Thread: 6 volt to 12 volt

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What year was the change made to 12 volts from 6 volts in cars/trucks Thanks

Fords 1956

Chev maybe 1955

Dont forget that Ford was positive ground....

You never see anyone asking about how to convert from 12 volts
to 6 volts.....

mike in tucson

just cut the battery in half lol ----Thanks Charlie

Originally Posted by robot

Dont forget that Ford was positive ground....

You never see anyone asking about how to convert from 12 volts
to 6 volts.....

mike in tucson

Have you ever driven anything with 6 volt lights and vacuum wipers at night in the rain or snow? If you have, you'd know why you don't want 6 volt!

VW did the same thing back in the day to though I am not sure what year they made the change. My 73 VW Bug had a 12 volt system in it.
Definitely a improvement over the earlier 6 volt VW Bug systems I had seen.

Ford was the first of he Big Three, but I think Packard beat them all by a few years.
British cars were 12 volt right after WWII, maybe even in the '30's. Don't think I ever saw a 6v Volkswagen.

beetles made the change in '67, alternators came in '73-'74

I had a 67 BMW 1800 that was six volt. I put a 2002 12volt motor in it, but had tons of problems with things like the windshield wipers going spastic and the guage lights getting too bright! I tried putting resisters in line to slow the wipers down, but didn't really help that much! It's a pain to do unless you can find the right aftermarket parts that are made for 12 volts. But like everyone has said, 12 is the way to go. The odds of starting up, and driving in the dark go way up with 12volts over six!