Jasper's Lazy Goon build

[Jasper]

So, a lot of you probably saw this on Craigslist or elsewhere. Well, I bought it for $2000, and although it does indeed have the original paint, it has had a motor swap. The motor that's in it now is a L18 block with a W58 head. Not sure why the owner before him chose those parts, but I think I can assume they did it out of ignorance.

 

Anyways, here are some pics from the day I towed her home:

 

 

 

[Draker]

Glad to see you actually bought it! How did your 620 do towing the goon and how far did you have to tow it?

 

For a second there I was like.. damn that's a big box in the bed of your 620.. then I was like, nope, shed.

[Jasper]

I bought it 01/17/13.

 

 

I began work today, starting with the headlights. I was getting 3 lights on, regardless of high-beam or not. Found a random jumper wire. Removed that, and got 2 lights on. High beam switch had no effect on one light. More poking around, replacing fuses, hitting the headlight relay with a hammer. Eventually pulled a headlight out of my dad's 1968 AMC Rebel project, and plugged that in. What do you know, they are the exact same size, and it fixed all the lighting problems.

 

That jumper wire seems to be one of many strange electrical decisions. Ignition and starter wire are currently bypassing the stock wiring harness. Not sure if there is a break somewhere or if the previous owner didn't have a wiring diagram. Either way, the motor runs, and the headlights, brake lights, turn signals, and marker lights all work, so I'm not going to worry about it right now. I will say that none of the interior or dash lights work.

 

Next goals are as follows:

Horn button is missing. Going to solder in a little button so it passes inspection. Probably put it on the steering wheel so it looks like a nitrous button or something, because racecar.
Swap wheels/tires from my 240z onto this to get it mobile. They've been holding air for 2 years now, so they should be good for the road for a couple weeks.

Rig a gas pedal onto the lever down there, since the stock one is broken. Possibly using the AMC gas pedal, if it's the clamp on style.

Registration/Inspection time.


The focus is on comfort here, so plan is:

Sound deadening

Modern sound system

5-speed swap

Some of those soft KYB shocks

Probably new steering wheel



Another fun note is, one of my horns were broken. I checked my dads 1992 Caprice parts car, and the horns out of that plugged right in and worked. Also, the stock Caprice horn brackets fit right into the 510 with a little bending. They seem to have a lower tone. The Caprice parts car will probably serve for many more parts tests. I'll probably pull the radio and speakers out of it in the future. Maybe some of the carpet too. Definitely going to cut a lot of it's exhaust pipe out to use, maybe even the aftermarket muffler.

The 1992 Caprice was bought by my dad for one purpose, and that is the LT1 motor it has. He was going to put it in a 72 Monte Carlo he has, but it may end up in a 280z some day, idk. His projects are vast and slow moving. He has given me permission to use any parts from it that aren't related to the motor.

[Jasper]

Glad to see you actually bought it! How did your 620 do towing the goon and how far did you have to tow it?

 

For a second there I was like.. damn that's a big box in the bed of your 620.. then I was like, nope, shed.

 

It did fine, except going up hills. I had to tow it about 50 miles. There were a couple large hills that required downshifting to 3rd and taking it slow.

 

Haha, yeah. I do have a bed topper for the 620 that I took off.

 

 

 

Another fun fact. The Goon has a Datsun radio in it. After searching around, I have found ZERO speakers or speaker wire. I pulled the radio out, and there was only a antenna plugged into it. The 6-pin plug for the back of the radio is no where to be found. I'm confused.

[bananahamuck]

So, a lot of you probably saw this on Craigslist or elsewhere. Well, I bought it for $2000, and although it does indeed have the original paint, it has had a motor swap. The motor that's in it now is a L18 block with a W58 head. Not sure why the owner before him chose those parts, but I think I can assume they did it out of ignorance.

 

 

 

 

 

Why would you assume ignorance?? the L18 is bigger and they wouldn`t have to change flywheel... Some W58 heads are closed chamber , i have one on my L16,,, it may not have the biggest valves of all but i am positive it`s an improvement over a 210 head ..

 

 

Anyway,,, car looks to be in really good shape

[Jasper]

 

 

 

Why would you assume ignorance?? the L18 is bigger and they wouldn`t have to change flywheel... Some W58 heads are closed chamber , i have one on my L16,,, it may not have the biggest valves of all but i am positive it`s an improvement over a 210 head ..

 

 

Anyway,,, car looks to be in really good shape

 

Oh, I thought all the W58 heads were open chamber. Hmm, interesting. The guy I bought it from, said that the owner before him said he had rebuilt it around 10,000 miles ago. I'll have to open it up to see, but there may be some more work in the motor that I don't know about.

 

 

It seems to be in excellent shape. I've found no under body rust, besides one tiny hole in the drivers side floor board. All the fender bottoms are rust free, as is the rest of the body. The only problem with the body is that there seems to be a dent in pretty much every panel. I don't mind that so much right now, as ANYTHING is an improvement over my trucks body.

[DRIVEN]

Is that an AC condenser I spy behind the grille?  I'm with Nana, the L18 makes sense as an upgrade.  Should be a good runner if it's tuned correctly.

 

PS, how did an LT1 find it's way into a '92 Caprice?

[Jasper]

Is that an AC condenser I spy behind the grille?  I'm with Nana, the L18 makes sense as an upgrade.  Should be a good runner if it's tuned correctly.

 

PS, how did an LT1 find it's way into a '92 Caprice?

 

Yes, this car at one time had an AC. It's missing some parts, so I yanked everything out to simplify the wiring dilemma. It will probably all make its way into the For Sale section some time. It's got the condenser, the little radiator type dealy, and the under-dash unit.

 

I was just guessing at the year, and now that I look, the 92's didn't even come with the LT1 option. :unsure: It's probably somewhere between 94 and 96.

[Draker]

I might me interested in some of those AC parts

[bananahamuck]

Most heads are open,, so you are probably more correct than me.... But if it hauls ass around who cares..

 

You got a great deal either way ,, i live in Western WA and know of 3 wagons sitting ( dying ) and all are about $1800 and none of them look as straight and nice as yours..They are either covered with goofy primer or look to be repainted with house paint....

[DRIVEN]

...plus, it's the sexiest of all wagon colors :thumbup: .

[Jasper]

Most heads are open,, so you are probably more correct than me.... But if it hauls ass around who cares..

 

You got a great deal either way ,, i live in Western WA and know of 3 wagons sitting ( dying ) and all are about $1800 and none of them look as straight and nice as yours..They are either covered with goofy primer or look to be repainted with house paint....

 

Yeah, it's not burning any oil, and everything seems nice and tight. Maybe need to adjust the valves if the ticking doesn't stop after some seafoam and an oil change.

 

 

I might me interested in some of those AC parts

 

I'll keep in touch.

 

...plus, it's the sexiest of all wagon colors :thumbup: .

 

Haha, the funny thing is that its the exact same color as my 240z project. I even had Sherwin Williams use the original paint code and got a bunch of rattle cans that color. May use a little of that as touch up later, when i start dent repair.

[uieluck]

It did fine, except going up hills. I had to tow it about 50 miles. There were a couple large hills that required downshifting to 3rd and taking it slow.

 

Haha, yeah. I do have a bed topper for the 620 that I took off.

 

 

 

Another fun fact. The Goon has a Datsun radio in it. After searching around, I have found ZERO speakers or speaker wire. I pulled the radio out, and there was only a antenna plugged into it. The 6-pin plug for the back of the radio is no where to be found. I'm confused.

 

Hold on,, hold on. What ticker you gots in your 620? I've bailed outta picking up 510's around my area cause I thought there was no eff'in way my 620 could tow a dolly let alone a car+dolly. Me's gots a L20.... And I guarantee it's a struggle to tote around one MX bike. I wonder if my 620 would make a 400+mile trip pulling a 510? Nice looking goon, burnt ochre :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

[Jasper]

Hold on,, hold on. What ticker you gots in your 620? I've bailed outta picking up 510's around my area cause I thought there was no eff'in way my 620 could tow a dolly let alone a car+dolly. Me's gots a L20.... And I guarantee it's a struggle to tote around one MX bike. I wonder if my 620 would make a 400+mile trip pulling a 510? Nice looking goon, burnt ochre :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

 

Stock L20b with like 170,000 thousand miles on it, haha. Top speed was 65, on a downhill section, 55 on flat road. I'd definitely tow another Datsun with it, as long as the drive wasn't more than 60 or so miles.

[DRIVEN]

Don't discount the weight of that tow dolly either.  I have the exact same one and I'll bet it weighs 6-800 pounds and has no brakes.  Your 620 did good but I wouldn't make a habit out of it.  I normally tow with my El Camino which weighs closer to 3500# with me and fuel.  Power, and braking for that matter, aren't really the problem.  It just doesn't weigh enough and gets pushed through corners and God help you if some deep ruts get the tail whipping.  Towing anything much bigger than a Datsun or Accord can get real hairy real quick. 

[Jasper]

Yeah, I could feel the weight of the tow dolly when I was driving to get the car. It was really just a matter of taking it easy.

 

Lights and wiper knobs should be here by Wednesday. Should get everything done in the morning, since I'm off work that day. Hoping to be road ready and inspected, fingers crossed, on Wednesday.

[Jasper]

Finally got some used tires for the Appliance meshies I bought. Took it for the first test drive yesterday, and discovered some more new problems.

 

Speedometer doesn't work. Cable is broken. Contemplating cutting the sheath and tack welding it back together so I can attempt to get it inspected today.

Passenger side suspension is kind of, not moving at all. Feels like the strut is stuck or something.

Also, the drivers side tire is sticking out of the fender about an inch, and the passenger side is sticking out maybe 1/4 of an inch. No idea what the hell that is about. Possible wreck damage? Bent strut?

Locking gas cap, and no key in sight. Tried the Datsuns keys, and a couple other random keys I had, before just breaking it off.

Need to adjust one noisy valve today, and already have the gasket to do it.

Gas pedal pivot point was broken, so I rigged a bracket up and bolted it straight onto the pedal.

Fuel guage, when the key is turned on, goes all the way to full, regardless of actual fuel level. It should only have around 2 gallons in it right now.

 

If I can somehow manage to get all this fixed in under 5 hours, I'll try to get it inspected today. My truck is currently broke down, so it would be pretty nice to get some transportation again. Love the moment where you own 2 cars, a truck, and a motorcycle, and all 4 are in various stages of restoration.

[banzai510(hainz)]

lots of people bypass the ignition wireing. Most times its the back of the switch. just corrossion. or by the fuse box.

 

page 181 on the Haynes manual.

 

if there is a light relay(blk box) to the starter then one wired it for a low voltage to selinoid which is a common fix that we do on here.

 

 

most lights its the connector at fuse box. lamp or the relay contacks inside corrode.

[Jasper]

It all seems to work fine right now, so I'm not complaining.

 

 

Speedomter issue was actually not the cable like I had thought. Took the speedometer gear out of the transmission and the little plastic gear is pretty chewed up. I'm about to call the Nissan dealership in town and see if they can order a new one since I can't seem to find any online. I mean, Ebay has them for $50, but I'm really not in the mood for that.

[Jasper]

Been kind of strapped for cash lately since I lost my job. Figured I'd give a cheap fix a try before I ordered a new speedometer gear.

 

 

I heated the pinion up with a propane torch, and set it inside of a socket. Pounded the end of the pinion to get the little plastic gear off, flipped it over, and put the gear back on. I figured this would work, because only one end of my gear was really chewed up. Not sure why only half of the gear comes into contact in the trans, but I'm almost glad it was like that.

 

Speedometer is now working!

 

 

Now it seems like I'm not getting ANY water flow through the motor... My first thought is that the thermostat is screwed up. If it's not that, I guess it may be the water pump? Any ideas?

[Jasper]

Lazy update, over a month later. Been without internet for a while, but some big things have happened for the car in the past 2 weeks or so.

 

She passed inspection.

280ZX front struts and brakes. Got the parts for $100, and they had new calipers + pads, and a bunch of other doodads from the owner.

New windshield wipers, courtesy of the 280zx I was pulling parts from. Just took the rubbers out of them and put them in my metal 510 arms.

New fuel filter.

Installed an old Sunpro Tach I found in the garage. Put it in the dash in the middle of the idiot lights, looks good.

New thermostat.

Adjusted valves.

Timing chain tensioner. The thing was IN FRONT of the timing chain, so not doing its job at all. Spring was all sorts of screwed up. Replaced spring with a hammer spring from a Spyder paintball gun.

Made a shift boot from a Crown Royal bag again, just like my 620. Did it just so she would pass inspection, but knowing me, I'll be too lazy to replace it for at least a year.

Plugged holes in firewall left by AC hosing and whatever else.

And after all that, a bath. She was powdercoated with pollen 2 days later. Uhg. :sick:

 

 

Was having an issue where the motor would die at any rpm under 1100 or so. For a time, it would die every time I let it idle, so it would die at every stoplight. While adjusting the distributor too far it backfired through the carb and after that it ran PERFECT. Set the idle back down to around 800, set the distributor and carb to give me solid readings on my vacuum gauge. One thing to note though, is that I have the fuel mixture screw turned ALL THE WAY in to the carb. I'm thinking this may be the wrong carburetor?

 

 

Biggest surprise so far with the project? The dome light for the rear hatch still works! :thumbup:

 

 

PS: No pictures tonight, but tomorrow is my birthday, so I should have some pictures for the thread tomorrow.