1970 Datsun 510 - Old School

When Southern Californian Steve Neuman spotted the 1970 Datsun 510 in Reseda, Calif., the car had been sitting untouched on for more than a dozen years, accumulating a world record's worth of grime, pine needles and bird shit. The paint was oxidized and peeling, and at some point, the battery had exploded, leaving the engine compartment in such a deplorable state, the owner just refers to it as "nasty."

At first, the owner wasn't willing to sell. But six months later, with the car still untouched, the owner was willing to part with it for $600. The next day, Neuman, who had owned five previous 510s, returned with a flatbed and trucked the 510 to his home in Castaic, where he began removing every part, nut and bolt from the body, bagging and labeling everything as he went.

When everything was off, he had the dirty, naked hulk transported to High Tech Automotive in North Hollywood, where the sheet metal doctors in the High Tech body shop repaired and prepared the tired 1970 sheet metal. It was bead blasted until not a speck of dirt, paint or rust remained. Special attention was paid to the engine bay, where the battery tray was removed, along with the factory hood brace and bracket. Existing holes in the firewall were patched, and seams throughout the compartment were stitch-welded for improved strength.

Aside from rolled front and rear fender lip and the extensive detail work under the hood, the 510's sheet metal remains completely stock. He even painted it a factory color. Seven coats of the original Datsun blue and five coats of clearcoat cover the outside panels, while two applications of color and two of clearcoat were sprayed inside the cockpit and engine bay.

During the six months the body was at the shop, Neuman stockpiled as many serviceable factory parts as he could find, specifically new parts that aren't still widely available through dealership networks. Robert Johnson at Salinas Nissan helped with the search, and hooked up Neuman with a few pieces from his own extensive 510 collection, like new old stock suspension components and weather stripping. He also did a lot of bidding and buying on ebay, locating some parts in Japan and Australia.

Once the bodywork was done, Neuman set about reassembling the car. Many of the stock suspension pieces have been powdercoated gloss black, and each and every piece of hardware used was bright, new, factory-spec zinc yellow.

When basic assembly was complete, Neuman incorporated suspension upgrades supplied mainly by Top End Performance, also in North Hollywood. There are coil-over springs and Bilstein struts up front, and Carerra coil-overs in the rear. Out back, a full race adjustable crossmember from DP Products in Huntington Beach allows fine tuning of rear wheel toe and camber. A TMC 1-inch powdercoated anti-roll bar was placed up front, and polyurethane bushings for the front and rear control arms, rear crossmember and differential mount were sourced through the same company.

New Wilwood brakes are on the hubs, measuring 11.9-inch rotors in front and 10.5-inch rotors in the rear. They work with Billet aluminum calipers, four piston in front and two piston in the rear. Pressure is applied by a 280ZX master cylinder, hard lines bent by Neuman himself and braided Goodridge fittings.

For propulsion, the 510 currently relies on a custom internal stroker engine executed on the L20B block by Top End. Bore and stroke have been respectively altered from 85 and 86 mm to 86 and 92, changing displacement from 1952cc to 2138cc. Internals include a counterweighted crankshaft, custom forged rods and 10.5:1 compression JE pistons. The oiling system was upgraded with a seven-quart NISMO baffled oil pan and 280ZX oil pump, while the cooling system was improved with a custom aluminum radiator fabricated by Mario Lozano of Toe Speed Fabrication in Gardena. Lozano also helped with the in-tank fuel pump setup from a 300ZX, 5/16 braided fuel lines, and a new anodized battery tray.

Up top, an A87 cylinder head was ported, polished and upgraded with oversized stainless-steel valves, brass guides, NISMO springs and camshaft and new rocker arms. Fuel is supplied by a TWM fuel injection system with side-draft velocity stacks, a new fuel pressure regulator and custom fuel rail. RC injectors deliver the juice and an Electromotive TEC-3 direct-ignition EFI unit supplies spark. For the final touch, Neuman took the car to Phil Lee, of Pro Audio Motorsports in L.A., for an expert wiring job.

"I really didn't want the engine bay to look all ratty," Neuman says. "Phil hid all the wires so when the hood's open, all you see is motor."

A new five-speed transmission from an '84 Nissan pickup puts the 145 wheel hp to the ground. Neuman located this rare piece through a fellow enthusiast he met online. It incorporates an L-series bell housing, and according to Neuman, bolts directly onto the car with virtually no modifications. A lightened flywheel and NISMO clutch assembly mediate between the engine and drivetrain.

The final drive has been improved with a limited-slip differential from a Subaru Impreza. For shoes, Neuman scored a set of RS Watanabe B-Type wheels, straight off the boat from Japan, from Joji at Wheel Choice in Signal Hill. Sized 14x6.5 inches, these rare alloys are wrapped in Yokohama AVS rubber in a 205/60R-14 format.

The car's interior is equally clean and understated. New Sparco Torino buckets and an Auto Power rollbar are the most obvious additions. The back seat was reupholstered to match the fronts by Nacho's Upholstery in North Hollywood. Nacho's also installed a new factory headliner and carpet kit. The door panels are the originals. An Autometer phantom speedometer and tachometer replace the factory instrumentation in the factory locations, and dual Autometer gauges reading oil pressure and coolant temperature were placed where you might expect to find the factory radio. There's no ICE on this car, nor does its owner plan to install one.

At its debut at the 2003 Mt. Shasta All Datsun Meet, Neuman's 510 was rewarded with a Best of Show award. Currently he's prepping the car to win the big prize again, only this time it'll be powered by an SR20DET engine.

1970 Datsun 510

InteriorSparco Torino seats, Autometer gauges, Auto Power roll bar, Momo steering wheel, Simpson harnesses