Memoirs of a New 510 Owner

[Mr. BOHICA]

I wanted to start this thread to document the purchase and minor rehabilitation of a recently purchased 510. I am going to ATTEMPT to ask questions of our resident experts that have not been asked before. Flame on if I ask a question that has been asked a million times before, it makes me feel welcome. With that said, below is what I know about the car, either by asking the previous owner of several months or inspecting the vehicle myself:

 

• 1971 Darsun 510 4-dr
• L20 swap
• Radiator swap of a huge unit (that's what she said) that is in mediocre shape
• Electric iginition, MSD 6A and coil with Mallory Unilite distributor
• Mikuni intake manifold with two Weber 40DCOM carbs
• Unknown make headers
• Unknown make cam with the following specs: .050 duration, 236 degree, valve lift .460" and 110 degree seperation
• 10 gallon(?) aluminum gas tank located in trunk
• battery located to trunk
• fully welded cage
• old school racing buckets with 5 point restraints
• haven't inspected suspension yet but it handles very well and appears lowered
• sway bars front and rear
• minor rust rot in wheel wells, one spot in back seat area, and the rear trunk rusted through, along where the bumper is
• overall a solid car with the exception of the trunk

This is a partial list of the most pertinent things known about the vehicle. I don't know if or when it was raced, or any other history. Supposedly, it came from California but I have a few garage invoices dating back to 1993 indicating that it was in Virginia. There are racing stickers for aftermarket internal engine bits affixed to the underside of the hood, which may indicate further engine work. There are small leaks coming from the crankcase vent tube and the dipstick tube. The electrical bits all work, but some of the work is shotty. The car starts right up and runs awesome. It definitely has a lot of torque, experienced by my ass in the seat FWIW. My immediate goal of this vehicle is safety items and leak control. I plan on driving this car, only to take it out of commission for the body work, a little at a time as funds allow. I will attach some pictures and follow-up with others as questions arise. Without further adieu:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Draynor]

WOW! That dime is saweet!

[fisch]

damn it looks even better than the pictures. Great score here. There is enough work on this that I'd be surprised if someone here doesn't know this car.

[RedBanner]

Nice dime, realy suprized to see a few things, the e-brake hasnt ben swapped, and is that a voltage regulator still in use? like the color scheme!

[Mr. BOHICA]

Okay, first order of business:

 

1. Can anybody shed some light on the cam that I listed above? Possible brand, goodness that it brings?

 

2. Are there any tricks to getting a better seal with the dipstick and crankcase ventilation tube? Since both are vented to the air I don't think its a pressure issue (no PCV valve). However, if the tubes are clogged (gummed spark arrestor), could that cause some over pressure? BTW, I plan on changing the engine crankcase ventilation system. I will attach a photo and you will see why it needs to go.

 

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Brad

[Mr. BOHICA]

Nice dime, realy suprized to see a few things, the e-brake hasnt ben swapped, and is that a voltage regulator still in use? like the color scheme!

 

 

Thanks guys! Owning one of these cars has been a wet dream of mine for some time. Please forgive my ignorance, but what does the voltage regulator look like? I am a total newb, so small words and pictures help.... I think the paint is original, with the exception of the black. I'm keeping it.

 

UPDATE: Through my excellent interent skilz, I have identifed a previous owner of the car. It appears that he is active in a Porsche club in Virginia and has been active with the SCCA. If I can get into contact with him, I should learn a lot about the car.

[KC Phirus]

Wooo you scored!!!

[DISLEXICDIME]

i would start by doing a compression/leak down check and seeing where you are at. that way we know if your issues are poor crank case ventilation or warn rings. but that vent set up looks poor. get a good catch can

[screamer510]

Was this the one on Craigslist?

[nismo dr]

bend over hear it comes again

 

:thumbup:

[Mr. BOHICA]

Was this the one on Craigslist?

 

Yes, this was on craigslist for the DC area. And nismo dr, you got it. Most people actually think that is my last name! :rolleyes:

[RedBanner]

The voltage regulator is the gold box bolted to your passenger side strut tower,

usaly when someone goes thru that much work they do the easy internal reg alt. swap

[faster917]

Thanks guys! Owning one of these cars has been a wet dream of mine for some time. Please forgive my ignorance, but what does the voltage regulator look like? I am a total newb, so small words and pictures help.... I think the paint is original, with the exception of the black. I'm keeping it.

 

UPDATE: Through my excellent interent skilz, I have identifed a previous owner of the car. It appears that he is active in a Porsche club in Virginia and has been active with the SCCA. If I can get into contact with him, I should learn a lot about the car.

 

 

Hey, I'm the person you called. I had this car from about 1990 to 2000 ... when I get more time, I'll dig up some photos. The car was completely mint with no roll bar, stock tank, but rest is very similar (valve cover was not painted); it has the same rims with chrome ring ... it had very nice bumpers and dash/interior was perfect ... that is the same steering wheel and you can see where the choke was a lower right of wheel. I drove this car daily for about 7 years (but also had other 510s and 521s). More later.

[datzenmike]

The stock L20B cam is 248 degree duration but this is likely measured with 0 valve lift. Yours is at 0.050" valve lift, so likely the same. The total valve lift is 0.413" yours 0.460" so very possible this cam was reground.

[faster917]

Hey there, I posted two pictures of this car in 1992 or 1993 in the Gallery under Red510VA. You will see what a beautiful car it was when I had it ... and it never looked different for all the years I drove it -- it was my only driving car for about 5 years. It had that big radiator then too ... I just did not remember. I got a 1970 Porsche 911 in about 2000: it did not handle as well as the 510 and was not a peppy. If I can find more pics, I will post them in the gallery -- my first 510 was a 1968 wagon that was the very first one in Hampton (my dad purchased the demo model from the dealer) -- there were no exclusive Datsun dealers back then. Mike

[qwik510]

Another nice looking east coast dime. So glad to have it here in MD.

 

Here are the pics he posted in the gallery

 

 

[Mr. BOHICA]

Thanks for the cam info, datzenmike. Mike, thanks for posting the pics. It's really cool to see the car in that awesome state of repair. Motivates me to bring it back! And I will check to see if the voltage regulator is hooked-up. I think I recall that it was not but I will double check when I get home.

[fisch]

Hey there, I posted two pictures of this car in 1992 or 1993 in the Gallery under Red510VA. You will see what a beautiful car it was when I had it ... and it never looked different for all the years I drove it -- it was my only driving car for about 5 years. It had that big radiator then too ... I just did not remember. I got a 1970 Porsche 911 in about 2000: it did not handle as well as the 510 and was not a peppy. If I can find more pics, I will post them in the gallery -- my first 510 was a 1968 wagon that was the very first one in Hampton (my dad purchased the demo model from the dealer) -- there were no exclusive Datsun dealers back then. Mike

Mike, my good man, seem like a guy who should get another 510 and join us here at ratsun!

[Mr. BOHICA]

So I took the hose off of the valve cover vent to confirm the size before my purchase of a catch can. The hose is caked full of the oil/ water snot-like crap that forms when oil mixes with moisture. So, I'm thinking that moist air is being allowed to enter the tube via the little air filter. So here is what I'm thinking: I was going to run both vent tubes to a catch can with an air filter affixed to the top, if there is such a thing. What if I rig a PCV valve to the top of the can, and then the air filter onto that? That way, only air can escape and not enter. Oh, I didn't see any crap inside the oil cap, only clean oil and that bronze color that a nice worn engine has... Oh, and the voltage regulator has all of the wires connected to it, but I don't see a reason to have it anymore.

[DottiBlue]

Oh, and the voltage regulator has all of the wires onnected to it, but I don't see a reason to have it anymore.

 

If you done have an internally regulated alternator on there, you will end up cooking your battery and numerous other things if you bypass the voltage regulator.

[Mr. BOHICA]

Thanks for the heads-up. There is one wire running from the voltage regulator and the alt. But I can't find any information on it. It is a Wilson LT135-35C. It is definitely newer and appears to have an aftermarket bracket. Since the wiring is nasty, to say the least, I started to remove the front fenders to clean-up the wiring and to do a MILD tuck. We shall see how it turns out... Also, I think I have come up with a plan for my crankcase/ valve cover SNAFU. I also removed the old skool racing buckets and determined that whomever installed/ mounted them was a worse welder than me, and that's sayin something. Pics to follow tomorrow. The wife is making me watch American Idol on DVR. FML

[Uber Deaf One]

Wow, that's an awesome 510!!

 

If you plan on doing any type of aggressive driving, you should move the battery in front of the rear axle. Having it in the trunk like that makes it act as a pendulum ;)

[Mr. BOHICA]

I like that idea. I don't like having the battery next to the fuel tank anyhow. I'm thinking passenger-side rear floor board Can anybody offer some assistance with identifying the color of the car? I have noted that there were four reds in 71. I have been able to make out a "4" on the faded paint sticker. The only red that had a "4" for the last number was Mexican red.

[Uber Deaf One]

I like that idea. I don't like having the battery next to the fuel tank anyhow. I'm thinking passenger-side rear floor board

 

 

 

That's where I have mine mounted ;)

[Mr. BOHICA]

So I managed to remove the headliner. Hopefully the insulation that was between it and the roof wasn't asbestos :unsure:. I also removed the two front fenders to check for rust, etc. There is a little hole that formed at the base of the A-pillar, near the seam weld of the driver side. Should be an easy fix with a piece of metal and the welder. I also removed the seats and have come to the realization that this car most likely was never raced, in a sanctioned event anyhow. The welds for the seats and the passenger harness mounting were horrible. There isn't any way that they would have passed tech.

 

Partial teardown begins...

 

This heater hose is, well, scary but functional...

 

This is a modified seat bracket that broke off in my hand when I braced myself on it to stand up.

 

Something tells me that the clips of the harness were meant to clip to something... Ingenuitive, I'll give em that.