This little rental house not too far away has suddenly sprouted a trio of vintage Datsuns. And these get used too, as I’ve seen varying numbers of them at any time. But the other day, on a Sunday morning, I caught them napping. The first two are obviously 210 sedans.
These are as simple, rugged and easy to keep running as just about anything from this vintage, along with a Corolla. RWD, 1400 cc pushrod four, and a slick-shifting transmission in between.
And at the head of the line is a 510 wagon, a hot item with Datsun lovers going way back. The wagon has a solid live rear axle, unlike the independent rear suspension on the sedans. But that’s just fine too, and feeding it is an L-Series OHC four; 1600 cc in the original version. The queen of this little fleet.
Nice ~
I’ll admit it : I love base motor transportation .
When that pink B210 was new , I was in Hawaii and rented one just like it , same color , no AC , stick shift and only an AM radio . I loved it and ran it as hard as it’d go , every where , even those places they specifically said ” DO NOT DRIVE THIS RENTAL CAR TO THIS AREA ! ” .
Datsun B-210’s were apparently made of tin foil as they rusted out even in Los Angeles where they’re highly sought after by Latino’s for transportation needs and Gear Heads who re power almost any old , small vehicle with the bullet proof running gear .
I’ve not seen one in some time , not in Junk Yards , the Ghetto nor Barrio .
-Nate
It is interesting they were still using the BMC A series based engine on the 210 into the eighties. I don’t think the British ever took the original over 1275cc. SU carbs could be finicky as could Nissans, wonder what people are using now on the survivors.
Actually the took it up to 1.5L. It was a popular industrial engine as well. Went into some folk lifts, etc.
Finding two Datsun 210s must have made it a Sunny day.
I see what you did there Bernard ! =8-) .
The mighty Datsun engine is actually a copy of the BMC ‘ B’ series engine , we use the cylinder head as a direct bolt on replacement for elderly British cars , MG’s and so on , the Datsun head is far better quality .
That I know of , having bought Datsun forklift parts for decades , they used it in fork lifts to 1992 and I assume much later .
SU carbys never , _EVER_ ‘ go out of adjustment ‘ ~ folks love to touch them instead of doing routine valve and ignition service then blame the carbys .
-Nate
Datsun made a licensed copies of both the A and B-series engines. They also made improvements to both but more so on the A-series. The 210 uses the smaller A-series engine. I briefly had a 81 210 and the engine ran wonderfully smoothly. By that point it had a downdraught carb rather than something in the SU style.
“DAT-SUNNNN.. We.. Arrre.. Driven!!”
Had to get that in, for those of you old enough
in the late 1970s to remember the commercial. 🙂
“All you really need is a Datsun” I’m older than you.
I still have a “Datsun Saves” gas can.i
During the late 1970s they also had the slogan “Datsun Saves” – in the OPEC era, where suddenly fuel economy became very important.
And I remember… “Hang Tough Datsun” in the commercials!
They’re parked in the wrong order. The long roof 510 should be nearest the street. All the time!
Truth
Paul… I need to get out there. Everyday you post pictures of cars in regular sevice that I have not seen in decades!
A Datsun 510 wagon lover reads here. 210… not so much… actually, not at all.
+1
I have had 3 210’s in my life. A 77 B210 and 2 1980 210’s. If it wasn’t for the rust I might still be driving them today.
Still looking for a 1200 …… like the ’72 I bought for 1200.
$1 per cc …… in 1976.
Datsun 210 or 120ys are rare here they mostly got gutted for engine swaps into Morris Minors and the learner grade Ministock stockcars, Fortunately or otherwise the bodywork on Datsuns was almost biodegradable in humid climates so good ones were left alone and survivors are quite prized.
When I was really young, ’71 or ’72, my next door neighbors had a 510 wagon. I remember riding in it, and still had the shipping plastic on the door panels and seats.
Wow. I haven’t seen a 210 in who knows how long. Many years. 510’s, on the other hand, can still occasionally be seen on this coast, in conditions varying from beater to slick resto-mod to dedicated track car.
I only recall seeing one 510 wagon, though, and that one definitely fell into the “beater” category: