EVENTS: Nissan Jam, Part 02

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One of the great things about an event like Nissan Jam is the sheer diversity of cars it brings out. Sure, there are Z and Roadster gatherings in SoCal, and 510s are bound to show up wherever you go, but there aren’t many places where you can see a B210, Sentra SE-R and a Patrol, along with the usual fleet of 240Zs and 510s, all in one place. 

Ladies old and new abounded, albeit with a distinct variation in styles. Josh Kreat’s Hayashi-shod 1600 roadster exudes old school simplicity, while Henry Vasquez’s 40th Anniversary 370Z epitomizes new school show cars with a roll call a mile long.

Even Silvias spanned the era from Mike Sameshima’s S110 200SX to a facelifted S14. However, we still await the day when a CSP311 or S10 make an appearance.

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Mike Posada’s B13 Sentra SE-R is one of those cars that was an enthusiast favorite not too long ago, yet have all but vanished in recent years. Rather than 90s tuner, a JDM Super Saloon front bumper, hako wing, fender mirrors and white-letter tires provide the modern-but-retro-inspired zokusha look that’s popular with the kids these days.

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Jeff Drew’s 1985 720 pickup has over 208,000 miles and serves as his daily driver. He’s even found a period Nissan hood bra to to match his sunset plates.

Ron Sino-Cruz is probably most well known for his VIP G50 Nissan President, but at the complete opposite end of the spectrum is his lime green 1976 Datsun B210, zoku’ed out on Techno Phantoms.

This Datsun 521 could’ve been twins with the 320 pickup we saw in Part 01. It had the same perfect patina, red painted steelies and dog dish hubcaps. It’s a rare and beautiful truck that we hope stays exactly as is.

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Audrey Reese won Best Truck for her 1967 Nissan Patrol (darker blue with white roof). She was joined by Lou Bircheff’s 1969, a barn find that had been stored for 30 years with 18,000 original miles. It had one owner, and its paint and tires are what it left the factory with. 

Another one of our favorite regulars is Saro Fagerian’s and his Shiro Special 300ZX, one of only 1,002 all-white Z31s made, and with less than 8,000 miles on the clock. Saro took home second place in the Best 300ZX category.

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Roy Quintana had a different take on his Z31, heavily modified with an S13 coilover suspension and and a custom turquoise paint job with flared fenders and hippari stretch.

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David Moreno brought the show’s lone Datsun 710, complete with Enkei Compe wheels and swapped 5-speed.

George Curiel’s 1973 Datsun 620 possessed an interesting rat rod aura, full of zokusha touches like a tsurikawa, a buttload of stickers, and rare 5-spoke Hayashis.

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One of the most impressive 510 builds was Dominic Le’s black beauty, swapped with an S14 SR20DET stroked to 2.2 liters with a Tomei kit. A slew of Tomei valvetrain components, custom hi-rise headers and a Koyorad radiator help keep it flowing. A 280ZX 5-speed swap and tons of custom work to the suspension, crossmembers, driveshaft and brakes make it an incredible achievement.

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John Huckins’ 1972 510 looks like an unassuming yellow wagon, but powered by an SR20DET with a 9:1 compression ratio and NISMO 740 cc injectors while rocking a Wilwood big brake upgrade and a full coilover and four-link suspension in the rear, it’s quite the sleeper.

Of course, in the end there were still more Z-Cars than anything else, so let’s give proper recognition to some of the award winners. John Moran, president of the Empire Z Car Club took second place in the Best 80s Z category with his stock 1974 Datsun 260Z.

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In the 240Z category, Luiz Lopez won 3rd Place with his 1970, a great example of a newer build done in exacting period correct US style with slot mags, high sidewalls and bumper guards.

John Williams took home second in the Best 240Z category with his race-ready L28 swap and many custom parts. John’s car was also the subject of the recent 240Z video by Electric Federal.

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However, the overall winner of Best 240Z was Alton Takeyasu and his 1972 S30. There wasn’t any crazy engine swap or super rare parts, just an immaculate paint job and tremendous attention to detail.

That concludes Part 02 of our Nissan Jam coverage. There’s still more to come, but in case you missed it check out Part 01.

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12 Responses to EVENTS: Nissan Jam, Part 02

  1. Randy says:

    Just a question:

    How does a 1974 260Z win “Best 80s Z category?”

    • salia-nwonk says:

      Oh good! I’m not the only one who probably read that twice and said…Huh?

    • cesariojpn says:

      I’ve heard of “Grandfather” clauses (Car has to be 25 years old…..but we’ll let your 23 year old car in cause it was first made 27 years ago….), but yeah…..

    • kevin lackey says:

      that’s how damn clean it was, nigga!

      • Randy says:

        Nice rides on the page – Question: On the green ’74/’75 Impala Custom: did you acquire the chrome grille, or chrome it yourselves?

        If the latter, it certainly seems like a nice alternative for chrome parts that can’t be replaced anymore, or for that “special touch.”

  2. Datsun Fairlady Owner says:

    I think the votes were from attendee’s: “The general public.” I don’t think many knew what they were looking at when it came to the older cars and what they were voting for. You have to take it with a grain of salt.

  3. NX Coupe Driver says:

    Maybe a stupid question but where are all the Nissan Skylines? Or the Nissan EXA, Pulsars, or the quirky styled NX coupe? Perhaps these cars are just more common elsewhere like Australia… Nice to see those B210 still going, I thought they were extinct 😛

    • G.Miller says:

      There is a Skyline in Part 1. Obviously Skylines were not sold in the US, so they will be less common at the shows/meets here. The EXA , also not a US model. The NX & Pulsar was not a popular model here. Some has the SR20 engine (nx200), but the Pulsar was even less popular.

    • Randy says:

      Man, haven’t seen a Pulsar (either U.S. generation) or an NX in YEARS… I miss them and the equally “quirky” Mazda MX-3… Just wierd enough to get attention. From poking around online, there’s like, NOTHIN’ in the aftermarket for them (lights, body parts, etc.).

      • NX Coupe Driver says:

        Affordable little sports coupes were totally a trend for Japanese manufacturers in the early 90’s. From the NX Coupe to the Toyota Sera, the Honda CRX Del-sol, and the Mazda MX-3 (that did look cool didnt it) and lets not forget the Geo (Isuzu) Storm. The first NX’s should officially be nostalgic cars next year. As for aftermarket parts on the NX, there is the occasional body kit available. Its based on the Sentra platform, so along with the SR20DE the internals working parts are easier to find. A popular upgrade amongst the tuner kids is to put a SR20DET (usually from one of those Pulsar SSS) in the NX, but due to it being fairly aerodynamic there isnt much place for the intercooler. Then they usually destroy the unique front on it (the lights are ugly apparently) with an aftermarket body kit that changes the front end. I would rather keep mine as stock as I can I think…

        • Randy says:

          Oh, I meant for resto, on the lights thing, or those very unique bodies. If you get bumped in a parking lot, you could be SOL for some time, trying to track some of this stuff down. Trim parts? Interior panels for an Arizona car? T-roof panels? I’d think you’re kind of forced to find a REALLY nice one, ’cause fixing them looks like it would suck.

          Nice that they’re Sentra-related, so at least you can get the mech. bits.

          I wouldn’t mind putting an air dam or rear spoiler on. I don’t think I’d go too far off stock, but that’s my taste. I think most of those body kits are trying too hard.

    • Serg says:

      Love the NX. Dem flares….

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