Jeff made me do it - Cactus Green 1972 510 FJ 2dr

[Draker]

LSD r160.. nice.

[carterb]

There were two things that needed immediate attention.

1)  Fuel system.  The cracked plug was obvious - not sure what else would be in store.

2)  Braking system.  When we backed the car off the trailer, we used the brakes to slow the descent and keep it from rolling down the hill into our neighbors garage.  After doing so, the car became nearly impossible to push.  The brakes were dragging.  It took everything my son and I had to push the car down our short driveway into our garage.

 

For the fuel system, I started by looking it over and seeing what else may need to be replaced.

 

 

Fill vent was certainly not in good shape.

 

 

Then I disconnected the fuel line from the fuel filter to the fuel pump and blew it out with my air compressor.

 

Look at all that gunk!  That was a clean pan when I started.

 

 

Then replaced the fuel filter

 

 

Old stuff

 

 

 

 

 

[carterb]

I was unable to find a replacement "cap" which may be just as well.  Jeff was pretty sure there was a Nissan recall on the 1972 510 because of that cap.  I wonder what they replaced it with.  I used a short section of hose and an anodized aluminum aircraft rivet - you know - real lightweight racecar stuff here!

 

 

 

 

replaced the vent with 5/8 heater hose.

 

 

I know heater hose isn't rated for fuel but it will last some number of years and is good for now.

 

I attempted to drain the tank as well but there was nothing in it.  Most of it drained out into the car and on the floor 10 years ago.  Whats left must have evaporated.  The tank may be lined with residue and maybe I'll have to pull it later but for now, I'm interested in seeing what the next problem is...

 

I was able to determine that the dragging brakes were the rears - but I could NOT get the rear drums off.  They were stuck on there really good - likely because of the dragging brakes.  Being finned aluminum drums - they lack the M8 threaded holes that normal drums have to help push them away from the hub.  Also, the delicate fins make it difficult to whack them with a hammer.  I figured if I loosened the adjusters I might have more luck, but I could not apply enough torque to the 1/4" square adjuster nub without fear of rounding it off.

 

I made a tool using a 1/4"-3/8" socket adapter and an 11mm 3/8" drive socket. 

 

 

The 3/8" drive portion of the adapter fits in the 11mm socket nice and snug.  I thought I would have to weld something together but this combination worked awesome! 

 

 

3/8" drive female on one side, 1/4" drive female on the other.  Allowing all the torque I needed to break the adjusters loose.

 

 

This allowed the drums to turn.  Then I was able to hit the back rim of the drum with a hammer using a block of wood in between to protect the fins.  Finally I had the drums off.

 

 

[carterb]

The fuel lines to the carbs didn't look to be in great shape either - and the line from the filter to the first carb was really taut as well, so I replaced those lines, then I went ahead and put a gallon of gas in the tank and the pump pushed it up to the filter no problem.  Nice and clean looking too.

 

 

still up on stands with no wheels, I started the car to see if it would run and idle.  Sure enough!

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10242018_green_fj_(1).MOV.744065e14ebdd25154d0b1c6e8180777.MOV

 

This of course filled the garage with plenty of stinky exhaust and heat burn off from oils and such.  Good thing Brenda was gone!

 

[Trophy24]

I recall getting “feedback” about Datsun smells at home too. It helps that my garage is now detached from the house

[mrbigtanker]

Do you happen to have the factory manifold? If so I need the TPS sensor if you want to sell it.

[carterb]

Try Baz at www.datsport.com or maybe one of the guys on www.fj20.com if it is still active.

 

Edited November 8, 2018 by carterb

[carterb]

Front brakes checked out.

 

 

 

On the rears, I removed the adjusters and cleaned and lubed them.  Everything else looked good.

 

 

So I put it back together and set it on the ground, ready to try going for a little ride.

 

 

This is fun!!!!

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10272018_test_drive.MOV.24091056de68039c810b1cb7865f7458.MOV

 

The first thing I noticed was how smooth the FJ is compared to an L motor.  Just like our SR in The Swamp Thing.  The second thing I noticed was how much softer the suspension is than in Cooper.  Nothing bad, just softer.

 

The third thing I noticed, is that when I got back home from the short drive, there was fluid coming out from under the car.

 

 

It had a red color to it but appeared to be coming from the oil pressure sending unit.

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10272018_green_fj_(1).MOV.6fea90e6a477a0e169dd32e480e84e68.MOV

 

I pulled the car back into the garage and up onto the jack stands to get a better look.  Everything is tucked right up under the intake manifold on this motor.  It took an inspection mirror to find the source.

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10272018_green_fj_(3).MOV.46ad55df7ad8c331e70f4b4374939fe7.MOV

 

 

There was a braided stainless line going from a fitting above the oil pressure sending unit.  On it's way up through the firewall it was touching the one of the heater hoses.  Apparently over the years it had rubbed through.

 

 

There was a little red fluid under my car when I first moved it to the garage.  I assumed it was Redline gear oil from the tranny - though I couldn't find where it was dripping from.  Now I know - it was from that line - so it must have been dripping even at Greg's house.

 

The culprit!

 

 

 

 

 

[The Taterhead]

 I’ll tell you what, I love reading about how you acquire a vehicle just as much as I love seeing what you do with him. Your stories are like I’m there with you when you get them. 

[carterb]

Nice to hear.  What fun would these silly cars be if there were no stories to go along with them?

[]2eDeYe]

So not the tank? That is really cool if so. 

[carterb]

Okay, come on memory...  What happened next? 

 

Oh yeah, found this little doohicky at Napa.  Perfect size and enough hose to do it twice in case I screw up the first time! 

 

 

 

Got it all back together and leak tested it and it looks great!  But the valvetrain seems to make a bit more noise that I would like.

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10312018_green_fj.MOV.d01a35add6428bb5c6dabbff782b3b9c.MOV

 

With advice from Ray Stonehocker, I checked the valve clearances - looking for an outlier.

 

 

If anything, a couple of the intake valves are a little tight, but nothing should be loose and making a racket.

 

 

I also checked to make sure everything up top is getting oiled.  I ran the car for a couple seconds without the cam cover on.  I can now assure you that the oiling system is working as designed!  (where are all my rags)

 

I did some reading on timing chain rattle which is common on the FJ and there is a pretty well documented ratcheting tensioner from Mazda that people have adapted to fix the issue but this isn't on startup - although that problem exists as well.  I may be running slightly thinner oil (10W30) than recommended (20W50) so that could play a small part, but after talking to a few different people, I don't think I'm in danger of hurting anything so...  Let's put this car back together and go for a drive!

[carterb]

Tried to clean everything up as I put it back together - like removing the mold from the rear seat.  Looks much better now.

 

 

Installed a gas pedal (didn't have one)

 

 

Then fiddled with the rear brakes and adjusters some more to see if I could get them unstuck.  In the process, I found that the old LSD just ain't what she used to be.

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/11032018_green_fj_(1).MOV.84f82ae049df9945571d39bf7f74f407.MOV

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/11032018_green_fj_(2).MOV.22ba80b35f6381ae4e9df3ddedf85191.MOV

 

We'll have to deal with that another time.  For now, it's back on its tires and ready to roll.

 

[68Datsun510]

Dude, this thing is an awesome little time capsule of the "go to mods" of the 90s/early 2000s. Love it!

[mrbigtanker]

21 hours ago, carterb said:

Okay, come on memory...  What happened next? 

 

Oh yeah, found this little doohicky at Napa.  Perfect size and enough hose to do it twice in case I screw up the first time! 

 

 

 

Got it all back together and leak tested it and it looks great!  But the valvetrain seems to make a bit more noise that I would like.

 

http://datsun510.com/uploads/monthly_2018_11/10312018_green_fj.MOV.d01a35add6428bb5c6dabbff782b3b9c.MOV

 

With advice from Ray Stonehocker, I checked the valve clearances - looking for an outlier.

 

 

If anything, a couple of the intake valves are a little tight, but nothing should be loose and making a racket.

 

 

I also checked to make sure everything up top is getting oiled.  I ran the car for a couple seconds without the cam cover on.  I can now assure you that the oiling system is working as designed!  (where are all my rags)

 

I did some reading on timing chain rattle which is common on the FJ and there is a pretty well documented ratcheting tensioner from Mazda that people have adapted to fix the issue but this isn't on startup - although that problem exists as well.  I may be running slightly thinner oil (10W30) than recommended (20W50) so that could play a small part, but after talking to a few different people, I don't think I'm in danger of hurting anything so...  Let's put this car back together and go for a drive!

Best engine Nissan ever built. Love it man.

[carterb]

I thought I had everything buttoned up and ready so I grabbed my wallet and headed to the gas station for the car's first real drive and fill up.  Things started out okay but on the way down the hill by Logan park, I put more force into the brakes than on my previous test runs and at least one of the rears locked up and then kept dragging like before.  So I turned around at the bottom of the hill in the 7-11 parking lot and came back home before overheating the dragging brakes. 

 

At this point it was obvious I was dealing with a sticky master cylinder or rear brake cylinder(s) and I would need to fix that before I was going to put this car on the road for real.

 

15/16 master cylinder gives a pretty firm pedal!

 

 

 

It was suggested I could pop the pistons out of the brake cylinders and polish them if they were what was sticking but with my experience on Bruiser - where I have had to replace every rubber and seal on the truck, I figured I'd just buy new brake cylinders.  They are pretty cheap after all.

 

A few days later, I was ready for the swap.  Hoping I could get away with brake cylinders only - not having to swap masters.

 

 

Got a set for Corey's car while I was at it.

 

 

Clamping the brake line reduces the chance of draining the master and reduces the amount of bleeding to be done after the work is complete.

 

 

I'm getting pretty good at the retainer clips now.  I used to hate these things!

 

 

Brenda helped me bleed the brakes when I was done and once a firm pedal was re-established - it was test drive time again.

 

Success!!!!!

 

 

First tank of gas in 10 years!

[carterb]

The next day, Monday, I drove it to work!

 

 

Such a cool feeling.  I took Jeff for a little ride and then he took Sam on a drive.

 

Still a few bugs to work out - tire pressures low (not sure how I missed that) - voltmeter reading 14+ volts - throttle reluctant to return to idle - concerning electrical buzzing around the MSD box - need better exterior mirror.  (the PO had broken the mirror off the side of the car.  I glued it back together to facilitate getting the car on the road but it is no longer adjustable and so glued in the wrong spot).

 

Even so - made it to work, made it to Monday Night Volleyball after work, then made it back home. 

 

Let's do that some more!

[reza]

Ill do anything for the whale tail decklid.... Anything ?

[tr8er]

55 minutes ago, reza said:

Ill do anything for the whale tail decklid.... Anything ?

You should try offering a quarter.  

[carterb]

1 hour ago, tr8er said:

You should try offering a quarter.  

 

of what?

[carterb]

Regarding the voltage thing...

 

Jeff suggested that the change to an internally regulated alternator may not have been done correctly and it was not getting the right reference voltage.

 

This sparked (pun intended) a memory of a little jumper I found sitting in the crossmember pocket below the right front motor mount.

 

 

Paolo's diagram shows two jumpers are needed.

 

 

but I could only find one installed.

 

 

So I put the red jumper in the to connect the white and yellow wires...  Didn't appear to change anything - more research is needed.

 

For the throttle, I disconnected the cable from the carbs and the carb linkage silky smooth and easy to operate so I assumed the drag is in the cable itself.

I pulled the cable from the sheath and lubricated it. 

 

 

This seems to have made things much much better, but it's still not perfect.

 

Oh, and for the first time in 20 years, the car has a hood spring!

 

 

 

 

[BrandonS]

This build is going to be awesome to watch.  Very awesome car!  How did you come to the conclusion the front was 810?  Mine has the same hub and calipers by the looks of it and I was thinking they were 1987 200SX 2.4L front brakes; specifically the upto 04/87 stuff.  

[carterb]

I have the good fortune of being able to talk with the car's original builder.  The 810 did have an L24 engine in the states so perhaps Nissan figured if the brakes could stop 2.4 liters in the 810, they could stop 2.4 liters in the 200SX?

 

Seriously though I would think that Nissan brakes/hubs look similar across many models.  Rockauto lists different part number disks for the '78 810 and the '87 200sx.

 

810 disks measure 10.62" while the 200sx disks measure 9.9 or 10.16" (?)

 

I do have some info showing that Toyota truck 4 piston calipers bolt to 810 and 200sx struts - so there must be some similarity between the two.

 

From Jerry Claypool:

 '79-'85 Toyota 4x4's had iron 4 piston "Sumitomo" calipers. Other than the huge difference in price, they were functionally equivalent to the FIA Z car calipers, for the stock solid rotors. Putting these on a 510 can be done several ways, using different struts, 810, 200SX normally.

Probably C10 and C110 Skylines had similar struts, couldn't say for sure.

Usually 14" and larger wheels are needed, unless you run high negative offset wheels and flares (which sit very nicely in BRE flares with 20"

sicks). '86 and later 4X4 trucks and 4 runners had similar calipers, but were wider to fit the "new-for-Toyota" .81" vented rotors. Tundras have an even larger caliper, also iron. Never saw any aluminum calipers on Toyotas, doesn't mean it wasn't so, I actually stopped looking.

Edited November 17, 2018 by carterb

[BrandonS]

2 hours ago, carterb said:

I have the good fortune of being able to talk with the car's original builder.  The 810 did have an L24 engine in the states so perhaps Nissan figured if the brakes could stop 2.4 liters in the 810, they could stop 2.4 liters in the 200SX?

 

Seriously though I would think that Nissan brakes/hubs look similar across many models.  Rockauto lists different part number disks for the '78 810 and the '87 200sx.

 

810 disks measure 10.62" while the 200sx disks measure 9.9 or 10.16" (?)

 

I do have some info showing that Toyota truck 4 piston calipers bolt to 810 and 200sx struts - so there must be some similarity between the two.

 

From Jerry Claypool:

 '79-'85 Toyota 4x4's had iron 4 piston "Sumitomo" calipers. Other than the huge difference in price, they were functionally equivalent to the FIA Z car calipers, for the stock solid rotors. Putting these on a 510 can be done several ways, using different struts, 810, 200SX normally.

 

Probably C10 and C110 Skylines had similar struts, couldn't say for sure.

 

Usually 14" and larger wheels are needed, unless you run high negative offset wheels and flares (which sit very nicely in BRE flares with 20"

 

sicks). '86 and later 4X4 trucks and 4 runners had similar calipers, but were wider to fit the "new-for-Toyota" .81" vented rotors. Tundras have an even larger caliper, also iron. Never saw any aluminum calipers on Toyotas, doesn't mean it wasn't so, I actually stopped looking.

 

 

Very good info!  Thank you for that. 

[Lockleaf]

Toyota caliper swaps are common for the Z cars.  We put the vented rotor and calipers on my friends 260z.  So that should be an option for anything sharing the Z caliper bolt spacing.