Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Categories
- All Discussions27,064
- Orphaned Marques
- ↳ Hudson21,133
- ↳ Street Rods807
- ↳ Off Topic574
- ↳ American Motors149
- ↳ Kaiser - Frazer70
- ↳ Nash70
- ↳ Packard163
- ↳ Studebaker122
- Classic American Cars
- ↳ Ford Motor Company956
- ↳ Chrysler Corporation477
- ↳ GM Corporation1,396
- ↳ Post War Chevrolets75
- ↳ Pontiac Forum119
- General
- ↳ All makes1,960
- ↳ Poll Discussions24
- Swapmeets & Events
- ↳ Events130
- ↳ Swapmeets108
- Hot Rod Corner
- ↳ Ford Rods90
- ↳ Lead Sleds67
- Special Interest Groups
- ↳ The Flathead Forum139
- European marques
- ↳ MG Car Company2
- ↳ Mercedes-Benz2
In this Discussion
- Hudzilla August 2007
- scruffybeast February 2008
- Steve E. February 2008
- Twitch February 2008
another new guy
-
another new guy, from kentucky... I just bought a 1938 packard coupe ( he said it was buisness man's coupe) off of ebay....it's a very solid old car that has been sitting in a barn for years...the motor was seized up, but, I now have it freed up, and all cylenders have good compression....I've ordered an 8 volt battery, which will be here day after tomorrow.... Can't wait to see if I can get it running...........oh yea, it's a straight 6 flathead..
ronnie -
That 8 volt battery is going to do nothing but cause other problems down the road. Fix what's wrong with the car to begin with!
-
If you use an 8 volt battery you will have to modify the voltage regulator etc etc. Try repairing your old wiring. If you go to higher voltage with old wiring you are looking to smoke the wiring and possibly get a nice blaze going as a result. Look, you spent good money to get a nice car -don't play around with quick fix repairs. Do it right.
-
What about the possibility of a 6volt alternator? I have heard that you can get them now built to look just like the original generator. Scruffybeast
-
6 volt alternators are available, but fix the problems the car has bbefore you begin modifying anything or you'll just compound the problems. Clean ALL electrical connections first starting with the battery cablems on BOTH ends. Where the ground connections are, you want to see bare shiny metal, rust, dirt and paint make wonderful insulators. If you have a low range voltmeter check across the connections, you should get NO readings. For instance from the ground cable to the engine block, or frame, or wherever it's connected. For a pos ground car, pos on meter to frame neg to cablewhile someone hits the starter for a few seconds. Good luck.
-
Yeah, don't use 8 volts. A properly maintained 6 volt system will work fine with a generator. Only if you are planning on doing a lot of daily driving with a lot of start ups should you worry about a 6 volt alternator.
As mentioned, make sure your electrical connections are clean and solid. Since the original wiring is no doubt brittle with age don't go getting into to much or you'll make it worse.
Someone COULD have changed your car to 6 volt negative ground but it was positive ground to begin with. Look at how the present battery is hooked up. If the + goes to ground it's stock and you must hook up new battery same.
Complete wiring harnesses cost like $600 or so but I would reckon in your area you can find a good auto electrician that would custom rewire for less. Again, though if it starts leave the wire alone for now.
