1968 Datsun 510 Sedan (Project Datto)

[Komisiripala]

For him I meant the foil on the firewall

[Komisiripala]

here's the finished fan shroud. this hadn't uploaded earlier...

[Magnum]

For him I meant the foil on the firewall

oooookay, I don't know what that is

[GTAm]

guys how can i block the engine heat entering the cabin through the firewall???

W@rth has a few options too, which looks a bit nicer than MacF.

[Sampath Gunasekera]

Hey guys, I was lucky to spent some time with Komi's. Datsun 510. "Raja Baduwakne"

Pretty nice car. Even engine bay is very clean. Thanks Komi for spending your valuable time for me.

[Komisiripala]

anytime, sampath. anytime. the pleasure was all mine!

so, she's back from indika after two heartbreaking days, and here's the fan shroud, all painted and nice looking!

as you can see he's even sealed off the sides with foam. it works perfectly. AC runs without overheating the condenser, the engine temp goes higher than where it was previously, but it doesn't overheat. also, the crank pulley and AC pulley were bolted together, and the AC pulley was ratcheted for better grip. so no slippage. new AC belt as well. ah, so nice to be back in an AC cabin!

i also got him to fix the play on the gear lever. my god now its as tight as justin beibers kitty! nice!

the old pedal pads were non-existent. there was a pedal cover plate over the clutch. i neve rwas a fan of pedal plates. so got rid of it. here's the before:

and here's the after. these are OEM pedal pads made for the 510. perfect fit. also fixed a play in the accelerator pedal. it was going all over the place. its actually fixed to the floor with a saraneruwa. thank god you can't see it!

and finally, here's a money shot of my hard work. the front grille in place. isn't she a beauty. ah

it withheld a pressure wash at automiraj with flying colors. quite pleased with my work!!

[NPP]

awesome worke mate!

always delightful to see such beauties.

[Jaliya48]

Nice work man! I've got to get my fan shroud fixed and the AC running...ah the thought of an air conditioned KE72 cabin!

[GTAm]

Progressing nicely.

[Komisiripala]

Runs a little hotter with the AC. I guess that's normal? Have to get a radiator overflow tank

[Komisiripala]

And put coolant

[JadeyBlitzen]

Machan what happened with the those head lights you were talking about? Did you get them?

[H.C]

Nice work mate!. whats the plan for bumpers?. DIY polish or rechrome ?.

[GTAm]

Runs a little hotter with the AC. I guess that's normal? Have to get a radiator overflow tank

Check if the fan is upto scratch if it's electric. If it's a crank fan then you may want to add an additional small electric fan with a thermostat. I read an article recently in a mag about how critical it is to having the engine run at the prescribed temp for optimum performance.

[Komisiripala]

The BMW e30 lights will have to wait. I can order then any time off eBay. Will get them down later on during the end of her confinement.

It's a crank fan and yea I know what you mean about optimum temp. The AC job as a whole is pretty shitty. Was speaking to Indika about replacing it with a rotary unit that leeches less power off the motor.

AC condenser still doesn't cool in traffic, but now runs for a lot longer before giving up. Can't fit an electric fan. No room.

Anyhow will be going for a different AC/cooling system during the build.

Got a radiator reserve bottle. So now I can finally use coolant. Will plug that in over the weekend and update

[MasterDon]

Do not sell and safely store the original engine,drivetrain original trim bits,lights etc after the swap and your other improvements.For the sake of future owners of this car or even yourself if you someday decide to revert back to original spec.I have a few cars rotting away just cos some previous owners thought they'd do so called improvements and swap engines and whatnot.Not a day goes by where I don't curse them and mention their mothers.Please don't take this the wrong way.I don't yell 'maxxa' or 'ela' to your every post but I do admire your enthusiasm silently,and I hope you agree that my posts carry a lot more weight than most of the others posting here.

[Clark's son]

The BMW e30 lights will have to wait. I can order then any time off eBay. Will get them down later on during the end of her confinement.

Are you seriously talking about the datto or any other thing,

Isn't it better keeping it stock and trying to bring everything back to the day it rolled out of the production line.

One fine day you'll think that the originals where better and it will be a complete wast of time and money

[Komisiripala]

Whatever comes out of the car will go into storage. And no I don't post here to get petty goday back pats, MD, I share for the sake of sharing a common passion.

If you've seen the lengths I've gone to with the Teg, you would understand that whatever I do with the Datsun will be done to the minutest detail. And properly. Rest assured.

And clarkson, no. I don't think it will be a waste of time and money. If I did I would've got a viva and been very happy.

[MasterDon]

You've completely missed the gist of my post I see.Anyway I'm glad that you are preserving the original bits.As long as it's the Datsun being raped it is no great loss.But given your enthusiasm it is only a matter of time that you'll come to own a real sought after rare classic.Please think twice before destroying such a car to the minutest detail just so you can say your old car left newer Allions etc in the dust just to get Facebook likes.

[Komisiripala]

No no MD I did get it. The thing is my car already leaves allions in the dust, regardless of fb likes!

This is something I've thunk over long and hard. Your words aren't lost on me. As a lover of the classics I know how this seems sacrilege for you.

I will now hibernate and decide. Your words did NOT fall on deaf ears. Trust me

[The Don]

No no MD I did get it. The thing is my car already leaves allions in the dust, regardless of fb likes!

This is something I've thunk over long and hard. Your words aren't lost on me. As a lover of the classics I know how this seems sacrilege for you.

I will now hibernate and decide. Your words did NOT fall on deaf ears. Trust me

And I wish to second MDs thoughts........ Perhaps its nostalgia but I would personally prefer to see particular the older classics the way they left the factory There aren't many of them around and too many have been messed about by mechanics to keep them running due to the cost of keeping them original. But in the end its your car.....

And the point of these beauties is not really about being able to leave Allions in the dust. There are plenty of Allions on the roads, and they are cars of a different generation. Your car will be effortlessly cool and that is something the Allions just don't have irrespective of how much their owners have spent buying them. And we all know how important the 510 is in Nissan's history.

Edited April 7, 2013 by The Don

[Komisiripala]

And I wish to second MDs thoughts........ Perhaps its nostalgia but I would personally prefer to see particular the older classics the way they left the factory There aren't many of them around and too many have been messed about by mechanics to keep them running due to the cost of keeping them original. But in the end its your car.....

And the point of these beauties is not really about being able to leave Allions in the dust. There are plenty of Allions on the roads, and they are cars of a different generation. Your car will be effortlessly cool and that is something the Allions just don't have irrespective of how much their owners have spent buying them. And we all know how important the 510 is in Nissan's history.

what i meant to say was that the old girl, running an L13 still has plenty of fight left in her. leaving them behind isn't the point at all. you're completely right. the fact that she can after all these years is what impresses me.

got the cooling issue sorted out by putting in a radiator reservoir tank. she doesn't lose water now, and i can finally put in some coolant. also the AC cutoff was at 3.8 degrees celsius. whoever did this was one prize purple jellyfish. the thermostat is in place but not plugged in. brilliant. so got that sorted out too. and had to regass the AC. so the system runs well now. but i'd rather have indika look the AC over once again thoroughly when she's in.

[Komisiripala]

well, i sold my soul on ebay for the holy grail of datsun parts. i just had to. i couldn't watch while another one got away from my hands. and i wasn't ready to stick an aftermarket piece in the dash either. got this off an auction in australia. amex will be coming tomorrow for my left testicle.

its coming in june! hooray!

[esdeez]

well, i sold my soul on ebay for the holy grail of datsun parts. i just had to. i couldn't watch while another one got away from my hands. and i wasn't ready to stick an aftermarket piece in the dash either. got this off an auction in australia. amex will be coming tomorrow for my left testicle.

its coming in june! hooray!

Lol, who am I to talk? I'd probably do the same A refreshing change to those ill fitting "shift light" items...

[Komisiripala]

You have no idea how sought after the spec tach is machan. This is without the plastic cover and went for a 3 figure sum. The one with a plastic cover, specially a red needle one is around 260$. I've only seen one on eBay so far.

The bluebird SSS dash goes for well over 700$.

I was very close to putting an aftermarket tach in there. So glad I got this. Am a happy man this new year!