Junkyard Find: 1978 Datsun 510 Sedan

Murilee Martin
by Murilee Martin

The badging on US-market Datsuns and Nissans got very confusing thanks to the Datsun-to-Nissan changeover that stretched from 1981 through 1984. It resulted in vehicles with awkward names such as “Datsun 810 Maxima By Nissan” showing up in showrooms with all the Datsun logos about to be chiseled off the walls. There was an ever-shifting cast of Bluebirds and Cherrys and Violets and Sunnys sold with American-market designations ending in “-1o” that sometimes corresponded with their corporate identifiers and sometimes didn’t. And then there was the Stanza-based 510 that wasn’t related to its beloved Bluebird-based 1968-73 namesake.

Here is such a car, spotted in a Denver self-serve yard a few weeks ago.

Japanese cars of this era rusted with great eagerness. The process was slower outside of the Rust Belt, but there was no stopping it.

Remember these “SCIENTIFIC DIRT TEST” stickers from the middle 1980s? The sun has irradiated this one so thoroughly that I suspect the car spent several decades abandoned in a field with the trunk lid facing south.

This car doesn’t have much worth pulling, though a few bits here and there might be grabbed by eager Datsun-parts shoppers.

In Japan, Stanzas were pitched by this blow-dried gaijin.

Meanwhile, Datsun sponsored a Neil Diamond Special in the United States.

In Mexico, the car’s Japanese origins were emphasized.







Murilee Martin
Murilee Martin

Murilee Martin is the pen name of Phil Greden, a writer who has lived in Minnesota, California, Georgia and (now) Colorado. He has toiled at copywriting, technical writing, junkmail writing, fiction writing and now automotive writing. He has owned many terrible vehicles and some good ones. He spends a great deal of time in self-service junkyards. These days, he writes for publications including Autoweek, Autoblog, Hagerty, The Truth About Cars and Capital One.

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  • Romer Romer on Jan 30, 2016

    These things were considered good cars in South Africa and Rhodesia in my younger days and did not rust because of dry climate. One model came out with a 5 speed manual box and independent rear suspension and was advertised as doing 100mph. They are still sought after today and are restored often.

  • Blindsight Blindsight on Feb 02, 2016

    The car was driven at least into the late 90s. The Broncos sticker on the back has the 'new' logo, established in 1997.

  • Syke Kinda liked the '57, hated the '58. Then again, I hated the entire '58 GM line except for the Chevrolet. Which I liked better than the '57's. Still remember dad's '58 Impala hardtop, in the silver blue that was used as the main advertising color.
  • Dartdude The bottom line is that in the new America coming the elites don't want you and me to own cars. They are going to make building cars so expensive that the will only be for the very rich and connected. You will eat bugs and ride the bus and live in a 500sq-ft. apartment and like it. HUD wants to quit giving federal for any development for single family homes and don't be surprised that FHA aren't going to give loans for single family homes in the very near future.
  • Ravenuer The rear view of the Eldo coupe makes it look fat!
  • FreedMike This is before Cadillac styling went full scale nutty...and not particularly attractive, in my opinion.
  • JTiberius1701 Middle of April here in NE Ohio. And that can still be shaky. Also on my Fiesta ST, I use Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires for the winter and Bridgestone Potenza for my summer tires. No issues at all.
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