Hi guys, long time no speak to. I still have my 60 Electra 225 convertible, that needs a lot of work from sitting up, but the topic today is my dad’s (R.I.P.) 1950 Chrysler, New Yorker, Newport two-door club, coupe with the straight eight spitfire. It was garaged its entire life until I got it about a year ago from my mom (she’ll be 100 this year and is doing great!). She had to move in with my sister strictly for safety and because of that the Chrysler lost its storage that it’s had its entire life. I have no indoor storage for the Chrysler and I cannot sit here and watch it go downhill under my watch so I’ll be prepping it to unfortunately sell it in the coming months. My question is with the 6 V electrical system in it can I use a 12 V battery just to bump it over and keep the motor free? Over the years I have pulled the plugs out and put transmission fluid in the cylinders to keep the rings from locking up and it will move freely with some pretty decent resistance but it is a royal pain to get the chain bar on the crank. I sold a glut of the mountain of NOS parts off that dad had collected over the years for Cadillacs, Buicks, Desotas,Plymouths Chryslers etc. so whoever ends up getting it will have a trunk load of NOS service parts, carburetor, generator water pump,front end,gauges,gasket kits,complete brakes from master cylinder to wheel cylinders etc. etc. so they don’t have to go on some huge hunt. My son’s gonna come over tomorrow with his nice camera and get some before and after clean up pictures but right now I just want to be able to turn this motor over without frying the electrical system with a 12 V battery. Sorry for the stupid question I’m sure this is well known by many but this is the only car I’ve ever owned with a 6 V system and I don’t want to make a huge mistake my first time out. Sorry to ramble so much. I’ve always had that problem but back to the original question, can I bump the motor over with a 12 V battery with the 6 V without overloading the electrical system? Thanks in advance for any suggestions .
Yes you can. And if you turn on nothing electrical, you could put a ballast resistor in it, and actually run the engine. And glad to see your mom is doing well!
Added a few more pictures in case anyone might enjoy this time capsule. My brother(R.I.P.) and I were never allowed within 10 feet of this car. Our entire lives, while dad was still with us so I have very little wrench time experience on it, except for freeing up one locked up brake before bringing it to my property. This was supposed to be a very rare version of the New Yorker as it is an This was supposed to be a very rare version of the New Yorker as it is a hard top with simulated bows in the roof and all convertible trim around the windows, etc. The only other owner was an only other owner was a gentleman who worked at the Chrysler plant and bought it brand new and pay for storage at an who worked at the Chrysler plant and bought it brand new and paid for storage at a local garage and walked to the plant and every Friday after work brought it on to the plant grounds to put it on the ramps and spray off the underside. According to the stories, my dad and brother told me when they looked back as an according to the stories, my dad and brother (15 years my elder)told me when they looked back as they drove off the man was in his driveway crying(maybe they ran over his foot?ha ha) Even has the original OK marks all over it!
Safest bet would be to disconnect the starter from the main electrical system and jump directly to the starter motor terminal posts. If the 12v circuit is connected to a 6v circuit, even if nothing is powered the 12v will dump into the 6v battery. Also make sure the polarity is correct.
So if you are getting it ready to sell, why not purchase a 6 volt battery? I have jumped a number of 6 volt vehicles with 12 volts and I don't think I damaged anything, but why take the chance? It is the vehicle accessories where the potential damage would occur. You can always tell the buyer that the clock worked fine until I jumped it with 12 volts, good luck finding another one.
As said, safest is to only use a new 6v battery. If you are going for best price, any buyer is going to want to start it up, drive it and have it all work properly. You know, a working automobile. That means a good 6 v battery. This will require a bit more than the typical youtube barn find revival, but now is the time to decide if you are willing and able to revive it or not. If not, leave it alone and sell as-is without doing stuff like jumping it with a 12Volt battery. If you are willing and able to spend the time and money to revive it, do all the stuff (spark, fuel, oiling, cooling, brakes) before even thinking about jumping the car. It can be jumped if the electrical cables are removed from the starter, but any work you do is going to be highly suspect if you have done things and it is not fully functional. Do it all or don't mess with it. That is my advise. The imperial club website is a great resource for tips, tech info, tools and such, and if you feel like you can do no harm and revive it fully after reading all of that, go for it. Triple the time you expect this to take and consider that too when deciding. I'd like to say just jump in with both feet and it's just a car, but how many are left and how capable are you if it's sitting outside under your care?
On disability and car poor until I sell some parts currently. Just wanted to confirm it spins okay before investing $400 plus in a new battery was the issue. I might hook my welder up to the old Delco and see if I can desolficate the lead plates and get a little life out of it but thank you for the compliments and advice fellas. Ultimately I will buy a new one though as recommended.
Yeh, all good points. Not gonna half**** it. I have a new water pump,thermostat,carb and rebuild radiator etc etc Will focus on that***** and then just figure out a way to buy the battery. Don’t want to screw the pooch putting the wrong voltage to it.
Glad you took the thoughts as intended. I'd look at the fuel system (clean tank, good rubber, clean lines, good pump, carb freshened) first, then the brakes. Those brakes are 'different' and you will need an old school puller for the rears. Research first! Look over the e brake and ball and trunion on the back of the trans. While under it, lube everything that is supposed to move and check tightness of everything that is not. The ignition is basic and fairly easy, but clean every electrical ground and terminal connection you can reach. Document as you go, those are selling points! Don't aerosol overhaul stuff (used car lot tactics), just repair any issues. Original is the key here on this car.
I think you can do quite a bit better than 400 for a battery. What parts stores are in your town? edit: Napa shows a 6v battery for 122.99. You don’t need the high end new batteries
Yeah, Interstate, which USED to be good, lists this Alternate 2-XHD $159.95 msrp Group Size 2 625 Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) Haven't kept up on which company is now producing GOOD batteries, but at least this is a data point.
Appreciate the conversation more than y’all can imagine. Worked on machinery my whole life but one NEVER knows it all so thank you for the extremely helpful walk throughs and patience. Gotta do this right for Dad. Wish my brother was still here we had great times in that car. Still a 7-11 bag under the seat with two pull tab buds and receipt. Was a bad**** cruiser after he and I cleaned it to death on the weekends. Miss that ole guy
Well,can’t do much at a time but got the front chrome standing pretty tall today. Rough heat down South and smoke from fires don’t help but progress is progress.
My '51 Plymouth Concord (the one in my avatar) actually has both a 12-volt and a 6-volt battery...the 12 sits on the passenger side and runs the starter, while the 6 runs everything else...the car was wired like this when I got it, so I'm a little light on the details, but it works fine...
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/6-12-volt-combination-battery.451372/ https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthread...s/1118533/Re:_6/12_dual_voltage,_6_Volt_.html
So glad to hear the quote my brother-in-law got was must have been industrial or something! Feeling “muscles” I haven’t felt in a long time but out here again today determined to get this ole girl looking in show off condition like my brother and I use to do while listening to all his 50’s & 60’s music and cleaning ALL day and THEN washing it to get any “wax dust” off! Yeh,lil obsessive compulsive going on with us Fritz’s heh heh At some point I am going to start posting all the cool NOS (non 1950 Chrysler of course) parts Dad amassed over the years for the Hokey Brain Trust to attempt to identify if y’all feel like it. Thanks again for all the help fellas,been feeling pretty lost on any help but you’ve been great to me.
Buy a battery or jump straight to the starter, which might be difficult due to it's location and all the stuff surrounding it. Putting 12 volts into a 6 volt battery is asking for trouble. You risk an explosion and you don't want to be near that when it happens. Voice of experience here. I just used a 12 volt battery to whiz over a '51 Windsor. There is a way to do it without ruining anything. Looking at the end of the starter solenoid, you will see 3 wires. One is the battery cable and there are two small ones. To make the starter go you should disconnect the other small wire, the one closest to you, then take a screw driver and use it to connect that post to the small wire closest to the engine block the battery cable post. If you want to start the car without energizing anything else, don't turn the key on. Disconnect the hot wire from the coil and use a jumper wire from coil to the battery. You will now have ignition and nothing else. If you have fresh gas in the carb It should start. One nice thing about old cars with generators is that once started and the gen & regulator are working right, put it on high idle and then you can remove the battery and it will keep running without it. Another pair of hands is a good idea. Some of this is in really tight quarters. Don't let 12 volts get into the charging system. It will fry it. If you are going to run it on 12 volts, disconnect the generator wires.
Thank you very much Glenn! Great info, I’m not going to risk it, will go the 6 volt route but thank you for walking me through it so I know the pluses and negatives (no pun intended). Great group y’all have here.
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