1962 Nissan Patrol - $4000 Phoenix AZ

[bosque]

It is a nice one Moore and welcome.....moore pics please.

[RiverPatrol]

Awesome! And welcome to 60Patrol! That's great that you were able to figure out the starting issue so easily, you'll do fine with the rest of it I'm sure.

That Patrol definitely had some potential, and it also had some very strange things done to it. The brake master and even the brake pedal were changed to something non-Patrol in their effort to get the brakes to work. The coolant in the oil is definitely concerning - that is very unusual for the Patrol engine.

Now that you mention it, I can see the incorrect routing of the wires:



Here are more pics from when Azsteve went and looked at this Patrol:
http://s1311.photobucket.com/user/stivr ... t=3&page=1

Keep us updated on your progress. It's always nice to see another one brought back to life!

[moore_rb]

Wow.... AzSteve was very thorough with the camera. I borrowed a couple of his pics for my "before" catalog. So, What is curious about the P63870 serial number on the engine block?

It will be interesting to see what I find as I go through it. Besides the split pea soup in the crankcase, It also needs a clutch, and it has zero brakes (I've filled the master cylinder twice, and both times it was empty again the next day)

Getting my 67 into a solid driver back in the 90's was a pain - I can only imagine how much more scarce parts are going to be now.

If I find a bad head gasket, then I'll probably replace it and leave the rest of the engine alone (every cylinder makes 150psi, so I feel pretty good about that)- If the head is cracked, I'll probably order a rebuilt P40 head from Wholesale Forklift parts.

If the engine block is cracked, then I'm probably just going to start shopping for a late 90's 4.0L / 5Spd Jeep Wrangler or Cherokee to donate its drivetrain, but that's a worst-case scenario - I'd prefer to keep it as Nissan as possible

Cosmetically, Even though it's not an original color, the red paint on it is actually pretty decent- there's enough left that I can wet-sand the oxidation off and buff it back out.

The cheesy wheels and tires will be GONE... I've got a set of old galvanized 15x6 steelies that I'm going to wrap in taller, skinnier rubber.

Thank you everyone for the welcome to the forum. I'm sure I'm going to have plenty of questions, and more than a little parts-related frustration as I try to resurrect this old tractor.

Here's a shot of my old blue 67 from 20 years ago- I'd like to do a similar stance (3 inch lift, and skinny 34's) on the 62 when I get to that point. This 67 was rough (the picture makes the body look a million times better than what was actually there- it was not uncommon for rusted pieces of the body to start flapping in the wind and then suddenly go flying off it as I motored down the highway) but the chassis was solid and it ran like a top- I had it dialed in nicely.

[RiverPatrol]

The 'curious' thing about the engine number is that it is a later series number. If you look at the Patrol Registry that engine number is roughly in sequence for being a '67. The number aren't highly reliable, but is certainly wouldn't be that far off.

Sounds like you've got a good plan. I would really be surprised if the block was cracked. The block and head are cast iron. Unless a rod is sticking out of the block I have yet to see one cracked. Good luck with the brakes; from azsteve's observations they had been heavily messed with by someone who had no idea what they were doing. Don't hesitate to ask questions.

[moore_rb]

hmmm, ok, so a later year serial number on the engine, indicating that it is not the original-

Well, I guess that means my plans for a full concourse restoration, and a debut at Pebble Beach next year just flew out the window....

yesterday I changed the oil and filter, and added a bottle of Risolone engine flush to the crankcase, and a bottle of Bars-Leaks to the radiator, and ran it for about an hour - even drove it around the block a few times (in 110 degree heat) and it motored around just fine.

It stopped smoking after about 10 minutes, and actually ran pretty clean after that - So now I'm thinking maybe the smoke is coming from the valve guides when it's cold. I'll fire it up tonight after it has sat for 24 hours and see if the blue/white smoke returns again...

I also checked the dipstick this morning and there was nothing but clean, clear motor oil on it.... finger's crossed. Compression is good, and I hooked up the vaccum guage and it pulls a rock-steady 25 inches HG at idle - this engine has definitely got me scratching my head- I 've never seen an engine that looks so good on vacuum and compression guages, yet still throws so many visual red flags (smoke,the green goo in the oil, etc). I have to get a oil-pressure guage hooked up- the one in the dash is inoperable (unless the engine is really making zero PSI ) but I have confirmed oil flow up through the pushrods and through the rocker arms, so there is at least enough oil pressure to get to keep the valve train lubricated.

I also now have one front, and one rear brake that are both grabby enough that they will lock up if I lay hard into the pedal, so, 50% brakes are better than 0%.

Regarding the brake work- I inspected the non-original brake pedal, and besides being crooked, all the geometry on the pushrod is correct, and there are no unsafe or hacked up welds on the pedal assembly... someday I'll straighten the brake pedal out to make it more visually appealing.

the master cylinder reminds me vaguely of the clutch master cylinder that I had on my 67 (the 62 has a mechanical clutch). It is a single reservoir, with a downstream splitter (but no apportioning valve!) that routes the fluid between the front and rear - good enough to stop when puttering around the neighborhood, not good enough for a road trip or a 60MPH panic stop.

The brakes are the one system that I will spend considerable time and effort on - I respect those of you out there who aspire to keep these old Patrols as original as possible, but when your plan is to actually use/drive the vehicle, then originality has to yield to safety, and a good set of front disk brakes, and a dual reservoir master cylinder and a power booster will easily be worth the hours of fabrication involved.

I guess since the brakes are already hacked, I don't have to feel guilty about modifying them any further, right?

One question I do have is whether 1st gear is supposed to have a synchro? I noticed that I can downshift from 3rd to 2nd while moving, but I can't downshift from 2nd to 1st while moving, unless I'm going really slowly and I double-clutch it.

Normal? or not?

A couple times even while stopped, I had to go into Reverse, and then drop into 1st in order not to grind 1st gear. I can't remember if my 67 was also this way, or if I have some transmission syncro work to think about as well....

[RiverPatrol]

Well, Pebble will suffer without you.

It isn't very difficult to put a dual master and brake booster on it, you could even use Nissan parts since the later Patrols came with that setup. You'll probably need to somehow attach a fitting to the intake manifold for a vacuum source for the booster. Front disc will not be quite so easy. I haven't found a successfully completed build for that project yet. Several people have tried. I know there was one in SoCal, but he never shared his technique and sold the Patrol right after completing it. Although I am pretty sure our South American friends have done this successfully.

The stock setup definitely requires a proportioning valve, so this is just further evidence that whoever worked on the brake system didn't know what they were doing. I wouldn't spend too much time analyzing the brake master, it isn't stock or even Nissan. I'm pretty sure they guy said it was a Chevy master. Not compatible. But you're making progress! And BTW - many of us that have used the Patrol as a daily driver do it with the stock drum brakes. When they are dialed in right - bled correctly, adjusted properly, good shoes and cylinders - they actually work pretty well. I would love to see a successful disc project though. Something detailed that others could do also: buy this part here and bolt on here kinda thing. That would be awesome!

[bosque]

Maybe steal some ideas from the tlc dudes.....
http://www.jtoutfitters.com/front-disc- ... 22787.html

[RiverPatrol]

Maybe steal some ideas from the tlc dudes.....
http://www.jtoutfitters.com/front-disc- ... 22787.html

It's been tried. It would require significant fabrication that would jeopardize the integrity of the system if not done correctly.

[RiverPatrol]

...One question I do have is whether 1st gear is supposed to have a synchro? I noticed that I can downshift from 3rd to 2nd while moving, but I can't downshift from 2nd to 1st while moving, unless I'm going really slowly and I double-clutch it.

Normal? or not?

A couple times even while stopped, I had to go into Reverse, and then drop into 1st in order not to grind 1st gear. I can't remember if my 67 was also this way, or if I have some transmission syncro work to think about as well....

First gear does not have synchros, so what you are experiencing is normal operation. Having to go to reverse then 1st is usually and indication that the clutch might need a little adjusting.

[Coyote Patrol]

I really believe i can build a disc brake setup for the front axle. Maybe I will give it a shot in the next few weeks.