My 76 B210 (2nd owner)

[datsunfreak]

so, I thought I may as well update this thread with the status of my car.

 

I'm sorry, but your thread has already been hijacked. You'll have to start a new one. :P

[datsunfreak]

OK, it must the B310 that needs the under-panels. Good deal.

 

 

Indeed it is. :thumbup:

 

And that sucks. <_<

[jaime.g]

@datsunfreak

 

I've still yet to hear back from you on the carb purchase to get tracking updates and it has been quite some time, so I'm posting here. At this point, I don't even need the carb anymore and would like to see if I can just get my money back as I have a feeling you probably haven't shipped it yet Let me know.

 

Thanks,

Jaime

[jaime.g]

So I decided it was time to make at least some movement with the b210. Since I'm going sr20det, I've been thinking hard about what rear end to swap to. After a bit of patience, I've finally stumbled upon a h190 (3.54)rear end with disc brakes out of an 82 200sx.

 

Here is a pic of the stock h150 which hopefully should be coming out soon:

 

 

 

 

 

 

and here is the new rear end that I just got done removing from the donor junkyard car. I can't wait to start grinding away at it to remove the non needed 4 link brackets and coil spring mounts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the car it came out of, 82 200sx:

 

 

 

I also picked up some bigger front brakes out of a 79 280zx:

 

 

I also snagged lower control arms and knuckles from a b310 (not pictured)

 

 

 

 

I went ahead and decided to bleed the current brakes as I recently started up the original a14 motor to see how well everything works before I start pulling off parts.

 

 

Also, I won't be able to keep the stock wheels and hubcaps, so I took the opportunity to mock up some 15" prime wheels I had laying around.

 

 

The rear wheel barely clears the leaf spring and has plenty of room between the shock. The stock h150 rear end measures appx 52" drum surface to drum surface and the 200sx rear end measures appx 55" wide. This should provide more room between the leaf spring and the wheel, I believe. Also, clearance between the wheel lip and fender should be almost perfect with just a simple roll of the fender lip. Nothing major at all.

 

 

 

 

I did note that the wheels up front touch the strut. If I remember correctly from reading up about 280zx spindle swaps, it should give more clearance for wheels, so i'm not really worried there.

[king bee66]

cool man, glad to see its coming along. did you by any chance check out the condition of the 210s they have in the yard?

[jaime.g]

cool man, glad to see its coming along. did you by any chance check out the condition of the 210s they have in the yard?

 

You're in luck as I just so happened to snap pics of one. This is the one I took the lower control arms off of. I believe the time before last, which was a few weeks ago, there was also a tan 210, but I did not go looking for that one this past weekend.

 

This one is located at the san antonio pick n pull off of applewhite rd and highway 16 on the south side.

 

[ggzilla]

ha somebody already got the 5-speed outta that car

 

 

About your wheels, what size width and offset are they? 6-inch wide wheels are about 6.75 overall.

[jaime.g]

ha somebody already got the 5-speed outta that car

 

 

About your wheels, what size width and offset are they? 6-inch wide wheels are about 6.75 overall.

 

They sure did.

 

They're 15", but I'm not sure on the offset or width. I'll need to do some measuring once I get a chance.

[king bee66]

yep, the 5speed was what i was curious about, so thats that. 

 

 

 are you planning on sticking with the leafsprings somehow or buy some rear coilovers?

[jaime.g]

yep, the 5speed was what i was curious about, so thats that.

 

 

are you planning on sticking with the leafsprings somehow or buy some rear coilovers?

 

I haven't done enough research to even see any b210s that have rear coilover setup in place of the leafsprings. I'm trying to keep cost to a minimum on this project.

 

So far, the plan is to keep the leaf spring setup. I haven't taken off the old mounting hardware from the h150 to see how or if it will work with the h190 without work, but I imagine I could just unclamp all of the hardware (u bolts) and bolt it onto the new rear end once I grind off all of the unneeded 4 link and coil spring brackets. I gauged the thickness of each of the axle tubes and the h150 is appx 60.3mm and the h190 is 60.5mm. Pretty much the same approximate size.

[datsunfreak]

I also snagged lower control arms and knuckles from a b310 (not pictured)

 

Any particular reason? The 280ZX struts work fine with the B210 LCAs? And I'm pretty sure the B310 arms won't bolt up to a B210.

 

I did note that the wheels up front touch the strut. If I remember correctly from reading up about 280zx spindle swaps, it should give more clearance for wheels, so i'm not really worried there.

 

It gives more clearance at the fender, not the strut. The strut clearance will get much worse when you put the 280ZX strut on. To use those wheels, you'll need longer studs and spacers. Or adapters.

[datsunfreak]

So far, the plan is to keep the leaf spring setup. I haven't taken off the old mounting hardware from the h150 to see how or if it will work with the h190 without work, but I imagine I could just unclamp all of the hardware (u bolts) and bolt it onto the new rear end once I grind off all of the unneeded 4 link and coil spring brackets.

 

Yes, buy you need to weld on new spring perches, or it will eventually be a serious problem.

 

Fortunately, they are pretty cheap and easy to source.

 

spring pads on ebay

 

You will need to weld them on. I have put them on and used the axle u-bolts to "clamp" them in place and had a muffler shop guy tack weld them after. Works good if you don't have access to a welder beforehand.

[ggzilla]

B310 steering arms (knuckles) will bolt up, but are longer and so will make your steering slower.

 

They won't bolt up to Aussie or JDM B210, which uses a lighter-duty front suspension.

[jaime.g]

Any particular reason? The 280ZX struts work fine with the B210 LCAs? And I'm pretty sure the B310 arms won't bolt up to a B210.

 

 

 

It gives more clearance at the fender, not the strut. The strut clearance will get much worse when you put the 280ZX strut on. To use those wheels, you'll need longer studs and spacers. Or adapters.

 

I snagged them based on the datsun1200.com swap wiki, Link, but I had a feeling that guide was focused more for the 1200 suspension and not B210 as they are likely different?

 

ahh, ok. no big deal, spacer it is for now. these wheels are only temporary to get the car going. after i get the whole suspension, rear end, brakes, motorset installed and worked out, wheels will then be purchased.

 

 

 

Yes, buy you need to weld on new spring perches, or it will eventually be a serious problem.

 

Fortunately, they are pretty cheap and easy to source.

 

spring pads on ebay

 

You will need to weld them on. I have put them on and used the axle u-bolts to "clamp" them in place and had a muffler shop guy tack weld them after. Works good if you don't have access to a welder beforehand.

 

Excellent info. I was thinking that I was going to have to fab some of those spring pads up, but now that I know I can easily purchase them for cheap, I'm no longer worried about that. I also have a MIG, so welding is not a problem.

 

 

 

B310 steering arms (knuckles) will bolt up, but are longer and so will make your steering slower.

 

They won't bolt up to Aussie or JDM B210, which uses a lighter-duty front suspension.

 

I guess I'm just supposed to keep the stock usdm b210 knuckles and LCA's then? I was mistaken about this from reading the datsun1200.com swap wiki, , Here

 

I also hear that it is possible to use the 280zx knuckles for a quicker ratio steering?

[jaime.g]

Yes, buy you need to weld on new spring perches, or it will eventually be a serious problem.

 

Fortunately, they are pretty cheap and easy to source.

 

spring pads on ebay

 

You will need to weld them on. I have put them on and used the axle u-bolts to "clamp" them in place and had a muffler shop guy tack weld them after. Works good if you don't have access to a welder beforehand.

 

What rear end did you swap to?

[ggzilla]

Yes, Datsun1200.com articles are about the Datsun 1200 unless stated for other cars. There is a ton of B210 information on there but look for it.

 

and USDM B210s are different from all others...

 

The knuckles do not bolt to *any* LCA, they bolt to the bottom of the strut, and B210(USA) and B310 have the same strut bolt pattern.

 

Read the Knucle Arm article for more details on how B210 and B310 differ. It's got photos and stuff.

[ggzilla]

Here's 280ZX swap instructions for HB210 from Datsun1200.com:

 

HB210 Instructions

For H (A14) B210 or any B210 with 2" struts here is the low budget approach:

 

1.Remove struts/brakes from B210

2.Remove the 280ZX spring and upper bits, remove the same bits from the B210 struts

3.Cut the top half of the B210 spring cup off (the bit welded to the strut tube)

4.Put it inside the 280ZX spring cup (weld it on if you like, but don't have to)

5.Cut the B210 spring down to 5.5 coils (for low ride height)

6.Install cut spring and B210 upper bits onto 280ZX struts

7.Bolt back into car, preferably using the 280ZX rubber brake line

8.Bleed brakes

 

Take this with a grain of salt (there's no guarantee there), but it implies you don't need to change Knuckle Arms.

[jaime.g]

Here's 280ZX swap instructions for HB210 from Datsun1200.com:

 

 

 

Take this with a grain of salt (there's no guarantee there), but it implies you don't need to change Knuckle Arms.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I guess I have parts to sell now.

[king bee66]

<br />I haven't done enough research to even see any b210s that have rear coilover setup in place of the leafsprings.

<br /><br /><br />

 

well they have these that i believe may work

 

http://www.ground-control-store.com/products/description.php/II=758/CA=27

 

obviously very pricy, but i too have never researched this enough to know of the cheaper alternatives

[jaime.g]

I may look into coilovers later down the road.

 

I haven't been able to get my a14 to start in a good while lately, even with the aid of carb/choke cleaner. I'm thinking that it maybe an ignition issue as I still have the points distributor on there. I noticed all the plugs are not looking consistent with each other. I popped open the cap on the distributor and saw that the metal contacts were well corroded. I thought about going to get a new cap and rotor for it, but since I'm at it I may as well pop on the matchbox dizzy I have instead, but I think I may need a different coil. I'm gonna start reading up now on how to convert.

[ggzilla]

Don't buy a new cap, it won't help. It's normal for the cap contact (inside ones) to be oxidized. If the external wire contacts are oxidized, that's caused by misfiring, possibly a bad plug wire.

 

Fit the matchbox. It is so much better.

 

You don't need a new coil. Just do this:

Hopefully you have a bit of the matchbox wiring harness (black and blue wires) but if not, it goes like this:

 

B - goes to 12V IGN (e.g. Resistor as above)

C - goes to coil NEG terminal

[jaime.g]

I saw that diagram earlier today while getting ready for work, I just wasn't too sure if I needed a different coil. The wiring seems really easy. Thanks for answering my concerns with that.

 

I just looked up the part numbers for distributor cap and rotors and they are the same between 76 and 80 so I won't have to buy new cap rotor for now.

[datsunfreak]

Here's 280ZX swap instructions for HB210 from Datsun1200.com:

 

 

 

Take this with a grain of salt (there's no guarantee there), but it implies you don't need to change Knuckle Arms.

 

 

FWIW, I've done exactly that sequence on 4 B210s so far with zero fuss ('74 sedan, '75 sedan, '77 sedan, '78 hatch). Never once changed the steering knuckles/LCAs.

 

The only Datsun I've seen from the 70s that you have to change the steering knuckles/LCAs is the 1200. You can sell that B310 stuff to a 1200 guy who wants to do a 280ZX strut swap? The B310 stuff bolts right into a 1200. ;)

[Kisor]

Why not do S13 front suspension? They can handle just about any wheel combo you want and have tons of brake upgrade potential. Not to mention all the strut/coilover options out there.

 

I'm sure there are tons of them in salvage yards in your area

[ggzilla]

I think he already has the ZX parts.