A Datsun Sport Truck with Not Only an Interesting Personality, But a Quick Streak As Well
Some trends can fade or take a back seat to the next popular version, only to come back for another run with another generation. We’ve seen examples of this in not only drag racing, but the car hobby in general.
Cars with names was a popular trend in the 1960s-1980s, and now it’s happening again, even with a rare 1977 Datsun 620 Sport pick-up truck.
This Datsun was originally purchased twenty years ago as a high school drag project by Kyle Omilanow. “The truck has been my quest for speed ever since,” said Kyle.
The yellow pick-up bears a striking resemblance to a pizza delivery truck in the movie Toy Story, and it came in heavy when the truck was prepped for Miles of Mayhem.
“The pizza planet theme came along when we needed extra storage for drag-and-drive,” said Kyle. “We added the bed cap, and couldn't ignore the similarities to the pizza planet truck; a few decals later and a 3D-printed rocket, and it sure turns heads.”
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For Kyle, the attraction to drag-and-drive events started innocently enough. “In 2019 we attended Rocky Mountain Race Week as a follower,” said Kyle. “Me and my wife Charissa fell in love. The people, the drives, the hotel gatherings, and of course the high horsepower drag cars driving for miles down public roads.”
“From there, we converted the Datsun back into a street truck, and competed in the Miles of Mayhem in 2022. Some of the biggest challenges for us have been mostly highway speed without spending a whole bunch of money. Between that and keeping in cab noise down for comfort, and keeping in cab heat out.”
To make sure the truck turns heads for its performance as well as its looks, Kyle ditched the original Datsun driveline for a LS-based 5.3-liter. The engine sports a factory crankshaft, connecting rods and pistons, but Kyle opted for a few upgrades, including a sloppy best camshaft, BTR dual valve springs, and hardened pushrods to keep the engine happy at higher than factory rpm.
To give it a little more power, Kyle added in a single 78/75-millimeter billet wheel turbocharger, chose a Holley HP for engine management, and the whole combination makes around 800 horsepower on a standard pump gas tune-up.
A 2-speed Powerglide automatic transfers the power to an 8-3/4-inch Mopar rear end .
A stock Datsun frame was narrowed at the rear to allowed for the “slightly bigger” 28-inch-tall x 10.5-inch width tires to take up residence.
Suspension upgrades include Viking Performance coil overs at the front, while the rear uses stock leaf springs with some homemade cantilever traction devices. TBM Brakes were selected to slow the truck from street driving and quicker track passes alike.
Kyle is fortunately enough to not only have a wife that enjoys racing, but fills the role of co-pilot for drag-and-drive events. “She loves racing and has a few cars of her own she races,” said Kyle. “We are building her a drag-and-drive specific car.” said Kyle.
And while this means the duo may become separate competitors in the future, they can continue to enjoy what could be the quickest pizza delivery truck in North America.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Kyle Omilanow.
If you have thoughts / feedback / ideas, please e-mail us at derek@sickthemagazine.com