Re: Let's discuss Packard 6V electrical systems and the change to 12V systems

Posted by Peter Packard On 2008/7/2 18:19:24

G'day Redron, 8 Volt batteris were very popular here in Australia in the fifties and Sixties, especially for 6V Holden and Volkswagen vehicles. I had one on my 38 Packard Six for 5 years but i ended up going back to 6V because the voltage regulator was not temperature compensating. If you started the car at night your generator was charging at up to 11.5 volts, dropping down to the 9.6 volts required to keep the 8 volt battery charged when the regulator warmed up. If I put the lights on within a minute of starting it used to cause early failure of the bulbs, mainly parkers and instrument, not usually the headlight ones rated at 6-8 volts. The other problem was that many of the early Packards did not have headlight relays and the ammeter copped a pounding and used to get very hot ( unless you used lights or some other load to cut the charge rate down). I still have a brand new uncomissioned 8V battery but I will probably never use it. Best regards Peter Toet