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The Complete Guide to Classic Datsun Cars and Trucks
1964 Datsun Bluebird 410
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The 1964 Datsun 410 marked a quantum shift in car design for Nissan, in both design and construction. 
 Production began in September 1963 of what was to be a radically different Datsun. Nissan had been involved in a technological colaboration with the Austin Motor Company of England during the 1950s, and as a result all the cars in this series, from the 110 to the 312, all had a definate Austin appearance. All that was about to change with the introduction of the 410. 
In an attempt to come up with a more contemporary shape for the 312 replacement Nissan sub-contracted the design work for the new Bluebird to the Italian design house Pininfarina. Pininfarina were best known for their work with Ferrari and Fiat, and not what you would call a natural choice for an upcoming car company from Japan. Yet what they came up with was a very pretty, and very modern design. It had very obvious Italian looks, and yet at the same time they managed to give it a definate oriental feel. 
 Structurely the 410 was a big change from the 312. The 312 had a seperate chassis, while the 410 now featured a monocoque design, with and intergrated body and chassis. This saved weight and saved construction costs. 
 The overall length of the car was fairly close to that of the 312, but it was significantly lower, and had a longer wheelbase with smaller front and back overhangs, all of which made it look longer and sleeker than it's predecesser. The large glass area gave the car an airy feel, which was exagerated even more on the deLuxe models with their stainless steel window frames. The recess in the panels that runs the full length of the car draws attention to the marked curvature of the profile of the car, which is why these cars were colloqually known here in Australia as the "Banana Bluebird".
 These early 410 Bluebirds are easilly distinguished by their large round badge in the grille. The 1964 grille badge is a beautifully ornate piece with a thick chrome ring with a blue centre and an anodised gold D in the middle. The grille itself consists of four groups of three closely grouped horizontal bars. The other distinguishing feature of these early cars is that the models fitted with overriders have very wide chrome 'bull nose' overriders, from 1965 onwards the 410 and 411s had narrow overriders with a vertical rubber insert.
Taillights on this model consist of a large round stop light with a rectangular indicator attached to the stop light. Depending on where in the world the car was sold the badges on the side either said Bluebird or Datsun. At the back of the car on the right hand side of the boot lid there was a Datsun badge, if it was a deLuxe model it would have a deLuxe badge on the left. All the badges are in a fairly delicate running writing font, and are an anodised gold finish. 
 There were various trim levels available, but the various deLuxe models all had stainless steel door frames and windscreen frames, and also a stainless sill strip. DeLuxes also had blue tinted glass.
 The interior was also much more modern. The dash had a padded black top covered in vinyl, with a painted steel section below. It featured a black plastic instrument binnacle that rose up above the dash. A radio and a top mounted clock were an option on most models.
 Engine and gearbox both carried over from the 312 unchanged, with the 410 using the 1189cc 60hp E-1 engine. A base model with the 988cc 45hp C-1 engine was also available in Asia. The majority of cars were shipped with a 3 speed column change gearbox, but a 4 speed floor change unit was also available. An interesting option in Japan was an 'autoclutch'. I have no idea how it works, or how well it worked. Floor change cars had bucket seats, the rest had a front bench.
 The 410/411 series Bluebird had a massive effect on Nissan's global sales. In 1963 Nissan sold 260000 vehicles, by the time the 411 ceased production in June 1967 Nissan were selling 726000 vehicles a year. Most of those were Bluebirds.
 Production continued until August 1964, when the facelifted 1965 model went into production.
A sales brochure for the Datsun Bluebird 410.
  1964 Datsun Bluebird 410 Specifications  
Length - 3995mm   
Width - 1490mm   
Height - 1390mm   
Wheelbase - 2380mm   
Weight - 885kg  
Top speed - 128kph 
Transmission - Column change 3 speed or floor change 4 speed
Engine Specifications 
1200 Engine   
Model - E-1 
OHV 4 Cylinder   
Capacity - 1189cc   
Bore & Stroke 73x71mm   
Power - 60hp@5000rpm   
Torque- 67ft/lb@3600rpm   
Compression - 7.5 : 1   
Carburettor - Nikki dual throat downdraught 

Final drive - 4.625:1
Engine Specifications 
1000 Engine   
Model - C-1 
OHV 4 Cylinder 
Capacity - 988cc   
Bore & Stroke 73x59mm   
Power - 45hp@4600rpm   
Torque - 7.2kg/m@4000rpm   
Compression - 8.0 : 1   
Carburettor - Nikki dual throat down draught 
 
Model Variations
 
Datsun WP410  
 A wagon version of the 410 went on sale at the same time as the sedan. The wagon had a one piece rear door that was hinged at the top, the previous 312 had a two piece door arangement. Wagons have a Wagon badge on the tailgate door on the right hand side. A deLuxe and standard version were available.
Datsun DP410-L Fancy deLuxe  
 As with the previous 312 model, the 410 was available as a "Fancy deLuxe". The Fancy deLuxe was fitted with a whole lot of accessories that a 1960s man thought a 1960s woman would want in a car. These included bigger mirrors, a vanity mirror on the driver's side sunvisor, an under-dash stilletto shoe holder, an automatic clutch, bigger inside door handles, and an indicator that plays music box music instead of just making a clicking sound. They were all pale yellow with a pale yellow and grey interior.
Datsun DP410-M Bluebird SS  
 Meet Nissan's first ever performance sedan, the 1964 Bluebird SS. Essentially the same as the deLuxe version of the 410, except that the SS has a pair of 38mm Hitachi side draught carburettors, very similar to those used on the Datsun Fairlady sports car. This increased the power to about 65hp. The SS had a 4 speed floor change gearbox and bucket seats. The only external difference is the SS badges on the C pillars. 

 The SS went into production much later than the regular sedan, in March 1964.
Datsun 410 Standard Model 
 An entry level model was also available. These had no shiny stainless steel trims on the door frames, or the windscreen frames. They also have no trims along the sills and no over riders on the bumpers. The badges on these models are silver instead of gold coloured. Instead of having hubcaps that cover the whole wheel they instead have tiny discs that only cover the wheel centre.
Datsun P410-R Two Door 
 A two door version of the 410 was also made available just after the 4 door went into production. The 2 door is exactly the same dimensions as the 4 door, except that it has longer front doors. The seats are unique to this models, as they fold forwards to allow access to the rear seat, the buckets in the 4 doors have fixed backs.
Yue Loong YLN-705B  
 Yue Loong is a Taiwanese car manufacturer that has been building cars since 1957. In 1957 they entered a "Technical Cooperation" with Nissan, which gave then the licence to build their own versions of selected Nissan vehicles. In the past there had been Yue Loong version of the 310 Bluebird and the 31 series Cedric, and in 1964 they started building the Yue Loong YLN-705B, which was their version of the 410. Only basic versions were built. They also used the E-1 engine. 

 Yue Loong later changed it's name to Yulon Motor, and is still building cars today. They still build Nissans, and now also Buicks and Opels. Their version of the more current Bluebird model is sold under the rather interesting name of the Feeling 101.
Other Model Variations 
There were several different model variations for the 410 series, and these can usually be identified by their model code. 
Prefixes 
W = If the model code begins with a W, then the vehicle is a wagon. 
P is the code meaning 'power up', which is Nissan speak for a larger engine. If a 410 series car is a P410, then it has an E-1 series engine, if it is just a 410 (no P), then it has the C-1 series engine. 
D indicates it is a deLuxe version 
L indicates that the car is a left hand drive version. 
 		 Suffixes 
-R signifies that it is the 2 door model 
-L is a Fancy deLuxe 
-M means that the car was fitted with twin carbs 
-N indicates that the car has the auto-clutch option 
-T shows that the car has the 4 speed floor change gearbox 
-U indicates that it has the 4.375:1 ratio final drive. Only export models had the 4.375 final drive, so the -U also indicates that it is an export model. 
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Many of these codes are, particularly the suffixes, are internal codes used by Nissan themselves and are not printed on the vehicle anywhere.
 
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