RALLYE ENTERPRISES, LTD: Identifying Your Datsun Roadster

Datsun Roadster Information from Rallye Enterprises, Ltd.

Page Title: IDENTIFYING YOUR ROADSTER

VIN, VIN...Why do I need to know my VIN?
What is "VIN?" VIN is the Vehicle Identification Number, also called car number, chassis number, or serial number.
Datsun Roadsters are titled by the year they were sold, not necessarily the model year they really are. A true 68 could be registered as a 69, a true 70 could be registered as a 69 etc. Before 68 the cars came with vin tags that had 1 9 6 _ and the last digit of the year was later stamped in, or just replaced with a later tag. SPL310s sometimes had a 3-4-5 before the SPL310 or before the 5-digit vin suggesting (we think) what model year the car truly was, regardless of what was stamped above for the licensing year. Just to make sure nothing makes sense we've also seen some examples that would indicate it signifies CALENDAR year produced, not model year. They also could have a letter after the vin. Only theories at this point to the significance of the letter. Also, in some cases we believe the cars were built and put in storage lots, but the most recently built cars were pulled for shipment first. That could help to explain why the very first Fairlady sold in the USA was (a 1960) SPL212 00198 (out of 288 built). All of the 61 and 62 212's I've found have had lower numbers. The same thing may explain why some of the lowest vin numbered 1500's were titled as 64's and had very high engine numbers. (end of the 64 run of engines) Just before they switched to the 65 models they must have found these engineless chassis or bodies gathering dust somewhere. Or was an defect found in the engines causing the cars to be set aside until later? Or did someone squirrel away the pre vin-stamped frames until the very end of production when they were again "found"?

Historical details of what Nissan did in the 60's are often debated. An addition to the weirdness file was recently sent to us (thanks Tim). This roadster's vin number on the frame originally began with "00". It was then "X-ed" out and two "1"s were stamped below it. (pic). Above the original number were two Nissan logo stamps. What was this, the guy forgot to change the numbers in his stamping tool? Or a 1965 frame was lost and then "found" later? The 67 1/2s used a different frame though... That could of course been rectified as I've seen other modifications done to make the parts work with what they needed at the moment, especially to fenders. Cars with fairly low production figures are always interesting.

The thing to remember is that the year the car was sold has nothing to do with ordering parts for it. Learn what's what. (It'll help you) Any roadster enthusiast worth his or her salt would never refer to their 69 as a 70. Please see "Year Your Car Really Is."

ENGINE NUMBERS
(drawing is U20 but same location on all engines)

Number is located on two pads between #1 and #2 sparkplug, where the head meets the block. "G" is a 1500, "R" is a 1600, "U" is a 2000. If there's no engine number, the car has had a new block installed. "R" engines up to #R-40000 are SAE and have 3 main bearings. After #40,000 the R engines have 5 main bearings and have metric threads. If your car has an "H" engine (usually a 2000cc industrial engine) it was installed later.

VIN NUMBERS
are stamped or handcut into the front end of the frame where shown above in fig. 2. You can see it by looking down between your front carb and your windshield washer unit. You'll need some steel wool and a flashlight. The plate below the rear edge of the hood is not really a legal vin tag because the plate is just screwed on. Know what you have or what you are buying! There are also production changes made during the model year. Cowl vin plates and dashboards are easy to change and may be incorrect. Stolen cars, "omelet" cars; they are bought and sold everyday.

engine

OMELET CARS...little bit of this, little bit of that...
We have seen a number of cars that various owners have re-assembled from the pieces of other cars. Not necessarily a problem unless different years are mixed together. Unfortunately your frame number may match your title and tag under the hood, but may not match the body of the car. True 1969 and 1970 models had a riveted vin tag on the left side of the dash, visible through the windshield. Unfortunately it is not riveted to the cowl, it's riveted to the dash, so if the dash is switched, the vin tag is moved also. On January 1, 1969 Nissan began installing a vin and production date tag on the driver's door post, but it was glued on...no "tamper resistant" rivets until shortly after 1970 model production was begun. Unless you know the history of your car, we suggest browsing our "Year Your Car Really Is?" page to learn how to spot the differences, and to help you verify your own car's attributes as correct. Although we can 99.99% guarantee you'll get the correct part your car originally had if we have the VIN, if your car's been modified it's anyone's guess. That's OK, we enjoy descrambling mysteries and will be happy to keep working with you until we both know what's on your car.
Our responsibility ends with providing the correct parts that match what originally came on the car you gave us the VIN for. So if in doubt give us shout.