When I first met Jack, his R32 was a bare shell on a ramp. Around it sat a growing collection of parts, all looking considerably closer to being ready than the car itself.
We’d met through a mutual friend, and within an hour he was talking me through the plans for his “Datsun.” There was a lot to take in. Thankfully, that first conversation turned into an invitation to come back with the camera and follow the rebuild.
By the time the car was picking up awards during the 2023 show season, we’d seen a fair bit of what had gone into it. Watching people lean over the engine bay at Mondello, I kept thinking back to the workshop, and the night we’d helped raise the engine and front subframe into the shell.
That’s the part I wanted to share.
On our visits to the workshop, Jack would talk us through what had been done and what was still ahead. Seeing the car stripped back like that gave us a chance to look at things that would eventually be hidden away. It also gave me plenty of opportunities to ask questions.
The engine and front subframe were assembled outside the car, with each part fitted and torqued up before the whole lot went back in. Even sitting on the workshop floor, it was an impressive thing to look at. You could spend a fair while following the pipework and picking out details, especially with Jack there to explain what everything was doing.
Eventually, we got to lend a hand. We helped raise the complete assembly into the shell from underneath. After seeing the car in pieces, watching it come together like that was a moment I’m glad we were there for. It was a late one, but it gave us something to remember beyond the photos we took.
The engine setup deserves a bit of attention here. Alongside the single-turbo conversion and modern engine management, Jack had fitted an HKS V-Cam system to the RB26. It was one of the parts of the build I wanted to learn more about, and having the car in front of me made those conversations a lot easier to follow.
There was plenty to look at around it, too. The AN lines, the wiring routes and the placement of the supporting components all contributed to how neatly the bay came together. Seeing it during assembly made me appreciate how much work goes into getting those things right, before anyone gets to see the finished result at a show.
Getting the engine into the car was a big step, but there was still a gap before it was back on the road. Jack needed time to work through the remaining jobs and get everything dialled in. We caught up again during the 2023 show season, by which point the R32 was getting plenty of attention.
At the LZ World Tour in Mondello, it picked up a Top 10 award. Throughout the event, people were stopping at the car and leaning in for a closer look under the bonnet. Having been there during the rebuild, it was good to watch other people take an interest in the details we’d spent time looking at in the workshop.
Jimmy Oakes also stopped for a look and a conversation with Jack. Given his own experience with RB-powered cars, there was plenty for them to talk about. For us, it was another enjoyable moment in a weekend that already felt like a good reward for the work Jack had put in.
By 2025, Jack was taking the R32 to rounds of the NI Sprint Championship as well as continuing to show it across Ireland. I liked seeing that side of the car develop. We’d followed it through the rebuild and seen the reaction it got parked up; now there was another part of the story to follow.
There have been more changes along the way, as you’d expect. The car we first saw on the ramp has come a long way, and Jack still has things he wants to do with it.
Thanks to Jack for letting us spend time in the workshop, photograph the rebuild and get involved along the way. I came away from those visits with a much better understanding of the car, and plenty learned from watching him put it together.
I still enjoy seeing people gathered around it at shows. Having seen it as a shell on the ramp, there’s a bit more to look at now than the finished paint and engine bay.
You can follow the continuing build on Instagram at @jmgtr32.
— SR
