Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Many have said that the lights on a 6 Volt car are much more dimmer. I read this little trick helps!
your taillight bucket assemblies. Remove the taillight door
(bezel) and the bulb(s). Have in hand some heavy duty aluminum foil.
Press it into the back reflective surface of your taillight bucket,
shinny side out. Take care not to get any foil inside of the bulb
receptacle. The secret is to not smooth the foil out too much. The
foil needs that "crinkled" surface to act as hundreds of tiny
reflectors, directing the light rays toward the red lens of your
taillight. Now is the time to test your bold experiment! Replace the
lens, turn the taillights on and step back.

An issue contributing to this is also that a regular 12v bulb will fit in the socket, so most people put a regular one in when it burns out. The 6v version of the same bulb is available at most parts stores. It's brighter on 6v than it's 12v counterpart. If you look on the packaging in the upper right, it will say the voltage (7.5 for the 6v i believe) and like 13.5 for the 12v, in small print, up by the socket size (1156, 1157, etc.)

I had to be careful to pick the right ones for my dash also, as i wanted to be sure to get uniform illumination.

I'd also like to try LED lighting, as older small taillights lend themselves well to lights that are brighter in one direction (to the rear) than newer large lensed cars do. Haven't got a chance to find 6v led plug in bulbs yet, but if i do get around to it i'll take pics and post results.

Edit:

There we go:

http://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=/specs/1156_57-x12-24V.htm

When I first got my 38 the tail lights were marginal at best. The previous owner had even installed a second bulb in the bezel to try to increase visibility. ( yes they were 6V bulbs). I tried running a new ground wire directly to the socket and Presto I had bright tail lights. Very easy to forget the ground side of a circuit.

Another bulb alternative is to use a 6-volt Halogen. They are now very commonly available in compatible bases for the OEM sockets for most applications, the 33/34 Packard headlamps excepted. Of course if the ground is questionable, you still need to attend to that.

I'd also like to try LED lighting, as older small taillights lend themselves well to lights that are brighter in one direction (to the rear) than newer large lensed cars do. Haven't got a chance to find 6v led plug in bulbs yet,

It seems 6 volt leds are not that common aftermarket but Super Bright LEDhttp://www.superbrightleds.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?action=DispPage&Page2Disp=%2FBA9S6_specs.htm advertises a few. Generally Packard used BA9s socket for instrument etc and BA15s for the rest. At quick glance, they don't seem to have many 6v for the larger socket like tail lights.

Yes, cleaning the ground is imporant. To get optimal light from ANY older system requires all terminals to be cleaned. THis includes the contacts on the bulbs.

THe terminals must be soldered. if soldered from the factory then ok. But quite often replacement terminals are not soldered. The terminals must be SCRAPED or filed to BRIGHT virgin metal.

I've gotten into this many times. Example is a very original, rarely used Cushman Eagle that had never sat outside. ALL original wireing and terminals. I removed each terminal and they appeared "clean" but rather only tarnished. After scraping the terminals with a good knife blade to BRIGHT VIRGIN metal the lites were greatly improved.
THis particular example is especialy a good one since the Cushman power source is a 'magneto' type 'generator'. NO battery. That means very low speed lites are very dim and higher engine speeds rather bright. Cleaning the contacts greatly improved the low speed lights.

Bottom line: all contacts must be scraped or filed to virgin shiney metal. Especialy on systems that are over 20 years old.

Edit: Use serated tooth washers too upon reassembly. A light coat of silicon grease or lubriplate.

Someone correct me if i am wrong but LIGHT BULBS are usualy rated in Candle Power. OR maybe watts. A 32 candle power 6v should be just as bright as a 32 CP 12v. No??

If the CP is correct and the terminals are all clean then the 6v is just as bright as the 12v of the same CP or watt rating.

Yes, that's true but if you have a 6v bulb with a certain candle power and a 12v bulb with the same candle power rating and put the 6v bulb in the 12v socket it will be brighter than the 12 is in it's own socket, but burn out. The 12v in the 6v will work but be dimmer than the 6v in that pocket.

They're putting out the same amount of light when used within their intended power ranges.

I'm not too sure on this, but i think maybe the 6v filament is thinner? Or maybe they're the same brightness but the 6v takes more amps to run at that brightness? There has to be a difference if they're offering different bulbs.

Also, watts = volts X amps...so if you have two 100 watt light bulbs, one for a 12v setup and one for 120v setup, they're going to use the same amount of watts (power usage) but the 12v is going to have to pull way more amps to make it happen.

I believe auto bulbs are rated by candle power instead of watts, i may be incorrect.