I went to the British Cars by the Sea show yesterday. On the way down I was
driving my 60 Bugeye and everything was great. However, when I stopped for gas
and was ready to go, the car wouldn't start. Fortunately, I had a support
vehicle with me and we were able to jump start the car and it ran all the way
to the show.
At the end of the show, a guy who had a booth selling generators and
alternators came over and took a look at the car. He showed me that the
generator was dead. He also told me that he was surprised that the voltage
regulator, tach and gas guage were not fried as well. He said that since my
car was negative ground that you couldn't have a generator/voltage regulator
set up. He said that all generators had to be positive ground.
I was under the impression that if you wanted to convert your car to negative
ground you could reverse the polarity on the generator. Since I bought the car
this way I assumed that the previous owner had done this. The PO is a very
capable fellow.
Can I get my generator rebuilt or do I need to convert to an alternator?
Another question is if I can use a generator, where do I get the generator
rebuilt? Is there a place in Connecticut that does this?
I have had the car for three years and in all that time it ran as solid as
my wife's Honda. I find it hard to believe that a generator that was positive
ground and hooked up to a negative ground system would last that long. I am
not the most mechanically inclined but I am attempting to learn. I would
appreciate any help anyone can give me.
Thanks
Paul Bockisch
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