When was the 12v standard introduced?

[smegballs]

I know back in the day both cars and bikes were 6V, when did the 12V standard become universal? I'm guessing when more and more lectricals came along and the cables for sufficient current at 6V were costing too much in copper?

[esullivan]

[smegballs]

No the voltage itself. Back in the day vehicles used to be 6V, and in the really early days I guess there might even have been proprietary voltages between different manufacturers. These days everything is a standard 12V across the board.

Interesting bit of history there anyway tho

[Shaft]

I think you have to go back quite a long way to find a 6v car, in mass production anyway; we look after a lot of classics dating back to the 50s and I can't remember the last time I saw a 6v.

The 103E Ford Popular had vacuum wipers and no heater, so that may have been 6v (production end 1959) and early MGBs had two 6v batteries wired in series, but I think by the 60s pretty much everything was 12v.
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[GrantT]

[smegballs]

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[Teflon-Mike]

Only 6v car I have ever had the misfortune to know was a VW Beetle.
Had fun with Chrome Bumper MGB that had duel 6v batteries, where the Rubber-Bumper one along side it has a single 12v when I was asked to help get it started once.

I think that 12v car electrics have been pretty much 'standard' by dint of that being the voltage elected by the equipment makers for alternators and light-bulbs, probably influenced by War Procurement in the 1940's.

Only trucks & tractors have had anything different, 24v... which I believed was because of the heavy current draw to start a big diesel motor.

For bikes; I think the 6v 'standard' was like cars, due to that being what the available dynamo's made, and a convenience around torch lamp bulbs.

12v electrics started to become common on bikes in the 1970's, starting with the bigger buggers, and filtering down to lighter bikes through the 80's, to become an 'effective'' standard, rather than an official one.

I dont think that C&U regs call for any specific voltage on anything.
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[Shaft]