Datsun B-210, should I buy her??

[PBfrEAk]

Ok anyone familiar with these Datsuns, please feel free to chime in!!

I posted this on Ratsun too, and I was going to post this in the Datsun Car seciton here but I wanted a general consensus plus I like the opinion of GenChat'ers.

The car is a 1974 (I think) B-210

I don't have any pictures but it's this body style:



The story behind it told to me by the current owner (an older man) is that the guy who he bought it off of purchased the car in the early 1980's. At the time he lived in California. Apparently he was somewhat of a Datsun nut, cause he had 3 other Datsuns. The car was moved to PA about 7 years ago. Fast foward a year ago the current owner bought it off of him. It sat for a while (7 months) because the Datsun nut never registered the car in PA and couldn't find the title. So once the guy got the title and such he started working on the car but recently lost his job.

Here are the Pro's:
-Newer rebuild on the motor done by the previous owner (Datsun guy). I'm not 100% but I'm pretty sure its the original motor or at least the correct motor for the car.
-The transmission it is supposed to come with is a 4-speed, but this has a 5-speed in it. Which was also put in by the previous owner.
-Car comes with a brand new still in the plastic carburetor as well as a ton of other parts such as rear bumper corners, tons of filters, a (from what the owner tells me) factory roof rack and brush guard, a brand new looking side mirror, and other random stuff.
-The interior is in PRIME condition for its age. Brand newish carpet, beautiful dash, nice seats.
-Super tight handling
-Fires right up
-Good Glass
-Comes with american racing wheels (which are gay looking IMO BUT the tires have good tread.)


Con's:
-Has a small soft spot in the driver side floor board and there are a few rust repairs (under both of the doors on the rockers) but are pretty small from the feel of it.
-The brakes are VERY soft. Almost goes completely to the floor and even then the are almost non-existent (which could just be the lines, but idk)
-Driver side seat won't move back, it would need replaced
-No wipers
-The radio and interior lights don't work, from what the owner says, the two spots on the fuse block are broke/blown/ don't work.
-Back passenger window doesn't latch shut

The car was a blue color but has been painted flat black.

The question that makes me hesitate is the price. He wants $1,200. I think this is too steep for the car. I would be willing to pay $800. What do you guys think??

Is this car worth the price?

I love the look of this car and have been wanting something to play with for a while.

[AZhitman]

$500 would be fair. The 210 is a cool little car, but I'll bet you could find more rust on it and point it out to make his price more reasonable.

I like the early B210's. Bex knows a lot more about them than I do, so she'll chime in soon.

[Jesda]

I was recently talking to my mom about the B210 my dad bought in the early 80s. One day he and a coworker were riding in it and went over a deep puddle. It splashed high enough to go through the rust holes in the floor and get the passenger wet. I absolutely guarantee this car will have more unseen rust on it.

Personally, I'd find some steel wheels and slap on the ugly OEM hub caps just for Ford/Carter-era novelty value. Those busted-from-the-factory looking caps were proof that Nissan had a strange sense of humor and actually gave the car some personality. Everyone was building rusty s*** back then, but the Datsuns had crazy wheels.

I don't have a single good childhood memory from this awful car or anything positive to say, but I'd have one anyway. Its a real piece of automotive history. People should collect and keep these products of malaise the way people collect and keep swords and axes from the dark ages.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCb_jaHOfp8[/youtube]

Note the C-pillar. See anything familiar? I see Nissan Murano.

[nissangirl74]

It is not worth the price. I had four 210s and I never paid anywhere NEAR that much for any of mine and they were all in pristine condition.

-Newer rebuild on the motor done by the previous owner (Datsun guy). I'm not 100% but I'm pretty sure its the original motor or at least the correct motor for the car.
-The transmission it is supposed to come with is a 4-speed, but this has a 5-speed in it. Which was also put in by the previous owner.

The correct motor for that car is an A13 (if it is a 1974). The correct transmission for that car is a 4 speed. The five speed will give you issues when you are trying to pull a hill. The only motor that the five speed pairs up with well is the 1.5 stroker motor. if it is a '75-'78, it most likely has an A14 motor. I always got really good gas mileage out of an A14. The average was in the high 30s, low 40s. (Depends on how you tune the carb. )

-Car comes with a brand new still in the plastic carburetor

This is worth more than the car. You can't get a brand new carb for these cars from Nissan anymore, last time I had one priced was nearly ten years ago and they wanted $700 for it.

Con's:
-Has a small soft spot in the driver side floor board and there are a few rust repairs (under both of the doors on the rockers) but are pretty small from the feel of it.
-The brakes are VERY soft. Almost goes completely to the floor and even then the are almost non-existent (which could just be the lines, but idk)
-Driver side seat won't move back, it would need replaced
-No wipers
-The radio and interior lights don't work, from what the owner says, the two spots on the fuse block are broke/blown/ don't work.
-Back passenger window doesn't latch shut

The car was a blue color but has been painted flat black.

I'll go through these one by one.

If the driver's side floor board is soft, the cancer has eaten through. Check for leaks at the window and especially the windshield in the corners. Nissan did not use great weatherstripping to make their seals. Water would leak in and gravity would do the rest. Make sure you check the doors at the hinges too. The water likes to collect there, as well as the rocker panels which you had already mentioned, and check the weather stripping around the back window and the hatch. Also check the battery tray for rust and wherever the antenna is attached to the body. This is a pretty common place for it too.

Either the brakes weren't bled properly or the BMC is probably shot. The brakes on these cars are super simple. Not many things to check.

The reason the driver's seat won't move is probably rust. Maybe not, but I have seen it more than once.

Windshield wiper motor shouldn't be too bad, if you can find one.

The wiring on this car is very simple. Since it was parked for a long time, I would check to see if a mouse might have gotten into your wiring harness. If not, start tracing relays. (Make sure fuses have correct amperage. 10 amps can make the difference between working and not.)

Check for rust where the back window doesn't close.

Lots of people paint their cars flat black to try and hide the rust. It works pretty good if you do some sanding first.

You need to get up and underneath this thing with a flashlight. Ball joint and tie rod end failure are both pretty common.



In conclusion, I think the price is too high. I would keep looking or talk him WAY down. I would have to see pictures of the actual car but I'm guessing $400, sight unseen.

[numbnuts240]

i want a b210. if you can talk him down A LOT more, do it. if he won't budge, walk. quickly.

[Bubba1]

Ok anyone familiar with these Datsuns, please feel free to chime in!!

I posted this on Ratsun too, and I was going to post this in the Datsun Car seciton here but I wanted a general consensus plus I like the opinion of GenChat'ers.

The car is a 1974 (I think) B-210

I don't have any pictures but it's this body style:



The story behind it told to me by the current owner (an older man) is that the guy who he bought it off of purchased the car in the early 1980's. At the time he lived in California. Apparently he was somewhat of a Datsun nut, cause he had 3 other Datsuns. The car was moved to PA about 7 years ago. Fast foward a year ago the current owner bought it off of him. It sat for a while (7 months) because the Datsun nut never registered the car in PA and couldn't find the title. So once the guy got the title and such he started working on the car but recently lost his job.

Here are the Pro's:
-Newer rebuild on the motor done by the previous owner (Datsun guy). I'm not 100% but I'm pretty sure its the original motor or at least the correct motor for the car.
-The transmission it is supposed to come with is a 4-speed, but this has a 5-speed in it. Which was also put in by the previous owner.
-Car comes with a brand new still in the plastic carburetor as well as a ton of other parts such as rear bumper corners, tons of filters, a (from what the owner tells me) factory roof rack and brush guard, a brand new looking side mirror, and other random stuff.
-The interior is in PRIME condition for its age. Brand newish carpet, beautiful dash, nice seats.
-Super tight handling
-Fires right up
-Good Glass
-Comes with american racing wheels (which are gay looking IMO BUT the tires have good tread.)


Con's:
-Has a small soft spot in the driver side floor board and there are a few rust repairs (under both of the doors on the rockers) but are pretty small from the feel of it.
-The brakes are VERY soft. Almost goes completely to the floor and even then the are almost non-existent (which could just be the lines, but idk)
-Driver side seat won't move back, it would need replaced
-No wipers
-The radio and interior lights don't work, from what the owner says, the two spots on the fuse block are broke/blown/ don't work.
-Back passenger window doesn't latch shut

The car was a blue color but has been painted flat black.

The question that makes me hesitate is the price. He wants $1,200. I think this is too steep for the car. I would be willing to pay $800. What do you guys think??

Is this car worth the price?

I love the look of this car and have been wanting something to play with for a while.

no, the price is too high given its condition. The big question is what are your plans for the car? It's best as a cheap city commuter car. Nissan built too many of them to become collectible.

I had a friend in college that briefly owned a B210 hatchback, attracted by it''s great gas mileage and good looks. The aggressive rust and unreliability were the main reasons he traded it (on a civic). I was afraid to push it hard whenever I drove it as it felt like something would break if I did.It was nimble at low speeds, but not an exciting car to drive.

They're not bad if you can find one without much rust. Compared to it's competition of its day, there were both better and worse alternatives out there. Good luck.

[Bubba1]

My friend's B210 looked like this one except in Bronze, with a black vinyl interior. (sweaty seats in the summer). I remember him mentioning hitting 40 mpg on the highway but the car was so light, it would make instantaneous lane changes with just a moderate crosswind...

[Jesda]

no, the price is too high given its condition. The big question is what are your plans for the car? It's best as a cheap city commuter car.

As an everyday classic, I'd be concerned about safety.

Would be cool to take to occasional meets and shows as a still-running piece of history.

[Bubba1]

no, the price is too high given its condition. The big question is what are your plans for the car? It's best as a cheap city commuter car.

As an everyday classic, I'd be concerned about safety.

Would be cool to take to occasional meets and shows as a still-running piece of history.

I agree somewhat, it would be an amusing car to bring to meets due to its age, but they were about as classic or historic as a Chevy Chevette...

[breadbox]

I've Only ever seen one, It was driving. Looked pretty beat tho.

[Otto.]

:B

Good luck with it. If you can talk him down to the right price, it looks like you could have yourself a nice little project.

[PBfrEAk]

No no collecting for me.

What I'm looking for is a cheap autoX'er. I know there are probably better alternatives but I thought this may be a fun car to go for. From what I've read, if I swap in a 610 cross member I could use GC coilovers for the front, and then if I decamber the rear leafs, that will give me enough of a drop in the rear.

I don't know though. Bex, your plethora of Datto knowledge!!! Thanks for the tips. I'm gonna give him an offer and see what happens.

I'll let you all know.

[Ozzie]

Looks like a 120Y to me, with bigger, gayer bumpers (Probably to pass US crash tests)

Also this...
from wikipedia

"In 2004 a government inquiry in the state of Victoria found that maintenance and accuracy checks had not been done on a regular basis. This had resulted in a 4-cylinder Datsun 120Y sedan reported as doing 158 km/h, while the maximum speed it was capable of was found to be only 117 km/h.[29]"

Source of this citation
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2004/s1121730.htm

It may be a datsun, but it's still a joke of a car.

If you want to learn more about them, try looking up "Datsun 120Y" on google, or whatever search engine you prefer.

[nissangirl74]

"In 2004 a government inquiry in the state of Victoria found that maintenance and accuracy checks had not been done on a regular basis. This had resulted in a 4-cylinder Datsun 120Y sedan reported as doing 158 km/h, while the maximum speed it was capable of was found to be only 117 km/h.[29]"

I'll have to disagree on this one. 117km/hr translates to only 72 mph. All of mine ran faster than that.

I'll let you all know.

Any updates?