Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

Hi all, first post here.

I'm looking at a 1969 2000 I can get for a few hundred dollars, but the motor and tranny are gone from it. I'm wondering if it is worth it given the likely hassle involved in finding a motor/trans to put into it.

I've done motor/tranny installs before, and I know I can manage that degree of mechanical difficulty no problem... When I start looking at some of the swap projects, however, I kind of break into a cold sweat.

I guess my question really is, do the 2000 motor/trans come up for sale fairly often from the folks doing the big swaps? If so, what kind of prices to they tend to go for?

I love the look of this little datsun, and it sounds like they're a blast to drive even in stock form, so I'd love to give it a go if it's not an impossible task.

Thanks for any input!

Put your location in your user profile, you may find that there is someone near enough to you to make it all happen.

E

Where's the forehead-slapping emoticon?!

Great idea, will do right now. (I'm in Corpus Christi, TX, by the way)

You can definitely get a 1600 and 4 speed easy, they come up quite often, so if you want to economically get the car on the road, that would be the route I would take. Otherwise U20's are available, but more expensive and a little tougher to find. The repair/rebuild costs on a U20 are significantly higher than on a 1600. Other candidates are H20, KA24 and SR20's to name a few, even some V8's and V-6's.
Post pics and WELCOME ABOARD!

I agree with notoptoy. A running 1600 and a 4-speed can be had for maybe $1000-1500 from those doing engine swaps but you will pay three times that for a 2000 with a 5-speed.

An SR20 swap will cost you $2000 for the engine and trans PLUS $7500 to $10,000 to have someone install it (if you don't do it yourself).

Of course, this assumes that the rest of the car doesn't need any work.

Shannon

In a word, no. The cost to buy all of the pieces to assemble a car will FAR outweigh the cost of buying a nice one to begin with. I think I know which one you are looking at, and it is damned tempting. That being said, I know someone who has a couple of cars for sale local to me in Florida. If you want details, shoot me a PM.

I also agree that you will probably be better off buying a complete car.

However, if you do decide to pick-up a car without an drivetrain, there is a roadster owner in the Houston area with about 20 parts cars. He probably has several drivetrains available as well.

Great info, guys, thanks for the quick replies! But damn, you are killing me! Yeah, it's so hard to pass up, but at the same time it sounds like I probably couldn't afford it if it was free just because of the complexity caused by not having a powertrain with it... You're right, much better to have a complete car as a starting point, so at least you know the systems you are working with.

The good thing is I'm not completely married to the idea of having a roadster, just a small and sporty early japanese car, so I might just give it a pass and save for something complete that fits my needs. Anyone have a Z, or a '77 Celica?

It's always better to start with as complete and as nice a car as you can afford - but still a 1600 and a 4 speed are dirt cheap and darn reliable....

well, I like reliable and cheap... What about the fun factor? I've heard some pretty nice things about the 2000. Can some more umph be easily wrung from the 1600?

There are many threads here about how to stroke a 1600 for some impressive numbers, and several members race 1600's.
There is "power-based" fun, and there is "I am in a cool-ass, 60's Japanese Roadster, toothy-grin. riding down the road fun"
Either will do nicely!

You know, I have loads of fun in my 1500. There are folks here that will tell you that if it isn't a 2000 or more, it isn't worth having. That just isn't true. They are all fun - they each have their own character. Again, if you want a driver, buy a driver. Now, if you can find a rusty driver, then pick it up and get the bare body. Do over the body and in the fall, do a swap - you can move over trim as you go and then swap things over to make it a driver in a weekend.

Here's a very worthwhile car, mechanically all there, all the important stuff is done. You can drive it anywhere. It comes with a spare body, get the spare all done and painted, swap everything over when you want to. This whole setup will cost you less then a 2000 engine and trans.
http://www.311s.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=13894

or drive to Chicago and buy this drivetrain....

http://www.311s.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=13891" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

in answer to the original question, it really depends on the car and your circumstances. Buying a roller can be an economical way to buy a decent paint job, store the roller for a while until a runner with a haired out body comes up.
Alternatively (and this may be in my future) is to buy/store the runner, buy a car/truck with a KA24 in it, run it for a year (we have smog laws in CA) all the while stripping off the smog equipment, pairing it down to be as simple/basic as possible. Then remove the KA/trans from the truck (I am weird, I like the look of the KA24E better than the DE) and put it in the roadster.
Or, find a R16 and put that in. I have been on many a backroads drive, and a well driven, well tuned R16 has no problem keeping up, only gets outpaced on long uphills and at elevated fwy speeds.
Good luck, keep us posted.