The term ‘street driven’ is one that’s often bandied around drag
racing circles. While I have the utmost respect for any production-based
machine that can cut a quick quarter (and we’re talking a sub 10-second
ET here), there’s extra something special about a car that can do it
straight off the road. In my mind there’s a big difference between a
street car that turns fast times on the strip with ET improving
modifications like drag slicks, race fuel, giggle gas and the temporary
removal of weight, and one that simply does it in true street trim. Mick
McGregor’s 1969 Datsun Bluebird 1600 is a perfect example of the
latter. Not only does the little green machine pack an honest
700-horsepower-at-the-crank punch for supercar decimating straight-line
performance… …but
it does so while maintaining total road worthiness and full cabin
comfort. In the very same guise used to blast nine-and-a-half-second
passes down the quarter mile, Mick’s Datsun is 100 percent street legal
in his home state of Queensland, Australia. So
what does it take to turn a 40-odd year old Aussie-spec Datsun 510 into
something that’s all but unrivaled in acceleration on the street? It’s a
pretty simple recipe really, albeit one that from go to whoa has been
well thought out and executed. Of
course, it all begins under the hood where an engine a little more
serious than the OEM-fitted 96hp L16 now resides. As far as 510 swaps
go, there are a few Nissan four-cylinder formulas that people generally
tend to stick to. FJs, CAs, SRs are the norm. This one is not. When
Mick built the car 12 years ago it used a built SR20DET that ultimately
saw 450hp to rear wheels. The SR’ was a pretty high-tech re-power back
then, but after many years running that combination and a best pass of
9.89 at 131mph (210kph) under his belt he decided it was time for a
change. In case you’re wondering – as I was – that’s 2.4L four-cylinder
Nissan KA24DE – or as Mick so eloquently put it: “a dirty old Navara
[aka Nissan Frontier] engine.” The build actually came together by
chance after Mick stumbled upon a front-wheel-drive spec KA24DE block on
eBay. It had been fitted out with Ross pistons, Crower H-beam rods, and
ARP studs by its previous owner and $250 owned it. A rear-wheel-drive
engine was sourced and the aftermarket internals retrofitted with new
rings and bearings, before being pieced back together with a Cometic
1.6mm metal head gasket and readied for a boost injection. To
make sure the engine would be suitably gassed up, no corners were cut
in the fuel delivery department. Running exclusively on a diet of high
octane E-Flex E85 biofuel, the system uses a pair of Aeromotive
Eliminator pumps, dual -10 feed lines (and a single -12 return line), an
Aeromotive regulator and a quartet of Injector Dynamics ID2000
injectors fed from an aftermarket SR20DET rail. The
engine’s XXL appetite for fuel has a lot to do with this: a venerable
Garrett GT35 with a 1.06 exhaust housing. Boost is controlled through a
TiAL wastegate. On
the other side of the engine Mick enlisted the services of ProModz,
which knocked up a custom plenum complete with an 80mm throttle body.
The highly regarded fab’ shop took care of the exhaust manifold and
intercooler pipe work too. Although
the engine was only supposed to be used for R&D purposes, it’s hung
together well all things considered. Eventually it will be pulled down
for inspection and perhaps a freshen up, but for now Mick’s happy with
the 570hp it’s pushing to the rear wheels thanks to the tuning prowess
of Horse Power Solutions (HPS) and the Haltech Platinum 1000 engine
management system giving the fuel and ignition orders. In
the driveline, the Datsun runs a manualized and “extensively modified”
Trimatic M40 (aka TurboHydro 180 or TH180) 3-speed automatic
transmission with a TCE torque convertor. Up until the recent Brisbane
Jamboree where I first met Mick and his 510, the trans used a Nissan
RB30 flexplate. But after ripping the center out of it just three days
after the annual sport compact drag meet at another event, a Yella Terra
billet equivalent has since found its way into the car. After a quick
look under the back of the Datsun I don’t think there’s much chance of
breakage in that area anytime soon. Built to handle punishing launches,
the recently beefed-up rear end features a R200 long-nose diff with a
3.9:1 final drive and modified R32 Skyline GT-R axles installed by HPS
with billet companion flanges, billet stub axles and 1/2″ studs. The
final piece in the driveline puzzle are of course the rear tires – in
this case sticky road-legal 235/60R15-sized Mickey Thompson ET Street
Radial rubber wrapped around 15×8.5″ Weld Racing cold-forged Draglite
wheels. They burn easily too as Mick often likes to demonstrate. Although
the brake system has been suitably upgraded with Nissan Silvia rotors
and Toyota Hilux 4-pot calipers on the front end and a Mitsubishi
Starion Turbo disc set up on the rear, it’s a DJ Safety parachute that
really helps to scrub off the speed after the Datsun trips the deep end
beams. I’m sure it’s a talking point when people see the car on the
street too! If
the ‘chute doesn’t demand attention, the House of Kolor Lime/Gold Kandy
paint that was flowed on over the 510’s iconic box-shaped bodywork some
seven years ago certainly will. So simple, but so good. With
the exception of door bars to climb over, the small cabin is a pretty
comfortable place to be for both 1320-foot jaunts and club cruises Mick
and his wife Kell like to take part in as often as possible. The car
didn’t miss a beat on a recent 170-kilometer (105-mile) round trip. That
comfort is thanks in part to a pair of Mazda FD3S RX-7 front seats,
which like the rest of the upholstery have been restitched in ‘Buck’
color suede. If
the ANDRA-spec rollcage, harness belts and dash-load of Auto Meter
Sport-Comp gauges isn’t fair enough warning that passengers should hold
on tight, the serious-looking Hurst ‘Piston-Grip Quarter Stick’ shifter
is. To
date the little Datsun has run a best ET of 9.5 seconds and 142mph
(228kph) with the current package – fourth tenths quicker than it did
with the SR20 set up. But with the new rear end set up Mick’s certain
there’s much more in it now that they can start to really lean on the
car and launch it hard out of the hole. Any
further development, however, is currently on hold as Mick and Kell are
currently turning their attention to another Datsun chassis that’s
currently perched on axle stands in the McGregor garage: Kell’s 1600
wagon. When the pair went on the hunt for a 510 wagon around four years
ago Kell put up a request on a local forum using a photo of a wagon Mick
had owned years prior as an example. Low and behold, the owner of that
car saw the ad and in a cool twist ended up selling it back! With a
turbocharged and fuel injected L-series engine on the way it’ll be a
whole lot of fun. Perhaps not as much NIS-016, but a perfect street
cruising companion all the same. Mick wouldn’t have it any other way.
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