1971 Fairlady Z one owner on CL

[Kerrigan]

Nope. The S30 has an L20 engine, with dual sidedraft Hatachi carbs, not the single downdraft carb on the L20A. At least according to the stamp on my engine block with it's dual carbs (as the car came).

If it's a JDM FairladyZ it will not have rear side markers. And the front side markers are tied into the turn-signal and flash with them. That's stock as well on JDMs. This one anyway.

But if we listen to the "experts" this car never existed ... it just HAD to have an L20A engine ... snicker snicker ...

I've owned it for over 32 years and it's basically unmodified except for the wheels .... they are not stock. Oh, and the Carellos I run instead of the factory option fog lights ...

All in all, nice car.

$20k?

Our Fairlady is appraised and insured for $30k ... so there must be something to be said for the "value" ....

Yes, but if it's a S30 it should have an L20a, not a L24, so if the engine in storage is an L20a, that is probably the original engine.

It must have varied by state, or maybe it was just California cars that had to add them. Most of the early Fairladys I have seen in the US didn't have the rear reflectors.

-Mike

[Kerrigan]

What is so confusing to me Alan is the pictures of the L20A and the L20 in my factory service manual. The L20A is shown as having one down draft style carburetor instead of the two side-draft Hatachi carbs.

The message I'm getting is either the Factory Service Manual is incorrect with the photos or my FairladyZ is a factory fluke. I don't find an "A" or "B" suffix stamped anywhere relating to the engine type or number, just L20 256597 stamped on the engine number pads on the engine block.

No wonder there is much confusion about these since the factory and dealer paperwork is long gone ... at least the Nissan historian couldn't come up with anything other than "your car is an S30 model FairladyZ built in 1971."

As I've opined many times, the only thing I really know about these cars is this one. I know the original owner in USA in the early 1970s, how he got the car, who bought it next, and I got it after that. I'm really only the second owner of it in the US as the original guy sold it via a dealer who didn't transfer the title until I bought it ... for WAY TOO MUCH money at the time ... but glad I did.

So, this FairladyZ-L: .... came with the L20 dual carb engine (no "A", no "B" suffix engine) coupled to the 5-speed tranny ending in the R180 pumpkin, which it still has ... unmodified. And as far as we can tell, at 79000 miles the engine has never been cracked open. No valve work, no nothing. Trans is the original one never reworked (it does have a tick tick indicating a weak bearing, but nothing to tear into yet), and the rear end is untouched.

I've repainted it to Nissan 901 with a color match to the untouched inner body hatch panels still in original paint (we think).

These cars can be as much a mystery as anything I guess.

Upon that I think we can agree.

Yes, you're right. I don't think I put that very well did I? The L20 six got the 'A' suffix well before the L20 four arrived with the 'B' suffix.

The story that was related to me when I looked into this was that it was a case of killing more than one bird with one stone. Yes, they needed to differentiate between the early style L20 six and the updated L20 six, so they started to use an 'A' suffix on the updated design. A good illustration of this was in the factory parts manual for the GC10 Skyline: This had sections for both the 'early' / 'old' type L20 six and the 'new' L20'A', as the earliest GC10s were equipped with the 'old' type L20 sixes, and then they switched to the 'new' L20'A'. It must have been quite confusing at the time to have the same model of car fitted with two versions of what was essentially the 'same' engine.

Those first 'new' L20'A's had the 'A' stamped into the pad on the block that carried the engine number. No doubt this was an effort to make sure there was no confusion, but it's possible to see Nissan's period advertising and other technical descriptions not differentiating between the two types. I don't know whether that was deliberate or not? And just a year or so down the line ( late 1969 ) Nissan were churning out what were clearly 'new' type L20As without the 'A' being stamped on the block as part of the engine number. Quite confusing.

Again, the story I was told was that the 4-cylinder L20 was 'on the drawing board' - or at least being mooted - during the 1968/9 period when the L20 six was updated, hence the 'A' and 'B'. Even if they were not ready to make it yet, we can imagine that they could see a 4-cylinder L-gata engine of two litre capacity being necessary somewhere in the near future. If that wasn't part of a long-term plan then it would have to be a big coincidence, no? One thing is for sure: Those 'A' and 'B' suffixes did the job of differentiating between the six and the four, and the 'old' and 'new' sixes.

But anyway, Kerrigan's Fairlady Z-L was fitted with the 'new' type L20 six, which the factory called an 'L20A' at the time.

Edited May 10, 2014 by Kerrigan
spelling error

[HS30-H]

Nope. The S30 has an L20 engine, with dual sidedraft Hatachi carbs, not the single downdraft carb on the L20A. At least according to the stamp on my engine block with it's dual carbs (as the car came).

Kerrigan, you're like some kind of Cicada. You seem to spend months under ground, then emerge, climb a tree and make a lot of noise.

I can't understand how you can have owned your car for so long and yet know so little about it and its siblings. Does everything go in one ear and then straight out of the other? We've told you plenty about your car and the Fairlady Z / Z-L in general over the years, and yet nothing seems to stick.

As I'm sure I've explained to you before - either on this forum or on one of the many other forums you seem to pop up on from time to time - the engine in your 1971 Fairlady Z-L was called an 'L20A' by Nissan. The 'L20A' came in single carb form ( as used in umpteen Japanese domestic sedans that you have never heard of ) and in twin carb form, as used in the S30-series Z - which you have heard of - but also in umpteen Japanese domestic sedans that you have (again) never heard of.

Read this next part slowly. Read it out loud if it helps. THE TERMS 'L20' AND 'L20A' DO NOT DENOTE WHETHER A PARTICULAR ENGINE WAS SINGLE DOWNDRAUGHT CARB, DUAL CHOKE SINGLE DOWNDRAUGHT CARB OR DUAL CARB TYPE. Is that clear?

I don't know if the little factory literature you have accumulated over the years includes one of the engine manuals that covers the different types of L20A engine for the Japanese market, but I assume not. If you refer only to the English language factory manuals that cover the L20A engine then you will - probably - only see single carb versions. Guess why? ( clue: it's not because the twin carb L20A didn't exist... ).

But if we listen to the "experts" this car never existed ... it just HAD to have an L20A engine ... snicker snicker ...

The joke's on you old chap. Your car had what Nissan called an 'L20A' engine. It's in all the (Japanese) literature. No need to take my "expert" word for it. Just believe Nissan themselves:

[Kerrigan]

Thought the reply was a little parental in tone, but thought I'd ask anyway ... as you seem knowledgeable ... what are the physical differences between an L20 and an L20A engine, cause I didn't find any info explaining that on the Internet? The one picture I have seen had the "L20" stamped on the first stamp block as shown below, but the engine number has an "A" stamped before the numbers on the second stamp block.

Edited June 16, 2014 by Kerrigan
clearification

[Kerrigan]

Guess I've been wrong about the engine in these cars. Only had an L20A, not an L20. Apparently they never had a L20.

Amazing really, I learn something new to me about these FairladyZs every week.

Our 1971 FairladyZ-L has the original L20 engine, not an "L20A" ....

Edited June 23, 2014 by Kerrigan

[HS30-H]

Guess I've been wrong about the engine in these cars. Only had an L20A, not an L20. Apparently they never had a L20.

Amazing really, I learn something new to me about these FairladyZs every week.

Many people, on several different forums, have been telling you about the L20A / L20(a) / L20 thing for months.

So what happened? Did you hear the same story from your favourite 'expert', and only then did you believe it?

And you wonder why people feel frustrated to deal with you...

[Kerrigan]

No.

Actually when three informed people on four different forums (yes, I'll admit I cruise the forums seeking/learning new stuff,) put forth "facts" which made sense and were pretty much the same, that settled it for me.

The pictures in the FSM are misleading, so I got mislead. By people too.

But all is well in Fairladyville now :-)

I was sort of surprised by some of the people who really had their tit caught in the wringer over it.

"Some peeps always hasta put ya down" ...

Forums are to share common interests, swap "facts", and information.

Not a place for one to pump up their under-inflated egos .. :-)

You think this gets bad, log onto one of the train fan forums and stick your opinion toes in the acidic waters.

I've also collected about all the manuals and books out on the Z car and the information and instructions vary quite a bit. Some totally incorrect, some half-right, and the others helpful and accurate.

Many people, on several different forums, have been telling you about the L20A / L20(a) / L20 thing for months.

So what happened? Did you hear the same story from your favourite 'expert', and only then did you believe it?

And you wonder why people feel frustrated to deal with you...

[Z fan]

^^^ I have been a lurker here before I actually made a membership in order to have access to the classified section , yes I see a few inflated egos here, there is an evident " in the clan group ".