Hello, I am looking to restore my father's 1969 Datsun Roadster 2000. He told me that the car used to run great and was in good shape, but the last time he drove it was when he parked it in a garage in the 80's. So, it has always been my dream to restore this car back to it's original beauty but I don't know a whole lot about classic cars.
What I know: The car hasn't been started in over 20 years. It used to run. It is all original. Obviously needs the oil drained, gas drained, new battery, new plugs, hoses, lines, brakes, rotors, and hopefully not to much electrical work.
What I DON'T know: How much will this cost me? how much of this can I do myself? Can any garage do this? Are parts to restore this car still out there?

So what I am asking you is what you think. I'm not concerned about the interior/exterior of the car yet but just getting it running again. If you have any input I will appreciate it greatly. Thanks.

Also, I have photos of the car and the engine but I can't quite figure out how to upload a photo?

John,

Congrats on looking to restore the 2000 Fairlady. So here are some ball park figures based off of my numerous PL-320s

Brake ~$400 for rebuild kits or more if you go with new Brake M/C and rear wheel cylinders, even more if you need new front calipers. For the rotors I would just clean them up for now and inspect. Turn them if possible (~$100) and last resort new...ouch. Caliper - unless you see obvious signs of deterioration, bleed them first, just go gently.

Clutch M/C, Slave Cylinder, kits for both, and hose ~$50. Again more if you go with new parts instead of the rebuild kits.

Tune up >$100- complete - cap, rotor, points, condenser, wires, and plugs

Oil Change >$40 4 qts, filter, rags, disposal. Figure in more if you ruin your shirt or make a mess on the driveway.

Drain gas - don't make a mess and if not to bad or rusty use as a cleaning solvent (just not carburetor parts) then let evaporate. I had a tank boiled and red coated, cost was $175 and I still had to clean and paint the outside. All told ~$250 when complete.

New battery - go cheap $100-$120. Can you use a battery from another vehicle for a while????

Hoses- Top, bottom, heater hoses, new clamps for cooling and add in new rubber fuel lines ~$100

Yes, you can do all of this yourself, just will need help bleeding the brakes and clutch, and lots of patience.

Yeah, a shop, if you find one that will do the work figure in $1000 if not lots more. I figure 10hrs at $100/hr and that not nearly enough time. Do it yourself if you are capable. The right quality tools will not cost this much, plus once you are done you have still have the tools.

For starters, I would just try to get it running for a few seconds.

I'd drop the SU/Hitachi float bulbs and clean the out. Pop of the top pots and clean everything up as best as possible and re-assemble. These carburetors are easy to work on, they have been around since before WWII.
Pull out the spark plugs for a quick inspection, cleaning with brake or carb cleaner and put them back in.
Add a half of quart of oil and hand crank the engine for a good while to get thing circulating again.
Fill the float bulbs with fuel and find a small bottle with a foot or two of fuel line for a separate fuel supply.
Add battery and attempt to start. If all the electricals are good it will start, I promise.

Here's my '64 320 that had not run since 1978. I followed the same procedures above and had no issues

https://www.flickr.com/photos/113742723 ... otostream/

v/r
Li'l Truckie

John,

Forgot, here's a few websites for you to save to your favorites as you look for parts-

This one is for Jobbers Parts Warehouse for you to find Federal Mogul, Fel-Pro
http://enginepartspro.com/brands.aspx

Here's just Federal Mogul
http://www.federalmogul.com/en-US/Pages/Home.aspx

Here's Blumenthal (bearings and seals see National, TRW, Timken, Federal Mogul)
http://www.blumenthalmfg.com/index.php?brands

Here's BeckArnley

http://www.beckcatalog.com/

And here is the easiest one NAPA
http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/Resul ... %2b2018051

Even if your town does not have a NAPA Store, set yourself up with an online account. You can research part numbers on Napa at your home or office and then take the part number(s) to your parts store where they can cross reference with another manufacturer.

If you cannot find a specific part let me know as the NAPA and every other auto parts store listing are incomplete (its a long story).

And one last one
http://www.earlydatsun.com/index.html
and your Datsun 2000 is include with the 1968 entry
http://www.earlydatsun.com/datsunsr31168.html

v/r
Li'l Truckie