Hello all, I have to say I know very little about electronics and wiring but I'd like to hardwire my Garmin i3 GPS to the area just right of the rear mirror. The only problem is the unit runs at 5v so needs the power supply provided to act as a transformer.



I'd like to wires to all sit behind the window trim area and just poke out near the mirror for when the unit is removed from the car. This to me sounds like a nice minimalist reversible mod.

Only problem is the casing on the part which attaches to the power outlet is quite large and I don't know how well it would fit.

Does anyone have any better ideas how this would work. I can also use a car power supply for a blackberry if it helps. It's the same voltage.

Thanks

 

Take the end apart. You'll end up with 2 wires, they may be short though... but other than that, you should be able to solder on more wire and run the wire down to the fuse block and add a fuse for it on the block itself....... or you can just hard wire it directly to accessory outlet, but I don't recommend it but it can be done. Oh and it may have a fuse inside it, and if it does you should add a protected fuse holder and use the exact same size fuse, whatever it is.

 

Um, normally I'd scream a warning about the juxtaposition of these two quotes -- but DarkKnight has solid credibility. So let me pose a question instead.

Some of these GPS (and other) 12-volt car adaptors have their transformers built into the cigarette-lighter plug module, and taking them apart can be something of a wiring adventure.

Perhaps that's not the case here; perhaps the transformer is in that in-line cylinder on the cord (which I'd normally associate with a noise filter of some kind, as are on video cables).

So: DK, are you sure?

An alternative, assuming the cord on that adaptor is long enough, is to run it around the windshield trim down below the dash and put in a female 12-volt socket down there to plug the adaptor into. HPH

 

Because I've done it. I took a 12v to 120v converter that's a plug in type apart and hard wired it for my PS2 install. Its been over a year no problems.

Edit: This is the one I took apart and hardwired:



I don't think you understand what they look like on the inside... no matter what it looks like on the inside its still has to end using 2 wires...
1-12volt
1-Ground

So the long and the short of it, is it can be done no problem.

If he doesn't want to do it that way fine wire in a 12 vlot socket and hide that in the a-piller and then just plug the thing in.

 

Another suggestion:

Is the stock Garmin cord long enough that you can run it inside the trim and down the passenger side A piller so that the big lighter plug appears in the footwell? If it will go that far, you've got it made. Then all you have to do is to go to RadioShack and get a cigarette lighter extension (with or without the male end, 'cause you'll cut off that end anyway) and run that under the dash to the fuse panel. There, you can hard wire it by crimping a female spade onto the (+) wire and using the empty "Hot with ignition" tap in the fuse panel ....................

Ground can be found at any solid frame bolt.

 

I've taken them apart, too -- and you're right of course. At the plug end are two wires to the ground and live parts of the plug; and at the downstream end are two wires going to the device. It's what's in between that counts. If there's electronics in between, it's critical to cut the wires at the very plug end, not the downstream end, so that the electronics stay in the circuit.

So the question is whether all this is clear for someone who knows "very little about electronics and wiring." I guess we'll see. HPH

 

Well I know that but honestly I was waiting for him to post back up here and see what he wanted to do. I could walk him through it. I'm not going to write a basic how-to if he's not going to use it...

 

Thanks guys, good advice. I'm not confident of doing this myself so I'll get a pro to do the actual work. I'm just doing the research now. XViper/drclouds idea for the extension cable sounds good but I think that my cable is just a bit too short to actually reach but I'll measure it up and see if I can find a blackberry alternative that would be long enough to do the job. That job I think I could manage myself without causing any problems.

 

Good point, whilst I do understand the concepts involved and I can follow a wire I HATE this stuff and would probably end up botching it. I would rather pay a pro than risk blowing either my GPS or worse

 

Rawhide, I have a C330 from Garmin. Mine is right now right under the mirror, and my wire would be long enough to run back towards the windshield, then over to the A pillar and down. So I'm guessing yours would be long enough too. It's really not that much distance.

I'm thinking of moving mine to the dash though left of the steering wheel. I don't know if it will fit with the dash adapter though. Good luck, and thanks from everyone for there help.