The diesel Sentra was pretty rare! Great fuel mileage but slow as beans! The biggest problem with them was that when the injection pump failed, it usually cost more than what the car was worth!
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I'm not knocking them; I was working as a Nissan tech in the 80s when they were sold brand new! The frequency of pump failures I cannot say; in 16 years as a Nissan Master tech and another 15 or so years as an auto technician in non-Nissan shops, I've only run across 4 diesel Sentras and 2 of them needed injection pumps, but that's a pretty small sample to make a judgement. I just remember that the pumps were ridiculously expensive back then....somewhere in the $2500-$3000 range from Nissan and that was back in the late 80s or early 90s? And I didn't say they were slow as s**t, I said they were slow as beans!
Yeah, once they got going they were fine, it was the time it took them to get up to speed from a stop. But, with around 50-60 HP and 75 lb-ft of torque, +/-, it was what it was. It all paid off, however, with the 50+ MPG! Same with the diesel 720 trucks and diesel Maximas in the 80s, those engines were rock-solid when it came to durability! Other than the two pump failures, the only thing else I've even seen fail on any of the 80s Nissan diesels is a few glow plugs and an injection pump belt or two break due to lack of maintenance. I hope you find someone to give it a good home! I got a soft spot for those rare Datsuns and early Nissans. In NJ, most have them have rusted their way to an early grave. I have an 85 B11 Sentra E16S sitting in my driveway wasting away that I just don't have any time to get to. Let us know how you make out!
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