Cigar lighter always on...what to do?

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glen4cindy

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I have this camera in my car and love it.

The lighter is ignition powered so no problems.

I also bought one for my wife's car. Her lighter always has power, key or not.

I myself would never remember to turn the camera off and on or plug and un-plug.

Any suggestions as the best thing to do for this situation?

Thanks in advance.
 
what type of car, some can be reconfigured to accessory switched, might even be worth getting that done or just hardwire to an accessory switched circuit and not use the lighter socket is a better idea
 
  1. Identify a circuit in the fuse panel that is ignition-switched. TPMS and OBD (diagnostics) are common ones.
  2. Use an "add-a-circuit" tap to piggyback on to the desired circuit's fuse and use a 12V-to-miniUSB (5V) transformer to hardwire the camera power. This allows you to hide all the wiring and avoid having the big ugly plug perpetually sticking out of the lighter outlet.
  3. Alternately, converting the 12V outlet to ignitions-witched is done similarly with an "add-a-circuit" but requires an added relay on the lighter outlet's power lead instead of converting the 12V to USB.
  4. I suggest finding a forum on the car model involved. Most car forums have threads on how either method is done for that model.
 
dwpc said:
  1. Identify a circuit in the fuse panel that is ignition-switched. TPMS and OBD (diagnostics) are common ones.
  2. Use an "add-a-circuit" tap to piggyback on to the desired circuit's fuse and use a 12V-to-miniUSB (5V) transformer to hardwire the camera power. This allows you to hide all the wiring and avoid having the big ugly plug perpetually sticking out of the lighter outlet.
  3. Alternately, converting the 12V outlet to ignitions-witched is done similarly with an "add-a-circuit" but requires an added relay on the lighter outlet's power lead instead of converting the 12V to USB.
  4. I suggest finding a forum on the car model involved. Most car forums have threads on how either method is done for that model.
Click to expand...
1. My favorite choice is power windows/sunroof, or if equipped, an overhead"trip computer". My truck had an option for a compass\temperature display in the overhead console, but my truck's original owner didn't buy that option. But the wiring is still there so I used that to hardwire my dashcams. Yes, I have more than one in this truck. :p
 
Gibson99 said:
1. My favorite choice is power windows/sunroof, or if equipped, an overhead"trip computer". My truck had an option for a compass\temperature display in the overhead console, but my truck's original owner didn't buy that option. But the wiring is still there so I used that to hardwire my dashcams. Yes, I have more than one in this truck. :p
Click to expand...

Unused pre-wired power is the best option if it can be found.
 
dwpc said:
Unused pre-wired power is the best option if it can be found.
Click to expand...
even if it is used, it's often fine. i wired the cam to the switched power lead to the sunroof switch on my wife's car. works fine, even while operating the sunroof. and in my camry (no sunroof and no prewire for it), i tapped into the power window circuit - again, it's fine, even while rolling up/down all 4 windows at the same time. didn't even get any interference in the video when i did that.

circuits to avoid are things like fans, heaters (ie: defroster, heated seats), and other devices that pull a lot of power and are on for long durations. radio circuit is probably fine though.
 
jokiin said:
can also induce noise with circuits like this as well
Click to expand...
yes, exactly, that's why you should avoid them. heaters may not induce video noise but an audio hum. but either way you don't want to tap into a blower/fan/heater circuit even though they all have plenty big enough wires to carry enough current for your cam...

worst part is you may not notice immediately... if you install your cam in the summer, you won't be using the heated seats. but come wintertime you'll wonder why your cam's audio and/or video has gone to pot.
 
glen4cindy said:
I also bought one for my wife's car. Her lighter always has power, key or not.
Click to expand...

You're absolutely sure about this? Many modern cars power the accessory socket as soon as the car is unlocked, & continue to power it for, say, 10 minutes after the car is parked & locked. Giving an incorrect impression that it's permanently powered.

It may be worth checking the dashcam files an hour or two after the car has been parked & locked. If you've only got 10 minutes worth of clips while parked, then the socket isn't permanently powered.
 
I have a Ford Ranger where the 12v socket only auto cutoff the supply after 1.5 hours when door locked. Will this cause car battery to deteriorate over long term usage with permanent plugin A118C dashcam.
 
1.5 hours of runtime after you stop is not excessive but will take its toll on the battery eventually
 
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