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While searching for a Ratsun, suddenly this was obtained for me...


Outta_OC

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So, I've been lurking these forums for a couple years and decided to join a few months back.

 

My Uncle posted some pictures of a 1600 roadster in a junkyard, complete, that was a cool looking little car, but timing was bad for me.

 

Then one night while taking a random side street through Santa Ana to avoid traffic on my normal route, I spotted what looked like a 520, primered and spotty brown, for sale on the side of the side of the road. I wasn't able to stop, and I wasn't able to remember exactly where this truck was when I went back a couple days later with cash looking to pickup a project truck...

 

 

 

 

 

image_zps9cgojuax.jpg

My grandfather bought this truck for me in Feb of 2015, from his mechanic, without me asking for the truck. I've been helping gramps after a stroke and I came home from taco Tuesday to this little beast in the driveway. I am paying him back, as the mechanic felt his efforts to the truck warranted a hefty price tag, but I'm hoping to hold onto the thing for a few years and maybe get back my investment

 

IMG_20150130_212532_zpsjgxzls9o.jpgIts a great little truck, from what I've gathered from the mechanic, its been bored to a 2 litre it does have a 5 speed, and a front disk conversion.

IMG_20150204_192903_zpsxhie48o4.jpg

 

Its made for a great commuter, and has been over the Tejon pass twice on I5 without overheating! A 300 mile trip each way, no problem.

 

Just thought I'd share, there really isn't much left to do to this thing except maybe a taneau cover. And upgrade the suspension.

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You should make an ad in the classifieds section for some bed hooks. Yours be missing. 

 

 

 

Nice truck tough. 

 

What do you know about it? IR? EI? Disc brakes?

Hah, my other grandpa had a Datsun back in the 80's when I was a kid, and I always hated to look of the bed hooks!

 

The truck has been upgraded to a non points distributor, disk breaks and I'm fairly sure a z series transmission, but that's because the builder originally told me the engine was an LZ-20 ... Well I nearly shit the bed and broke the door down running out to the truck when I saw an LZ series engine on Google... Needless to say its not an old Dohc racing engine... Buuuut, the mechanic said its been rebuilt and punched out a bit, which seems probable since it is the numbers matching L18

 

Apparently the builder also went through and redid the bushings under the cab and bed and put new bearings up front.

 

All I know is, I've had that needle almost back around to 0, and while this thing is not powerful by any means, I'd be willing to say its got a couple more ponies that what she got shipped with.

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Nice truck! Im kinda iffy on the wheels though.

Yeah I'm right in the middle with the wheels. They're 18" so the front rubs nearly every time I park it, when I first got the truck he had 35series up front and 40s in the back, it gave it a cool raked look, but I'm sometimes driving this thing 60+ miles a day so... No rotation = no bueno

 

I do however like the way the colors of the rims go with the truck, the lips are sprayed with body color and it gives the truck a nice stance, but

 

I have been looking for some 15" aluminum rims to pick up and get some thicker aidewalled tires to ease the abuse on the freeway

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told me the engine was an LZ-20 ... Well I nearly shit the bed and broke the door down running out to the truck when I saw an LZ series engine on Google... Needless to say its not an old Dohc racing engine... Buuuut, the mechanic said its been rebuilt and punched out a bit, which seems probable since it is the numbers matching L18

 

L 18 is not as tall.

 

It cant be both on this one

L20/Z20 is tall

L18 is short

 

read what the block says says on the pass side.

 

PS I always like the stock rims with tall tires as if gave a smoother ride . Riidn on rubber bands will suck after awhile but does look cool

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Banzai I had another thread a while back asking for help finding that info - the engine in this truck is the original L-18 block. :)

 

I was working crazy hours when I first got the truck and didn't even see the thing in daylight for the first week I had it, and wasn't driving it in LA traffic w/o insurance, so, I googled "lz-20b Datsun" after talking to the mechanic on the phone and saw this

lz20b_dohc_hemi_370_zps90wsfyhb.jpgAnd yeah, the rubber bands do suck! They're decent in the canyons, great on smooth freeway on ramps, I love passing people that flew by me on the straight, in the curves...

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