Packard Forum Index » General

Ok I know my 53 packard takes a 6 volt battery, but I have a new 8 volt battery still in the box. Can I use it in the car or WHAT? Would it hurt anything, just asking.

You can use it although you may need bulbs. Most bulbs are rated 6-8v but a few are not. Some radio repair shops say they will not honor a guarantee on any radio they work on which will be running at 8v so there may be some issues down the road there. The regulator will have to be adjusted for a higher output to keep the battery charged but otherwise, all will survive. My father ran 8v batteries in his cars until those cars were all replaced with newer and no major issues I can recall. Some regular 6v battery chargers will not work well so finding a 6-8-12 may be needed if you use those.

I think by the time you ran around and changed bulbs and adjusted things and worried about smoking a radio. Buying the proper 6v battery would be cheaper and more convienant in the end. Just my

An 8 volt battery used to be a popular upgrade for a 6 volt car. It gives a little more oomph for starting, and a little brighter lights.

The only mod necessary is to adjust your voltage regulator up to 9.5 volts to keep it charged.

I never heard of it causing any problems. Might shorten the life of your light bulbs by a couple of weeks. The radio won't care, you can overdrive tubes and they won't even notice, unlike solid state electronics.

Don't forget you are + ground :}

I exchanged the battery for a 6 volt.

I think you made the right decision.