redterror74 Posted June 29 Report Share Posted June 29 Hi. I recently inherited my late great aunt's 1974 120y. I have not had much experience working on cars and have always wanted to learn. I am thinking of swapping the a12 with something that has more power. I have spent a while reading various formus to see what would be the best option for me and I have been looking at the ca18det, as an sr20 seems a bit overkill. As for trans, people seem to have a lot of different opinions and I was wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction and explain the differences between possible options. It's currently automatic but I would like to convert it to manual. I am still in the planning stage and have not bought any parts as I want to make sure I know what I'm going to do. I'm thankful for any info as I'm keen to learn. Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted June 29 Report Share Posted June 29 Get the 5 speed that came with the CA18DET, probably a FS5W71C. A tough transmission. Quote Link to comment
redterror74 Posted June 29 Author Report Share Posted June 29 Thanks mate, much appreciated! Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted June 29 Report Share Posted June 29 CA18DET is overkill, much more HP than an SR20DE. The CA18DET is definitely what I would put in a B210, it is lighter than an SR20, and the stock longblock can make more HP than an SR20. It's not until you start replacing the pistons and rods that the SR20 will outshine it Quote Link to comment
Motorvated Posted July 11 Report Share Posted July 11 Nice to see another Aussie 120Y You'll want to upgrade brakes too. You may as well find them from a CA18DET powered Nissan. Bear in mind you'll need at least 15in wheels. Some 14s may fit (watanabes), if you're going the small wheels route. Also jump on "Datsun 120Y Owners Group, Australia." got any pics? Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted July 13 Report Share Posted July 13 Brakes from Nissan S13 fit the 120Y struts The S13 250mm rotor fits under 14" wheels, while the S13 280mm rotor requires 15" wheels Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 At 99,999 Km the speedo rolls over to 00,000 Km. Did your aunt drive over 60,000 miles while she had it? Automatics are good survivors as they are a bit boring and hard to abuse. Find another 120Y and get the peddle box with the correct clutch and brake, master* and push rod, hard and flex line and the slave. The hard and flex line will change from left to right side of transmission when you select an engine/transmission. They are usually on the right. I've used pre-made brake lines for the clutch hydraulic hard line of the proper length, with correct thread fittings and bent them myself around a can of peas. * If changing to a much larger caliper size, the tiny 120Y master cylinder will have to travel farther to provide enough fluid volume to work them. It will work, but with the added travel the brakes may feel very soft and travel down closer to the floor. You may have to replace the master cylinder with something larger. If S13 calipers take a look at what size master was used on it and get something close in size for the 120Y. 1 Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 (edited) 8 hours ago, redterror74 said: Fab looking B210. Love the shark's gill grille, we never got that in North America can you post of pic of the compliance plate and build plate? Looks like an Australia-assembled 120Y (by Nissan Pty. ). Oh, and Colour No. plate 8 hours ago, redterror74 said: Edited August 30 by ggzilla Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 I had a '76 and never warmed to the grill looks. Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 1 minute ago, datzenmike said: I had a '76 and never warmed to the grill looks. North America early sedans and fastbacks both used the JDM Coupe grille: The early grilles had character, unlike the boring 1977-1978 grille Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 1970's high style dashboard has a lot of character too. AM/FM cassette stereo too 8 hours ago, redterror74 said: 6,4478km Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted August 30 Report Share Posted August 30 The park bench bumpers also added a lot of character. Quote Link to comment
redterror74 Posted August 31 Author Report Share Posted August 31 11 hours ago, datzenmike said: At 99,999 Km the speedo rolls over to 00,000 Km. Did your aunt drive over 60,000 miles while she had it? Automatics are good survivors as they are a bit boring and hard to abuse. Find another 120Y and get the peddle box with the correct clutch and brake, master* and push rod, hard and flex line and the slave. The hard and flex line will change from left to right side of transmission when you select an engine/transmission. They are usually on the right. I've used pre-made brake lines for the clutch hydraulic hard line of the proper length, with correct thread fittings and bent them myself around a can of peas. * If changing to a much larger caliper size, the tiny 120Y master cylinder will have to travel farther to provide enough fluid volume to work them. It will work, but with the added travel the brakes may feel very soft and travel down closer to the floor. You may have to replace the master cylinder with something larger. If S13 calipers take a look at what size master was used on it and get something close in size for the 120Y. Talking to family members, it definitely hasn't done more than 100,000 km. It's only ever been driven around town doing short runs. Been driven a handful of times in the last 20 years due to my aunt's decline in health. Quote Link to comment
redterror74 Posted August 31 Author Report Share Posted August 31 After a couple more months research, I'm now looking at rotaries. There's a place up in QLD that do rotary imports and rebuilds. Going through them might be a lot safer than buying an sr20 off marketplace that could be a dud. Not sure which would be easier. Just a thought. 13b carby vs sr20det... (Edit) Then there's also the option of just restoring it. Since It's got stuff all kms on it. The engine is... ok. It runs but will stall if you give it a bit too much juice, and vibrates the car like crazy. It's also the quietest engine I've ever heard. Almost too quiet. Either way in the mean time, while I save up some money, I'm going to try get the engine running a bit smoother. My first victim being the carby Quote Link to comment
redterror74 Posted August 31 Author Report Share Posted August 31 Australian made Quote Link to comment
ggzilla Posted August 31 Report Share Posted August 31 (edited) wow, that looks like a factory stamp "B120A" and is that a period chalk marking? Never seen either on a Datsun before 35 minutes ago, redterror74 said: Paint Colour 15805 is "Citrus Red" from the Clayton factory B210-SAXUW meaning B210 Standard Automatic. And U usually means Export if that applies to CKD or local assembly. Dunno what X or W means 37 minutes ago, redterror74 said: Australian made Met the latest ADRs including 23 (1974 tyres), 27 (1974 emissions) and 28 (1974 noise control). The Japan cars were so quiet , you could not hear them run at idle. I wonder if the Australia-source exhaust were that quiet? 37 minutes ago, redterror74 said: Edited August 31 by ggzilla Quote Link to comment
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