Rear air spoiler of the 1974 Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo.

This story happened earlier than finding that rear piece of boot lid plastic that spans the rear lights. I was stumped as to whether in 1993, the car came fitted with the rear air spoiler. It was, after all  21 years ago and I hadn't seen the Violet Turbo with the same intensity(interests) as I do today.

Figure 1
Bare back fibreglass boot lid missing both spoiler and rear finisher plastic plate.

In the years in between, the car had been put here and there and pieces go missing.

And so began my detective work to try and remember. Also I did still have photos of an old storage garage and to my surprise I saw an item that looked very much like a rear air spoiler.

Figure 2
Yup, air spoiler alright. DATSUN 160J clearly printed.

With that info I scoured the old places and wouldn't you guess it, I've found it!

Figure 3
Good condition.

Figure 4
Needs only a fresh coat of paint with some rust treatment for the bolts and plates.

Lesson learnt today for the young "old race car" collector, never disassemble any parts that you won't fit back in 24 hours.

Rare ribbed rear plastic finisher plate for the 1974 Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo.

Been on my mind after seeing this at the rear of the Violet Turbo.

Figure 1
Holes at the rear of this boot lid jolted my memory somewhat and  to go lookup the Web for "what's missing?"

What do you know? Some plastic piece between the rear lights. The piece that decorates and covers around the rear boot keyhole. And this piece is unique to the 1974 Coupe model. Indeed will be a tough challenge looking for one?

Now that I know what to look for, I began to discover some finer points about the 1974 KP710 Violet 160J SSS from browsing online...1975 or later models have variations of that plastic plate...

Ever tried finding a 1974 Datsun 710 160J SSS (Coupe model) rear finisher plate? eBay was to no avail nor any of the sites in the USA nor UK. Japan? tried my best to wander through some of their sites using Google translate but without apparent success.

The joy of searching for old parts started this morning when I decided to visit a used car parts dismantler. I was looking for that rather difficult to find piece of plastic.

No chance!

The year is 2014, the part is 1974 made. In my mind I knew this was a piece that came together with the car when I saw it in 1993.

And voila! checking again some old places, I found it!

Figure 2
Found it! In good preserved condition that just needed cleaning.

And thus ended another episode of rebuilding the Violet Turbo. :-)

Tyres in 2014 for the 1974 Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo.

What tyres can one get today for this 1974 race car if it was built back to running conditions in this post millennium year of 2014?

Figure 1
Old Pirellis on front wheels. Wheels have four pressure relief bolt holes for inflation seating tyre beads into rim lips.

The original deteriorated and hardened slicks were mindlessly discarded without regard in 1993. So back to the web and the search continued till I discovered this special tubeless threaded tyre called the post historic CR82 of a modern compound made by Dunlop for enthusiasts of just such cars :-))!

Figure 2
Rear 12-inch wide 15-inch dia magnesium alloy wheels. Bead seating pressure relief plugs are provided.

The rear wheels measured 12 inches wide, rim lip to lip whilst the front was 9 inches. These were magnesium 15 inch diameter wheels I've not ever come across otherwise from 1974!

Figure 3
Rear 15-inch dia Magnesium alloy wheels.

The rims are still in very good condition despite the paint and will be restored with cleaning and new paintwork soonest.

The joy of discovering CR82 tyres by Dunlop was short-lived as I then read with horror that Dunlop Birmingham of UK(the factory) with the special moulds just closed in May 2014, yes, this year. However, I then read with some relief that Dunlop promises to continue making these special use tyres.

History And Scale Model...160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo.

Along the journey of rediscovering the Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo Group 5 of 1974, I've come across the beautifully Japan made Nichimo 1/24 Scale model of it known as the "Nissan Turbo Violet". Of late I've discovered mention of this Violet-Turbo as the Japanese called it in their own Nissan website as follows: www.nissan-motorsports.com/JP/HISTORY/MACHINE/

Figure 1
Nichimo's 1/24 scale model

I guess the stories told me in 1993 by racing car folks in Kuala Lumpur were true. Two units of the three that arrived from Japan for the 1974 Selangor Batu Tiga Shah Alam grand prix were shipped back to Japan after car #123 took victory. After all, Nichimo would have had to have access to the actual car to take pictures and make measurements for their moulds for this model.


A short blog by a Japanese enthusiast can be found here:  http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/cy50daxtogc8/28058157.html with Google translate to help out.


For an excellent build of the model, refer this site: http://rally037.web.fc2.com/gar49.html

And then I found and bought a copy from eBay...apparently the last one as Nichimo was reported to have stopped production of this model only recently!

I've discovered another website that seems(my guess) to have a good enough connection with Nichimo so that they would run another batch through their moulds albeit at a higher price now. Last order deadline was however 03/Jul/14. Hopefully they will be able to do another one later on if demands are enough. Refer to:
http://www.goodspeed.com.hk/web/productlist.asp?maincat=1&showtype=1&brand_id=6&btext=P-4

My scale model arrived:

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Exhaust pipe of the 1974 Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo.

From 1993 till 21 years later today in 2014, I, all the more realised that every piece of component of the Datsun 160J SSS 710 Turbo Violet is just as rare as the car itself. So I began to search for bits of the car, that over the years, had been dismantled and placed in several locations.

Recently, I had decided to take on the project of restoring the car to its original condition, well, as far as possible. First off, I remember the rusty exhaust pipe that had been taken off and considered "junk" thinking at that time in 1993 of all the options available from the local muffler shop. Thankfully I found it in its already "mint" condition unchanged much.

Figure 1
Found the old exhaust pipe! Made from a
flexible pipe.

I also remembered the stainless steel pipe tip that occupied the specially fabricated rectangularly-shaped recess cut-out for an exhaust gateway under the passenger door. That too was found.

Figure 2
To my delight, I found the stainless steel exhaust tip that occupies a rectangular
cut under the passenger door.

The pipe end that fits onto the turbine outlet is a solid machined piece welded to another curved section forming the downpipe. From there onwards the pipe itself is a 4-inch flexible steel pipe with a spring like groove all along the pipe. Today one could use an aluminised flexible steel exhaust pipe as replacement, I guess.

Figure 3
Round flange with machined piston ring groove.
White grease hides the groove.
Fits to turbine outlet.
A section of curved steel pipe forms the
downpipe before the flexible section.

The pipe fits onto the turbo turbine outlet via a piston ring and ring groove on the pipe end much like a piston into a cylinder bore.

Figure 4
Stainless steel megaphone tip.

Deemed a collectible piece of 40 year old tech is this stainless steel flattened funnel or megaphone tip.

Figure 5
Exhaust cut-out recess under door from side view.

Figure 6
Exhaust pipe tunnel gangway. In-car view.
Zinc chromate paint to prevent rusting.

Figure 7
Exhaust pipe tunnel gangway. Downpipe section.

Figure 8
Exhaust gangway under the car.

View from a completed scale model by a Japanese site of the 1/24 Nichimo scale model "Nissan Violet Turbo", refer: http://rally037.web.fc2.com/gar49.html

Datsun 120Y LZ18 Group 4 Race Car from the 70s...Part 1

Back in the 70s, in the town of Bandar Seri Begawan of Brunei Darussalam, motor racing was very much alive with many national and international races held at the old Brunei airport. Check out this site: http://dns.btclick.com.bn/features/2013/12/15/revved-revival-brunei-motorsports

Figure 1
Datsun 120Y LZ18
Wheels are 14-inch dia outfitted with slicks. They are obviously spec to
group 4 regulations and factory cast/forged or welded with the Mini-lite look.

Among the entries and gems that did trickle into this small oil-rich town was a little Datsun 120Y, the feature of this blog article. This was no ordinary 120Y with the usual A-series engine but was a serious contender into the fray because the Japanese saw fit to put in one of their best ultimatum weapons available then. It was powered by the rarely seen and much admired LZ14 Formula Pacific 16-valve cylinder head fitted onto an L18 block. I presume from lack of info, that this power plant was then called an LZ18. The naming is a little misinforming because this is no 1.8litre but bored out to a proper 2-litre and yet not an LZ20B! 

Figure 2
LZ18 (stamped L16 with extra ribbed L18 block)

It sports twin Mikuni 50s,  stainless 4-2-1 extractor and revs past 10k rpm in 1st almost uncontrollably before one could shift to 2nd. Induction roar is just fantastically loud and throaty! Ignition uses a Hanshin coil juiced by an orange colored CDI unit fitted under the dash. It has a large aluminium radiator and an engine oil-cooler that could be mistaken for an intercooler to the uninitiated! A rev-limiter was provided but not connected.

This LZ18 is dry-sumped with a ballast tank in the boot.

Figure 3
All-aluminuim radiator. A novelty then.

This engine has a propensity to rev also because it sports titanium connecting rods which I have had the privilege to have held in my hands on a rebuild!

Figure 4
Oil ballast and fuel tank

The fuel tank at the rear is of rubber construction protected by an aluminium exterior shell. Polyurethane foam must have been installed previously but deteriorated and caused much blackish powder to clog up the fuel line and filters at one time.

The dry-sumped engine has an all-aluminium ballast oil tank fitted at the rear also.


More to come...keep checking back!

1974 Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo LZ18 Group 5 #120 Of Malaysian Selangor GP fame...

I have been blessed to have had the pleasure of seeing and touching some fantastic and rare race cars from the 70s. The first car to be described here I saw in Kuala Lumpur back in 1993. This was the "Nissan Turbo Violet" named on the web by bloggers who have seen pictures of the car which I think is more correctly called a "Datsun 160j SSS KP710 Violet Turbo Group 5".

It was raced by Nissan/Datsun in Malaysia under the banner of Tan Chong and Sons Motor Co. Sdn. Bhd. I present to you the rare Datsun 160J SSS KP710 Violet Turbo Group 5 factory "works" machine. This one is car #120. Car #123 won the Malaysian GP in 1974, most likely the 3rd generation FIA Group 5 category. I was informed by older folks back in 1993 that 3 similar cars were brought in from Japan. This was the only one that remained whilst the other 2 were shipped back to Japan.

Figure 1
Front view of car as seen back in 1993

The car, as told to me by an older Malaysian race car driver, was driven by a Kunimitsu Takahashi, the very famous Japanese race car driver who is also known as the "father of drifting". Apparently this car saw action on the Malaysian race track in 1973-1974, presumably the old track at Shah Alam.

At this stage, the race car driver in each of one of you reading this blog is probably asking, "What engine is under the hood???". I shall gratify that suspense next...

Figure 2
Car #120 is apparent from the side sticker.

There is a turbocharger fitted albeit minus an intercooler, with a rather large well-finned plenum chamber feeding pressurised air to the 4 throttles intake!. Wastegate unit is fitted in cabin under the dash on the passenger side exhausting to the floor. The exhaust manifold is a very well made all-stainless steel piece with a serious fan-shaped collector of all 4 pipes feeding the turbo intake flange.

Figure 3
View of this engine in this article is probably the only one you'll see on the web.

The engine is an LZ version and not any that I have seen posted on the Web. Let me explain that the block is stamped L16, however with an extra rib seen only on the L18 block. I have not found the official name for designating this particular incarnation of a turbocharged LZ.

By the way, the LZ is actually a competition-only non-mass production 16-valve head fitted to the venerable L series of 4-cylinder Datsun/Nissan engine from the L14, L16, L18 to the L20B. There are of course other larger capacity blocks such as L22 4-cylinder versions that may have been retrofitted with this head.

This LZ is not to be confused with the twin plugs Naps-Z heads also known as Z16, Z18, Z20, Z22 and Z24 that come out in year 1980 and later. There was also a turbocharged Z18ET driven by George Fury in a Nissan Bluebird 910 that was very successful in the Australian Touring Car Championship in the mid-80s.

Figure 4
Bosch D-Jetronic EFI customised with a trim panel for in-car adjustment.

First off, it runs on a D-Jetronic fuel injection system (an old Bosch MAP sensor type system) and cannot be classified as either the LZ20R of the Tomica Nissan Skyline KDR30 Monster nor the LZ20BT of the Nissan S110, S12 or the Bluebird KY910 all of which made their debut in the 80s.

This particular LZ was a 1st generation version that has not been seen or heard nor recorded on the Web as far as I know, besides the people who created it in the early 70s.

Figure 5
Another view of the LZ18 Turbo engine.

The D-Jetronic EFI system, essentially an early manifold absolute pressure sensor system running constant fuel pressure has a fuel trim panel box connected to the ECU allowing for finer settings of the fuel/ignition mixture, I presume.

Figure 6
A large finned intake plenum with blow-off valve at front.

Speaking of the LZ 16-valve cylinder heads, there are actually 2 types that I've seen. The earlier version, as in this car, has a smooth valve cover, much like the beloved Ford BDA(BDG) engine and the later Formula Pacific derived heads have finned valve cover design.

I've checked on the web and all turbocharged LZs actually run more modern EFI system. i.e. LZ20R or LZ20BT(of the finned valve cover variety).

I read with surprise that even Nissan's many museums in Japan are apparently missing this model as it would have been Nissan's very first turbocharged LZ18 on the world racing scene back in 1974 then.

Keep checking back as I will update this with more postings. Hope you've enjoyed it. :-)