Dude, that car is LIGHT!
This homemade rat rod was built to resemble a 1932 Datsun Type 12 Phaeton located in the Nissan Heritage Collection’s garage in Zama, Japan. I made the chassis locost-style using lots of 1-inch square tubing, but also used the front suspension from a 1990 dodge dakota (a short-ish double wishbone) and rear shocks for a Toyota Rav4. The drivetrain donor was a 1982 maxima station wagon, providing the rear axle, transmission, and L24(e) engine. The wagon’s leaf springs were shortened to fit this body. The grill shell, cowl, doors and body were formed from sheet metal off of broken appliances. The specs: length: 135 inches wheelbase: 96 inches front track: 60.8 inches weight: ~2100 lbs (that’s what the truck stop weigh station says) power: ~100 hp (this is a guess. The L24 in a 240Z was 120) See the updates build thread to see what happened during the build. https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/my-datsun-build/18604/page1/
Gigi was begging for a ride, so we went over to Grandma’s house
Here I am with one of the fenders that Andrew Nelson kindly donated to my …
not street legal yet, but she runs. I like this angle because you can get …
The gas tank is mounted, and the rear quarter panels and curved back piece are …
I put the body panels and exhaust back on and then rolled it outside for …
There’s still a LOT of work to do before the hood is complete, but I …
Dad and I broke out the bead roller to make the lower grill insert, and …
I finally manned up, fabricated some motor mounts, and put the engine in place. It’s …
All my earlier problems were because I didn’t realize how slowly I had to move …
I’m using a slushbox in the datsun replica. (Not because I want to….because it was …
I got to play with the english wheel and bead roller as I fabricated the …
this time, from the rear. I’m not sure about how, or if, I’ll modify the …
I tried squeezing the engine into the 1932 datsun frame. It is a very tight …
I pulled the engine out of my donor yesterday. Next up….figuring how to mount it …
I welded the front end into place today
I had the rear leaf springs shortened and re-rolled, and I’ve cut the tubing for …
Dude, that car is LIGHT!
hey, it won't be that bad when the sheet metal is on
I like! Can't wait to se the finished product.
I'm loving this build. :-)
Thanks, ECM. That's kind of you.
Nice project concept. 3 things I learned making a replica: For a narrow radiator, a cross-flow radiator can be stood up on one end. the temperature sensor hole will then be located where it can be used to bleed air into a header tank. Old wheels can make a car look surprisingly old, the problem is in finding tires to fit them. Painting a fan black makes it disappear. (I rarely use fans).
Thanks for the tips, Gman. I've got a radiator that I think will work (Rav4....I didn't start fabrication until after I bought the radiator, since that controlled the grill width) but will definitely try painting the fan to hide it. The wheels/tires idea is also good...I may try that after the challenge
I went over $20xx budget, changed jobs, and then I ran out both skills and time to develop skills. The car sat in the garage, untouched, for three years. I can't give up on it, though....too much time, energy and emotion. I'm going be driving a finished car car, even though I cannot DIY it.
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