Starter question 54 Vette

[Donald M.]

Will a 12 volt starter work with an 8 volt battery? Wouldn't it just draw more amps to get the power it needs?

I'm thinking about switching to a '62 powerglide which would mean I would need to use a 12 volt starter.

Don

[Jim L.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

Have you ever heard a starter struggle and groan to turn over an engine when the battery Voltage was low? I believe that's what you'll notice when your 12 Volt starter sees only 8 Volts.

[Donald M.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

Jim,
Now I feel stupid. I should have thought of that. You are absolutely right.
Don

Have you ever heard a starter struggle and groan to turn over an engine when the battery Voltage was low? I believe that's what you'll notice when your 12 Volt starter sees only 8 Volts.

[Mike M.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

you'll find the 6 volt starter will live a long life when fed by an 8 volt battery. back in the day, we'd run 6 volt starters on the olds and caddy powered hot rods that were converted to 12 volt systems and those starters outlived the engines. mike

[Donald M.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

I found a generator built with alternator guts that mounts in the stock position. The shop found this alternator put out enough voltage to charge an 8 volt battery, so I now have an 8 volt battery in my '54 Corvette. The additional voltage shouldn't hurt anything, and it should give the starter a bit more oomph for its cranking duties. This should be a good modification, and will not hurt the character of my car. I had heard of running 6v starters on 12v, and I'm hoping the change does not hurt other electrical components.

Thanks for your comment,
Don

you'll find the 6 volt starter will live a long life when fed by an 8 volt battery. back in the day, we'd run 6 volt starters on the olds and caddy powered hot rods that were converted to 12 volt systems and those starters outlived the engines. mike

[Dan D.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

I did the same thing Mike. I used to have a 1952 Ford convertible with an Oldsmobile engine. My buddy had a 49 Mercury convertible with an Olds engine. Another friend had a Mercury with a Cadillac engine. They would never crank on 6 volts. We did the engine swaps by ourselves - with very few tools and no torches or welders. We converted them to 12 volts too. Never had any problems with the 6 volt starters. But boy - would they spin over. We had to configure the car for negative ground (the old Fords were positive ground). Those were the days!

-Dan-

[Dan D.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

8 Volts will stress the light bulbs Don. You may find they do not last very long. That's like a 25% over rated voltage.

-Dan-

[Donald M.]

Re: Starter question 54 Vette

Yeah, I know. I'm hoping the bulbs have some tolerance. If not, I'll just replace them. I'll report back when I find out what happens.

Don

8 Volts will stress the light bulbs Don. You may find they do not last very long. That's like a 25% over rated voltage.

-Dan-