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1977 Nissan Patrol Ute resto-mod


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Hello,

 

I just joined your forum to share a custom build I am working on. I thought you guys might enjoy this, it is different, it is non-USA and it is nearly 100% all Nissan and all Patrol. It is also extremely rare in N. America, simply because it was never sold here and only three of these are known to have been imported to the states. 

 

I wrote kind of a long thread with lot's of pictures but since I am new to the forum am not sure on picture limit per post and do not see the info anywhere. So I have shortened the thread down a bit. If you guys are into a custom built non-US Patrol I will add some more pics when I figure out the post limit! 

 

 

1977 Nissan Patrol "Ute" factory LWB with 110" wheelbase, factory cab & chassis

 

 -SD33T diesel from a 83 Patrol. Being fully rebuilt with new turbo and more

 -5spd trans & t-case from an 86 Patrol. Both boxes fully rebuilt with new synchro's from Nissan in the trans.

 -Excedy Safari Tuff 12" clutch, less than 1,000 miles on it. Drilled SD33T flywheel to suit this clutch

 -Factory PTO winch and box with factory controls. I also have a 2nd Nissan PTO winch as well as a rear PTO box from a FirePatrol

 -C200 front axle & H233 rear axle, both re-geared to 4.6's and locked with ARB air lockers. Rear axle converted to disc brakes. Custom high steer on    the front. Front axle is also running Y60/GQ Patrol CVs and free wheeling hubs. Both axles fully rebuilt.

 -Custom suspension, Deaver rear 62.5" leaf spring, Rubicon Express SoA front springs, 12" Fox 5/8's shaft remote reservoir shocks. RuffStuff      brackets and rear traction bar. Spring over axle but particular attention being paid and effort put out to keep it low. 

 

That is the basic platform of the build. Being that it hails from NZ it is RHD. However, I had acquired a 1965 LHD Patrol years ago for free. From that truck I am using the firewall to convert the Ute to LHD. I am also using either a 160-series Patrol LHD steering box or one from a 88 FJ62 Land Cruiser. Both I have in hand and it will run power steering. Being a late 70's Patrol it has triple wipers which I absolutely love about the later trucks. I have ideas over the years of stretching the cab but at this time that is not planned. I have not put a ton of thought into the bed yet other than I would like it to be multi-platform. Meaning it can be used for many different things and be set up many different ways. I am planning on front and rear Nissan made PTO winches!

At this time I have stripped the truck down. Stock engine is long gone along with front and rear axles. T-case and trans are not gone but just spare parts now for some other Patrols at this point. I have cut all unwanted brackets and cross members off the frame. I have sand blasted a set of axles, the LHD firewall and the frame. All parts and bits to build the suspension are in hand. Trans & t-case needs nothing besides a clean and paint. Clutch and flywheel are ready to go. I had a spare set of axles so those are the ones I blasted. I have torn them down and removed all brackets from them in prep for building my own suspension. The actual built axles, the housing are set up for linked suspension which I do not plan to use. Just need to gut them and move it all over to the builder housing once suspension is set up. The turbo diesel has been pulled from the donor truck. It is actually a SD33 N/A but I have factory turbo and manifolds plus just purchased a turbo engine rebuild kit. I also have purchased 2nd hand turbo injection pump. So the engine is soon to be getting fully rebuilt and turbo'ed at the same time. Recently I have been working on test fitting of the engine and modifying the firewall to suit the diesel. I have also been working the suspension a bit but before any finalizing there need to build engine and trans mounts and get some weight on the springs. 

 

Pics!  :rofl:

 

Here is the old Ute in stock configuration before tear down.

 

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35" is the tire size I plan to run on this truck, here 35's on the stock Ute

 

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Gutting the truck

 

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Cheers

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Alrighty, a little back story on the Ute then.

 

I imported it from NZ in 2003. I bought it on trademe.nz on a whim for next to nothing. I then brought it into Long Beach, drove down from Wyoming and picked it up in the port. Patrol pickups are pretty rare anywhere in the world but more plentiful in NZ, Aus. and a few other countries. I brought the Patrol home and tinkered with it. This truck is a factory cab & chassis, never sold by Nissan with a bed. It was sold new in NZ and then fitted with a big flat bed. It spent it's life doing farm work. When I bought it it was being used on a farm to feed out cattle. It ran pretty darn good when I got it, the clutch master and slave leaked though so I replaced that. In NZ they don't use a title and the local DMV was being stubborn about that. Eventually after like 5yrs I was able to get DMV to help me. I explained everything, showed them the legal import docs and they suggested I title it one of two ways. I picked the abandon vehicle way. So with a little help from my landlord I was able to get it titled. I now have a total legit Wyoming title for the truck with a 6-digit vin code on it. 

 

About three years ago I sold the axles, engine and trans/t-case to a client of mine I am restoring a 64 soft top Patrol for. About 5yrs ago I tried to sell the Ute as I was trying to down scale how many trucks I had. Nobody really seemed to want it and my best offer on the truck was far less then I had in it. Other Patrols had gone through various builds and I was left with a bunch of stuff laying around from non-US Patrols. So I decided why not build up the Ute using these parts!? And that is basically how this all began. 

 

I do have a concept with the build and Patrol. That is not a full on rock crawler. This truck is retaining Nissan Patrol drivetrain and as such it can't be geared low enough for any serious rock crawling. It will be able to handle light to mild rock crawling but no big huge boulders, just not geared low enough. So basically, a more all arounder for off-road fun, a hunting truck, a recovery truck, a truck to haul things like full sized sheets of plywood and even a truck to take some fairly long distance trips in. I may eventually do a multi-platform bed on it. 60-series Patrols are great trucks by these days limited a lot for a number of reasons. Top speed is very slow, ie 55mphish. When it comes to off-roading with the stock drivetrain, you can't re-gear the axles, you can't get lockers for them either. Wheel base is very short which has a few benefits off-road but mostly limits the truck. It also makes any drivetrain swap very difficult. Parts are also pretty hard to come by for the old Patrols but parts for the newer gen (160-series) are easy to get in Australia. Newer gen Patrol parts are also stronger, in particular axle shafts. It will stop much better than an old Patrol with disc brakes all around too. So anyways, the concept is a more capable off-roader, a truck that can cruiser at 70mph on the HWY and a truck that is a lot of fun to drive plus one of a kind, all the while keeping it 100% Nissan and Patrol. Personally, I do not care for a RHD truck. So converting it to LHD is part of this build.  

 

 

Last winter I finally got the Ute into a shop and started work on it. I stripped it and then went about removing everything from the frame I didn't want which was everything except body mounts! I then sand blasted the frame and got it prep'ed for building. At the same time I sand blasted a 1965 Patrol LHD firewall and a set of axles from a 1984 Patrol. I bought what I needed to build the suspension and just kept working on the project. Right now I am waiting on diesel rebuild kit to show up as well as a turbo injection pump. At that point I will be rebuilding the motor and then fitting it. After that suspension can be finalized and I should have a rolling chassis. 

 

On with the pictures!

 

This is my donor rear axle, an H233 from an 86 Patrol, with a disc brake conversion. 4.6 gears and ARB locked

 

71879_2744250823394_1034510777_n.jpg?oh=

 

Stripping the truck down

 

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Sand blasted axles, firewall and frame

 

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Final cleaning up on the frame

 

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Typical spot for corrosion on a Patrol and I HATE corrosion!

 

10456440_4400167780283_39934313441943946

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10338229_4400168980313_26071996882531962

 

rear axle stripped and ready to start fabricating

 

10443416_4417365010203_23225519403891118

 

front axle stripped and checking out how the Rubicon Express leaves will fit in SoA configuration

 

10509535_4420122439137_45359680629080617

 

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bling bling

 

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62.5" long leaves not going to work without some fab'ing

 

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So I extended the frame rails 12"

 

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Oh ya and to make handling the frame easier by myself I built a cart for it

 

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Looking good now

 

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So after this I pulled the diesel & 5spd from my donor Patrol

 

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And test fit it to the chassis

 

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pretty close on the turbo dump to the firewall

 

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no probs on the frame rail though

 

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10616059_4621308148654_90734949532480480

 

the stock P engine has a deeper stroke then the diesel so I have excellent sump clearance

 

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The main issue with the swap is rad support to fan clearance

 

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I think I have that all worked out though, the stock pulleys are way to thick and meaty. I am having some billet pulleys made and wil gain upwards of 2" here. Also going with a custom built Ron Davis radiator.

 

10394113_4621305988600_90567587951130194

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I decided to outboard the inner firewall body mounts 1" to give slightly more clearance. In particular for the dip stick and fuel filter as well as for the turbo dump. I also massaged the firewall a bit to gain slightly more clearance.

 

10646801_4628503168525_24009208068311779

 

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I test fit the engine again (no pics) and I gain a fair amount of clearance. I am happy with it. With custom billet pulleys and moving the engine back 1-1.5" I will have enough room for the radiator. I also plan to run a small front mount intercooler down low in the grill. That is where I am at with the project right now. There will be a bit of a slow down in the build as I am waiting on a turbo diesel engine rebuilt kit from Australia along with a turbo injection pump. When that shows u the diesel is getting rebuilt. In the meantime I will get the pulleys made as well as get my engine and trans mounts made. Once I have the drivetrain in the frame I will finalize suspension and burn it all on. At that point I should have a rolling chassis. Lot's of fab to do between now and then though. 

 

Some other goodies I have for the project includes front and rear PTO boxes made by Nissan. These are very rare, in particular the rear box as it only came on FirePatrols. I got all the PTO winch stuff out of NZ and the rear PTO box I picked up in Colombia, South America. I have a LHD power steering box from my 83 Patrol. I will be using that or an 88 FJ62 Land Cruiser box. I also have really beefy tie rod and drag link ready to go. I have a 25 gallon fuel cell made from stainless that will mount in the bed behind the cab. I have a NOS steering wheel I picked up years ago and have been saving for this project. I have got a brand new Y60/GQ Patrol master cylinder, master vac, clutch master and clutch slave to use in the build. Some other small bits here and there too. I will be ordering up a new windshield frame and a few patch pieces for the firewall soon from a friend in Colombia. That solves most of the rot issues in the truck besides the roof. The roof will be tough but I do have a USA hardtop that is fairly solid to cut up and try to use in fixing the Ute's roof. I plan to do all the body work myself. 

That is all for now!

Cheers

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Few more random pictures I realized I missed.  :sleep:

 

 

This is the front axle, set up with 3-link and air shocks so not exactly the same suspension but same axle! The high steer is double sheer and the tie rod is 7075 aluminum, hemi joints which I will probably keep over tres. Beefy 3/8" skid plate too.

 

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These are the Y60/GQ Patrol CVs, a big upgrade from the stock C200 CV's. These come from an H233 front axle. I bought these new from Nissan and then a stainless steel ring was welded to them for more strength. All that is needed to run them in the C200 axle is the Y60/GQ free wheeling hubs and one less c-clip on the outer axle shaft. Something I learned from my Aussie friends!

 

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Here is the Ute awhile back when I yanked the stock drivetrain

 

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and the day I picked it up in the port in Long Beach!

 

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The Ute stock on 35's next to my 83 which is sitting on 40" rubber

 

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Cheers

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OUTSTANDING!!! 

 

Never took much notice of patrol builds as usually they are going back stock,,, well you sir, have gained my attention.

 

 

Thanks! I have a few of those going too, back to stock that is. Those are fun builds but can get expensive and be difficult to get 100% correct. 

 

I personally enjoy resto-mods more. Taking the old and making it better. That is a lot of fun for me and much more of a challenge than just making it stock again. One thing is for sure, this old kiwi Ute is going to be one mean truck and sound absolutely awesome! The old SD33T has a very mean growl and whistle. ;)

 

Here is a video of the old SD33 before right before I yanked it from the 83 Patrol. I hadn't started it in 3yrs!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2dr54X9UWk&list=UUvvbkGtRPjRvkyTNyVuXQQw

 

And if you like that, check out this other SD33T I have for another project! ;)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EymQDjKwEE&list=UUvvbkGtRPjRvkyTNyVuXQQw&index=4

 

Cheers

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And of the dope ass totem pole,, did you carve that bad boy yourself??

 

 

Nah, didn't carve it. Been here at my place for many years. More than 20yrs is my guess, I been here for over 12yrs. 

 

I got my rear traction bar kit last week from RuffStuff. Besides this the Ute is mostly in standby mode at the moment. I have got some other Patrols I am working on and they demand my attention right now. Plus, like I say, waiting on turbo rebuild kit from Australia. 

 

Cheers

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No picture update, sorry.  :blush:

 

However, engine rebuild kit (turbo version) is in route as well as axle seal kits, NOS head gasket and used SD33T valve cover. Wanted the "turbo" valve cover and a guy only uses an NOS head gasket on these engines. Solid shop located in Salt Lake City to handle turbo rebuild, injectors and injection pump. Really hoping my used turbo injection pump checks out ok. They can cost an arm and a leg to rebuild. Supposed to have 200km's on it and came from Belgium, from a Patrol that was totaled. Here is to keeping my fingers crossed. Found an NOS SD33T water pump in my stash, so that is sweet. Hooking up soon with my machinists to get new pulleys made. May or may not build engine + trans mounts before motor rebuild. Kind of have my hands full so it is up in the air but I do have everything in hand to do it. Seriously considering buying an english wheel, sheet metal brake and bead roller plus sand bag and hammer to handle to roof repairs plus seat frame and trans hump mods. Dug into the roof the other night and it is some serious rot in the roof around the drip rail. Major surgery required, but it doesn't scare me, just need the right tools in the shop. Not much else to tell other than I am getting some body pieces out of Colombia soon but in no real hurry as the engine rebuild plus chassis prep is my main focus. Would like to get cab sand blasted before to long that way I can work on it as I have time. 

 

Cheers

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This looks like an awesome build.  Where did you get your Y60 patrol?  Did you import it yourself?

 

 

Thanks! It is a 160 not a Y60, Y60 came out in 1988. It is an 83. It hails from Germany, I didn't import it. I found it in the early 2000's down in Bakersfield, California. I bought it from the 2nd owner. What I was told was that the original German owner imported it in about 1987 when he moved to the states. It was 100% original when I got it, down the the "Nissan" floor mats. 

 

Cheers

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