Hezath Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 Link to Discussion Hey guys, posting from the wrong side of the ditch here haha. This build thread format is a bit different to what I'm used to, so if I do anything wrong let me know. My car seems more appropriate here to a lot of forums in Aus so I thought I'd join up and post it up, a mate suggested I have a geeze on this forum I was looking for an MS55 Crown wagon for months and couldn't find shit. They've all been thrown out by bogans because they didn't have V8s. I can't believe I actually thought Toranas were rare cars before I got into this stuff. You ask any wrecker, part distributor etc about any parts for any of these vehicles and they look at you like you're retarded or laugh in your face. The older generation don't seem to understand that they took so many liberties with what people like me would go to such great lengths to get their hands on. We just get left with the exceptions that didn't get penetrated by shotgun pellets or sent to the wreckers because they had blown head gaskets Anyway, I wanted a wagon that had quirkiness that appealed to me, needed to have a bench seat in the front and an in-line six, needed to be manual, had to be made between 1960 and 1980 and really needed a paintjob that made it look like it had been sitting neglected for a while (more patina would be preferred but that can be arranged later). I got pessimistic about finding something Japanese so I started looking at full sized Holdens and they were all overpriced, auto, distasteful with boganized interiors and filled with dodgy repairs and backyard paintjobs aging in really ungraceful ways Then some time in Feb my mate found something for sale that was a bit out of the ordinary. I'd never even seen one before. $950 later I had some mad car not many people here understand hahahaha. It's a 1973 Datsun H230. In Australia this one was called a 260C but there are a myriad of names for it internationally, for all intents and purposes, it's a Cedric - Nissan's answer to the Crown, but Nissan also have a more upmarket version called the Gloria which is pillarless (not available in a wagon). We never got Glorias in Australia unfortunately, but we got Cedric sedans, pillarless coupes and wagons. But they are all really rare in the 230 series! This has an L26 with a single twin barrel carbie, backed by a 3spd manual on the column with a hydraulic clutch. Leaf-sprung live axle with big drums and canted shocks, no swaybar. Front end is double wishbone with a swaybar, steering box with linkages, twin piston calipers on solid discs. Fortunately it's a twin circuit braking system too. Bench seat front, bench seat rear, two person dickie seat in the back that faces the opposite way. It's got all kinds of important factory features like a hidden map light in the dash, cooling vents in the front footwells like you get on an 40-series Landcruiser, only these ones are more subtle than the steel flaps on a 40. It's got a light that sits on the underside of the bonnet so if you break down at night, the whole engine bay is illuminated well and you can pull the end out of the light and put it wherever you want - it has a lead. It has an electric window above the rear left quarter that can be activated by the key barrel in the guard or a switch on the dash. It's got storage space under the rear seat, and it all folds flat with hard rubber on the back of everything (not like a Holden wagon where they trim it with vinyl!) so it's good for chucking diffs and gearboxes in the back (which will be a common activity in this car). Also has four windscreen washing jets, intermittent wipers, two piece tailshaft, five stud wheels (5x114.3), mechanically sprung tailgate and bonnet, etc. The spare wheel is stored up under the arse and it has a mechanism for lowering it gracefully, it has a nice original toolkit which has a few things in it including 'Datsun' folding wheel chocks and a speed-wrench with rotating grips so you don't rub your skin as you lower the spare wheel or jack the car up using the scissor jack that is stored under the bonnet which has its own reduction gearbox incorporated into it! lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 My plans are nothing outrageous. I definitely want to get it running on straight LPG, needs moar lows and pissing off the 330 bumper that doesn't fit at all! Correct bumper shown below: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v505/ ... 000000.jpg All folded down, before I started cleaning shit. Still had heaps of bits of screen protector-ie stuff from when it was new! Unscrewed all the trims one by one and cleaned them up since these shots were taken Pulled the sill trim off to fix up the rust Other side too: Little bit around the screen: Had LOTS of fun finding a replacement lense! I managed to find what I guess is the only one parts car wagon in Australia It was a country car its whole life, had lots of cleaning to do. I thought the Torana was bad underneath but this was horrendous. Anyway it came up pretty mint! Front end needed some love Painted in all the arches: Couldn't find any balljoints or anything, nobody seems to make them? haha. I cleaned all the joints out, put new boots on them and gave them fresh grease. Nothing seemed excessively worn so I'm not too concerned. Put new shocks in and adjusted the springs a bit while I was there. The rotors copped a skim too. Drums machined and painted: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 Tailshaft centre bearing/mount was pretty second hand. Couldn't get a new one so got a Bluebird one and made it fit by machining up an alloy 'snout' kinda splash guard with an interference fit on what was already there, and a steel washer to space it off. Diameters were all correct but the guards were different, offset was wrong etc. Obligatory shot of me looking like a goose Oh yeah and got given these 14x7 0 offset Japan-made chromed steelies, fitted them with some cheap 195/70s. They aren't my dream wheels, but for $0 they are my dream priced wheels! They fill the guards spot on which is nice. Gonna sack it soon hopefully, I was waiting til it was on the road before I did that stuff, but that's sorted now as I got a roadworthy last week and rego earlier this week. And I spent like 50 hours pulling bits apart, cleaning them and putting them back on. There was so much of that plastic sticker stuff like a screen protector on a phone that had never been removed all through the interior. And poxy carpet installation etc all sorted. Replaced seals here and there, gave some locks a good clean out and dose of lube etc. Thought I'd just throw this in for good measure too, I reckon it's pimp as haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted June 6, 2011 Author Share Posted June 6, 2011 These just arrived by courier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted June 26, 2011 Author Share Posted June 26, 2011 Just a small update from a little while ago. I pulled off the bumper and removed the square trailer light socket (gonna put a round one hidden somewhere underneath the car when it actually has enough grunt to pull a trailer haha) so I could install the number plate in a better spot and get the P plate out of the rear window. Also panel-beat the bar into shape and painted the inside of it, the brackets etc, put new lenses on the numberplate lights and put new globes in there. Now the reverse light lenses sit nice and flush in the bar too, it was all over the shop before! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted August 1, 2012 Author Share Posted August 1, 2012 Well, a year on I thought I might update you guys over the ditch! Pulled the interior out, had some retrimming done, put in a stereo, better insulation, factory tacho, electric aerial, optional factory auto-seek radio etc Brought it down a bit lower: Tried some other wheels: Next got Jesse Streeter to bring me over some B310 fender mirrors. Baseplates were rusted apart so I made some new ones out of alloy and fitted them up And got stuck into my masterpiece... Turning these 14x6.5" 5x114.3 Starsharks from Otomoto: Into proper size & offset shakotan style rolling stock. Modelled this up for inspiration haha Damn you welded 3pce wheels! Making them holy Media blasted centres Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted August 1, 2012 Author Share Posted August 1, 2012 Stepped up 15" barrels from Whitehorse Industries in Melbourne. Started doing lots of drilling Then etch prime, top coat, polish and clear for the centres \ Bolted them up: Lick of silicone to seal them up: And some donuts stretched on: Wheel specs are as follows... Original alloy centred Speed Star Racing Starsharks, Stud pattern 5x114.3mm (4.25") Barrels machined off and flanges drilled to 16-holes on flange PCD New heat treated 4140 barrels, 4mm thick, polished outers, bored to suit centre spigots. All done at Whitehorse Industries in Melbourne New M8 12•9 (high tensile) dome head bolts with nylocs Fronts are 15x7.75" +7.5mm wrapped in Bridgestone EP100 185/60/R15 Rears are 15x8.5" +5mm wrapped in Bridgestone EP100 195/65/R15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted September 5, 2012 Author Share Posted September 5, 2012 Ride height fixed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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