A 6 volt battery can be used successfully in
a car with a large V8 engine, but everything else in the car must be in excellent
condition. The current needed to crank the engine is twice that needed by
a 12 volt car, other things being equal, which places very much more stringent
demands on all the electrical current carrying equipment in the car. The Optima
battery is an excellent choice, as it has very low internal resistance.
The best setup would be an Optima battery, 2-0 gauge cables with soldered ends,
bright clean metal to metal contact on both ends of all cables, a freshly
rebuilt starter motor, perfect switch contacts, and an align-bored crank in the
engine. This is what the cars had when new, (except for the optima battery of
course), and they started just fine. No one would accept a new luxury car
like an Imperial if it wouldn’t start reliably.
Dick Benjamin (still driving his 6 volt Packard
engined V8 55 Hudson Hornet after all these years – the starter
spins it right up, every time, and has for 21 years!)
From: mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:mailing-list-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Jan Harmonson
Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 10:03
AM
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: IML: Battery for a
'55
I have a 1955 Sedan that I have been using a 6-12
starting system in for several years. It spins fast and starts well. I just
replaced the 6-12 battery with two 6 volt Optimas that really spin it. I
have a 6 volt Optima in my 1952 Plymouth that works well for the 6 cylinder but
one was too slow for the V-8 in the Imperial. John Lazenby says that a
properly tuned 6 volt is Ok but I didn't find that so. Also, I had Bob's radio
in Pismo Beach, CA. rebuild my 1955 radio and he said that if I had ever used
an 8 volt battery the radio would be "toast".
1955 Imperial Custom Sedan
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Friday, March 10,
2006 5:31 AM
Subject: Re: IML: Battery
for a '55
'55 takes is a 6 volt, positive ground system.
It isn't as easy to find a nice big battery for that car as it is for the
12 volt cars. It can be done, it just takes a little more looking around.
Again, the largest most powerful is probably a great rule of thumb.
One of my non-Imperial's with a similar system takes an 8
volt marine dry cell very nicely. I needed it to give me a boost when cranking
the extra four cylinders on that car's old L head motor, especially when cold.
It gave everything a little more life, including the hydraulic windows, and has
had no apparent ill effects. Everything works as it should including the
charging system, which leads me to wonder if voltage regulator adjustments were
made in the past to accomodate this for another owner. I am certain that others
may have experienced shorter life on light bulbs and radio tubes with these
batteries, but nothing like that has happened on this car. Again, it isn't an
Imperial, and my '55 Imperial cranks and functions just great with a fresh,
huge, 6 volt battery.
-----Original Message-----
From: wbinegar@xxxxxxx
To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Fri, 10 Mar 2006 00:10:04 -0500
Subject: Re: IML: Battery for a '55
What kind of battery goes into a 1955 Imperial
sedan? Where do you get the battery?
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