1980 Datsun 210 Part Two: Change is Gonna Come

As with any vehicle, there is always a story. Whether or not it is an interesting one, well, your results may vary. With the latest addition to the Tandem Traction fleet; the story may be an uneventful one but is still intriguing.

While making the deal for this little JDM nugget, I asked the seller what he could tell me about it. “Not much, really” was his initial reply followed by the words every home mechanic says at least once: “I just don’t have time for it anymore”. This Datsun was built in the era of the Datsun/ Nissan changeover and as such, is badged with “Datsun by Nissan” on the trunk lid. The original motor still occupies the engine bay and actually doesn’t appear to be in bad condition for its age. The seller did inform me that, in order to prevent the motor from seizing, the spark plugs were removed, and oil was poured into the cylinders. I’m not sure how to feel about that one, but at the least, it sounds like a logical idea.

As I said before, every car has a story. This Datsun’s story began in 1979 when the original owner drove it off the lot. I’d love to learn what they thought of the car back then during the oil crisis. In my research, I found that the Datsun 210s of this era was known as the most fuel-efficient vehicles of the era (in the U.S. anyway). In a time of gasoline and oil product shortages, I am sure that this little blue car was a smart purchase.

Now, I’m not speculating at all that this car was originally bought in November of 1979. November 11th, 1979 to be exact. The seller I purchased it from, being the second owner, had the original title, still in good condition even after all these years. This fact makes me the third owner of a car that has been around for forty-two years. Honestly, it is amazing that it never changed more hands than that.

The gentleman that I bought the Datsun from had plans for it. But I doubt that they were quite as ambitious as mine. In the previous article, I spoke about rally racing and how it relates to the Datsun 1200 or “Sunny'' series of cars. Yet, I also wonder how this car would fare in a road race. The TS Cup in Japan is practically dominated by these cars, so I know they are capable. Either way, a road, and the race-ready vehicle is the end-goal.

As it sits in my humble home shop; the 210 continues to turn into a larger project. Unfortunately, this car just doesn’t have much of an aftermarket. Sold internationally as the B310, it turns out to be a rather rare vehicle in general. Thanks to Super Street Online, I was lucky enough to find that there is a small… like the REALLY small performance market for the B-310 in Japan. A single shop in Chiba, Japan specializes in modifying these cars for racing in the local TS Cup race.

Even so, with a performance parts seller out there. The idea is to swap in a much more modern power plant. Hopefully, more research yields better results in the way of parts. But before this project gets anywhere near modification, the floors are in need of serious repair. Door sills are almost completely gone on both sides, rear seats have daylight coming through them, and the front floor pans are…well, they’re just nonexistent. From what I have seen already, there isn’t much original metal left on this car. Once I can strip the interior completely; that part of this story will become clear.