converting mercury overdrive to 12 volt

48Flyer

48Flyer

Senior Member
I did a search and could not find an answer.
What is needed to convert the overdrive in a 51 mercury to 12 volts?
Is there a suitable replacement 12 volt solenoid?
I have access to plenty of relays so that is no problem.
I have the rest of the car figured out. just need advice on the overdrive.
Thanks
 
There is a guy in Oregon that converts relays and does repairs on the electrical part of the trans.
 
All you need is a 12 volt solenoid & a 12 relay. any 12 volt GM, Ford or Studebaker solenoid will work.
 
We stock the relays (new) in 6 or 12V. You'll need a 12V relay. The governor and the kickdown switch don't care if 6 or 12V.
 
i have a 50 merc with overdrive that i have been putting 12v to for years and it has not burned up its all 6 volt stuff............
 
I don't think the solenoid really cares about the voltage, it's basically just an electro magnet which pulls and holds the pawl that engages the overdrive. Actually in a 6 volt solenoid the wiring is heavier then a 12 volt.
 
I have ran a 6 volt solenoid on 12 volts in my 49 for years, no problems yet. You can run the 12 volt wire through a heavy resistor, the ones they had for camper brakes. They are variable by siding a bar on the resistor, so it can be "tuned", to suit your needs.
 
Can someone post a picture of the solenoid?
I'll admit I have not taken mine apart yet to even see what it looks like.
Just curious,
Thanks
 
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