New World Datsuns...

I think you summed it up pretty well. The car and hatch were 450 miles apart. He had the cowl and an old book with a code. I really wasn't expecting it to be so close. The guy mixed it by code then tinted by eye to match the cowl.

This is all stuff I should have addressed years ago. I might not be completely heartbroken if it doesn't sell immediately.

Probably not. I'd rather put the cash toward my '35. If I could keep it and magically make my pickup done, I would.

Got the new antenna installed and the gate trimmed out. I played with the letter locations a bit but think I've settled on this.


I also removed the battery tray. Managed to butcher the inner fender pretty good. Nothing a hammer and welder can't fix. No pics yet.

Are them letters from a Roadster?

Sure are. I bought the set on Ebay at least 5 years ago and they've just been riding around in the glovebox.

Well, here's the ugly.

That's looking from the inside of the wheelwell just behind where the bumper bolts on.


It was completely hidden under the undercoat and I had no idea it was there. I probed all around and this is the only spot on the entire car. So I've got some cut N weld to do.

Near as I can tell, battery acid leaked behind the lower battery tray support (scredriver) and got past the pinchweld at the rail. Then it just rotted behind the undercoat. Anyway, the engine bay is still super ugly but mostly stripped. I got the engine harness separated from the car but still need to wrap the body harness and free up the brake lines.

That is what happens to Z cars all the time, but its worse for them as it is behind the strut tower.

Yay another to fix, but at least you can. I think its saying "dont sell me"

Maybe. I was honestly really surprised to find it. The undercoat was completely intact and wasn't even visibly bulged. Given how solid the rest of the car is I should count myself lucky. I have a welder and a grinder. It's fixable, just wasn't planning on it.

Classic Cars/vehicles in the pacificNW, be grateful that they didn't use salt on the roads when you lived in the area, the car would not exist anymore if they had, 95 percent of are classics would not exist anymore, if they did exist they likely would be a rust pile in the back 40.

I just fixed that spot on my friend's 510. There are two layers of metal in the front part of the frame rail, the thin metal is overlapping on-top of a thicker piece that goes from the bumper mounting holes to a triangle shape by the crossmember bolts. His car was worse than yours, so maybe leave the some of the thicker metal is you can, especially towards the front. I had to replace everything with one piece of 16 guage:

Thanks for posting those pics. Nice to see how it's put together before I cut it all apart.

Worked on it a couple hours today. First thing I did was hang the letters. After that I moved on to the rear bumper. So if you go back over previous pics you might notice that the are below the rear hatch was spray bombed with what looks to be dark gray or black primer. At some point the back of the car was bumped in the back and the roll pan is slightly deformed. For some stupid reason someone buried it under black primer even though no body work was ever done. It even got sprayed around the corners behind the bumper ends. Stupid.
So I took some water and a scotchbrite pad and took off most of it on the lower quarters. Then I used the rattle can I had mixed up to paint the roll pan. Repainted that splash apron that tucks into the bumper too. Then installed the bumper.





I left what was in the rear hatch jamb for the next guy.



Most of what I did isn't even visible unless you bend down. But I know it's better.



Then I started on the repair. I probably took out more than necessary but I'm thinking it might be easier with big squarish patches. Guess I'll find out later.

Nice work! … That is way more work than most people would expect. I bet you're tired of crawling under that fender.

Thanks, it's not concours quality but it's not butched out either. I'd do it the same way if I planned to keep it forever. You're right though, it's more work than one might innitially think. At least I had it on a lift so I didn't have to work on the ground.
I've been totally dragging my feet on this part of the project but really need to just buckle down and do it. Once the engine bay is done I'll be able to move on to the fun stuff again.

Looks good! Im still deciding how I want to deal with my battery bump.

I debated in whether to pound it out or just weld in the new dome. This seemed like the easiest route. It actually came out pretty close. Obviously there will be plenty of skim coat to do before paint. Definitely not metal finished.

My phone died so I had to get creative. Went over about noon today and sheeted it up to keep some of the dust off of it. Then it was time for work.

I can't stress enough how much I've been dreading this task. Nothing about it is enjoyable to me. Nothing.

I stripped the brake and clutch master and a couple small items off the firewall. Then I sanded down a portion of the lower valance and some of the inner fenders. After that, I started slinging mud, sand, mud, repeat.

It was just after this that my phone really started acting up.


When the shift was over it didn't look much different but I'd glazed the valance and primed it along with glazing the inner fenders. By that time I was just over it. Went home and pulled weeds.

Not sure when I'll get back over there but I have very little time in the next few weeks. At this rate summer will be over before it's ready for the market. I'd love to find the asshole who spray bombed under the hood and kick them square in the yam bag.

Haha, you said yam bag.






Yes, sometimes I revert back to my 12 year old self.