55 Fairlane 6V vs 12V

Jim.UT

Jim.UT

Member
I just bought a 55 Town Sedan that has been converted to 12V. It hasn't been delivered yet (another couple of days), it's coming from 5 states away. However I'm told that the clock and radio (both original) don't work because they need a voltage reducer to reduce the car's 12V power back down to 6V. I'm an electrical idiot so I have questions:
1. Is this really true? Is a reducer all I need? I suspect there may be other things at play (such as a worn out radio and/or clock).
2. Can these items be reworked to accept 12V?
3. Does anyone know a company or person who "modernizes" original car clocks and radios?

That's it for now!
 
My 55 Tbird has been converted to 12v. I don't know that the radio worked when I inherited the car. I had the original radio converted by Aurora to 12v AM/FM stereo with an auxiliary jack for my MP3 player.

Clockworks converted my 55 clock to 12v quartz.
 
In the mid 1950's when automotive electrical systems were upgraded from 6-volts to 12 volts they also made negative ground electrical systems the recognized standard. This was done in part because of the modern solid state accessories being developed. Unlike mechanical driven electrical accessories like heater blower motors that are NOT affected by polarity, solid state accessories like radios ARE affected and will be destroyed if they are connected to the wrong polarity.
Click to expand...

The radio and clock both need to be modified.

SOURCE - https://fifthaveinternetgarage.blogspot.com/2017/06/changing-your-electrical-system-from.html
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top