it very much. fun to drive and i wanna keep her alive forever.

 

anyways, if you read this far i thank you and apologize for the book! but i’m lost here and i want help, from someone who knows a little more than me. doing my best with what i grew up around so i’m probably wrong but i’m doing all i can to make her whole again. any help at all would be appreciated!! ?

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The transmission should have a drain bung on the lowest part of it, probably with a square hole so you can use a 1/2"  ratchet or breaker bar in it to loosen. The drain bung has a magnet on it that collects any ferrous metal particles. A fine black paste is normal, chunks are not. Be sure to clean it off so the next oil change (in 30K) you can see what's changed. The fill bung will be about half way up the driver's side. To check the oil level you should be able to dip your finger tip in it. The 56 and 60 series will take less than 2 liters.

 

Yellow metal safe GL4 80/90 weight is the correct oil to use in a Nissan standard transmission. I've had excellent results with friction modified GM Delco Synchromesh Transmission oil. It's a very thin semi-synthetic blend and improved the shifting, most noticeably when cold out or the first few cold shifts. It also allows easier down shifting engagement whereas before it would grind. It isn't cheap though.

 

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Heater.

There is a shut of valve in the heater line near the heater box. The linkage may have come off and it in the closed position.

The heater core may have a leak and a previous owner may have connected the two heater hoses in the engine compartment together in a closed loop.

 

Ignition.

Replace the old parts with the new and go from there

 

Valve lash.

Definitely set the lash first.

 

I suggest you buy a FSM factoory service manual for your year of 210. It will have a wealth of tune up info and how to fix and change things.

 

Engine swaps are very complicated and should be thought of as a last resort. Get this one running first and learn how to keep it running.

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Looks like Mike has you covered....

Welcome to the party....

Might be worth it to start a build there in the 210 section... 

You seem to have more than just drivetrain questions... plus it keeps all your questions and answers together for easy reference.... 

 

So couple quick things to add to what Mike is saying....

how long did the car sit?

Carb might need to be cleaned and reset... and/or replaced....

And the transmission may need to just be ran a bit.... on my 521 3rd was a bit wierd to get into, but since I ran it a bit i haven't had the issue.... 

The worse thing for an old car is not running it....

Oh... look for grease fitting and grease them up to.... front suspension and steering and maybe the driveshaft u-joints.... 

Good luck...

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2 minutes ago, zacc said:

thanks a lot man, i appreciate all the info you gave me. after work today i’m gonna set those valves and get my new plugs and wires put in, then look into my heating issues. ?

Dont go for the fancy plugs.... standard NGK are the best for these old datsuns... whatever they call for may not necessarily be what's in the motor now, so double check that.

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Not that it matters now, (that you're in love) but the odometer only goes to 99,999 then rolls over to 00,000 miles. Could be 175,000 but if in really good shape with low wear on driver's seat, peddle rubbers and floor carpet it could be correct. If it was daily driven this is a good sign that most things are working. If it was parked, why was it parked???

 

I'm expecting that the carb is the problem or emission hoses etc. These can be fixed easily enough.

A compression test will point to a bad cylinder, again sometimes easily fixed.

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i do appreciate all the help from you guys. but the picture of the ac delco stuff, that’s gear fluid right? because i had already bought royal purple, it’s 75W-90 and yellow safe. that would work too right? and does anyone know what the valves should be at? checking them after work today.

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also, the car was parked because it was a grandmothers car and then it was the guy that i got it offs first car. he drove it and put most of the miles that are on it on it. also, the mileage reader (don’t rememer what it’s called) has 6 digits so i don’t think it reset itself. wound back maybe but i doubt it, not with the way the car looks. 

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5 minutes ago, zacc said:

i have no clue. i wanna say it’s the B14 but i really don’t know, and that’s what i feared with the synthetics. it’s a 4 cyl, 1.5L and a 5 speed trans. that’s all i know, that and it makes a whopping 67 horses. ?

As far as this... not sure about the b14 part.... if it's a 1.5 its probably an a15 motor.... 

Look at the motor there should be something on it to tell you for sure...

On the L series motor it's on the side of the block under the head near the oil dipstick,  not sure if the A is similar or not.. I dont know much about the A motors but there are guys here who know everything about it....

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Consider snagging a carb kit and rebuild the carb. Will probably measurably enhance the driving experience.

 

Check the lube lever in rear axle.

 

Get it running reliably and enjoy it just see what kind of relation develops between you and the car and gather up a few spares while you're doing it..

 

Start working on how to post photos. These Datun guys loose interest in a project pronto if there are no pics.

 

There are a number of threads on here that delve into photo posting and someone will pop you with one before long.

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19 minutes ago, Crashtd420 said:

As far as this... not sure about the b14 part.... if it's a 1.5 its probably an a15 motor.... 

Look at the motor there should be something on it to tell you for sure...

On the L series motor it's on the side of the block under the head near the oil dipstick,  not sure if the A is similar or not.. I dont know much about the A motors but there are guys here who know everything about it....

for sure, i’ll take a look at that after work. i’ll go  ahead and throw a few photos up here in a sec so you can maybe figure it out through that, but if not i’ll check the block.

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10 minutes ago, difrangia said:

Consider snagging a carb kit and rebuild the carb. Will probably measurably enhance the driving experience.

 

Check the lube lever in rear axle.

 

Get it running reliably and enjoy it just see what kind of relation develops between you and the car and gather up a few spares while you're doing it..

 

Start working on how to post photos. These Datun guys loose interest in a project pronto if there are no pics.

 

There are a number of threads on here that delve into photo posting and someone will pop you with one before long.

thanks, i had figured that was another thing i needed to do but with carbs i have little to no experience. and how do i get an image from the gallery in my phone into this post?

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42 minutes ago, zacc said:

thanks, i had figured that was another thing i needed to do but with carbs i have little to no experience. and how do i get an image from the gallery in my phone into this post?

You need a image hosting site.... I use postimage, works good from my phone... others like flicker and imgur... 

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The Delco fluid is very thin compared to the regular GL-4 80/90 weight. Is the Royal Purple really that thick or it is recommended for 80/90 weight use?

 

My old 80/90 was stiffer shifting as the temperature dropped and the oil turned to grease. By the time the engine was warmed up it had thinned out enough. The Delco is lickity split fast all the time and allows grind free down shifts where it used to rattle the gears together. I had stopped down shifting until well into a turn and slowed down in town. Into first you had the straight arm it hard and force it and it would grind as it popped in. There's no need to down shift early anyway, but you can now where you couldn't before.

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