Hiding SatNav wires

trebor · 6th November 2007, 16:46

Just bought a Garmin Sat Nav which i intend to mount above the audio unit in my 75 but want to hide the wires.
I have a small cubby above my audio and the Sat Nav mount will fit in there nicely with the wires going out of the back of the cubby. The Sat Nav will then sit nicely in between the audio unit and the air vents.
What i need to do is take the cigar lighter plug off the Sat Nav power lead and somehow connect the wires to the back of the cigar lighter in the car or pick up power somewhere else maybe at the back of the audio unit.
How do i remove the cigar lighter socket in the car, or any other ideas would be welcome

Duotone · 6th November 2007, 18:03

If you remove the Air con panel below the radio you can reach down and find the thick wires that go to the cigarette lighter. You can then splice into the wires and attach a cigarette lighter female plug, [these can be bought from any motor factors eg. Wilco, only cost £3].
If you then plug in your sat nav unit,[ semi permantly] and bring out the lead from just above the radio.
The cigarette lighter is permantly powered on late model 75s, and switched on with the ignition on earlier models..

Try not to cut the plug off your sat nav lead. It contains surge protection and interference circuitry.

Dave T

Mike · 6th November 2007, 18:14

If you remove the unit's cigar lighter plug and it is a fused one, then you should really fit an inline fuse between the unit and the supply feed to provide protection. Otherwise any surge (they do happen) will fry your unit to a point that it becomes unrepairable.

This was happening a fair amount to sat nav units not so long ago. My auto electrician got around it by retaining the manufacture plug and fuse unit and fixing it around the back into a socket which then went to the lighter feed.

hth

Mike

trebor · 6th November 2007, 18:50

Thanks for the advice guys, i will obvioulsy not now remove the plug.

The set up i want is the same as yours Duotone

trebor · 9th November 2007, 19:08

I intend to do this tomorrow, my cigar lighter is " live " all the time so am i ok to connect the sat nav TMC directly to this or should i look elsewhere for a feed that only comes on with the ignition ?

baxlin · 9th November 2007, 19:50

I took mine from an ignition controlled fuse (12?), and used a trailing ciggie lighter socket. This allowed me to just plug in the satnav plug, retaining the anti-surge protection etc.

I actually mounted my Garmin to the right of the steering wheel, in the cubby hole below the vent. It's not as obviously visible from outside the car, either.

This allowed me to have the socket in the void below the steering wheel, totally hidden, but easily removed if I want to use the satnav in another car. Wires just pushed in behind the trim where appropriate. Like many others I hate trailing visible wires.

Malcolm

Simon · 9th November 2007, 20:19

When I wanted to fit a live feed for my SamrtPhone I too used the feed from the Cigar lighter. I bought a lighter extension cable from eBay (I'll try and find the link in a moment) and then wired it into the cigar feed. I plugged the in-car charger into the extension and trailed the wires behind the lower fascias on the dashboard to the cubby hold above the light switches. I poked it through the dash just to the side of the little rubber mat thingy and then used insulation tape to secure the wires and adapter in place.

Wires are all hidden when not in use and just sit nicely inside the cubby hole. When I mount the phone to the windscreen I just pull out the wire and plug it in. Easy.

6th November 2007, 16:46	#1
trebor This is my second home Rover 75 CDTi Connoisseur SE & MG ZT Saloon 190 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Coven Posts: 12,523 Thanks: 526 Thanked 1,877 Times in 885 Posts	Hiding SatNav wires Just bought a Garmin Sat Nav which i intend to mount above the audio unit in my 75 but want to hide the wires. I have a small cubby above my audio and the Sat Nav mount will fit in there nicely with the wires going out of the back of the cubby. The Sat Nav will then sit nicely in between the audio unit and the air vents. What i need to do is take the cigar lighter plug off the Sat Nav power lead and somehow connect the wires to the back of the cigar lighter in the car or pick up power somewhere else maybe at the back of the audio unit. How do i remove the cigar lighter socket in the car, or any other ideas would be welcome __________________ www.midlandsnanomeets.co.uk Robs Car Gallery Coven near Wolverhampton WV9 2000 Cowley Built Rover 75 2.0 V6 Club SE/ Atlantic Blue/ Sandstone/Walnut (daily driver) 2003 Land Rover Freelander 1 TD4 HSE Helsinki Blue/Black Leather (swmbo daily driver)

6th November 2007, 18:03	#2
Duotone This is my second home 75 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Leeds Posts: 8,432 Thanks: 176 Thanked 907 Times in 716 Posts	Sat Nav Wiring If you remove the Air con panel below the radio you can reach down and find the thick wires that go to the cigarette lighter. You can then splice into the wires and attach a cigarette lighter female plug, [these can be bought from any motor factors eg. Wilco, only cost £3]. If you then plug in your sat nav unit,[ semi permantly] and bring out the lead from just above the radio. The cigarette lighter is permantly powered on late model 75s, and switched on with the ignition on earlier models.. Try not to cut the plug off your sat nav lead. It contains surge protection and interference circuitry. Dave T Last edited by Duotone; 6th November 2007 at 18:15..

6th November 2007, 18:14	#3
Mike This is my second home Rover 75 V8 Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,448 Thanks: 0 Thanked 206 Times in 32 Posts	If you remove the unit's cigar lighter plug and it is a fused one, then you should really fit an inline fuse between the unit and the supply feed to provide protection. Otherwise any surge (they do happen) will fry your unit to a point that it becomes unrepairable. This was happening a fair amount to sat nav units not so long ago. My auto electrician got around it by retaining the manufacture plug and fuse unit and fixing it around the back into a socket which then went to the lighter feed. hth Mike __________________ Mike [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

6th November 2007, 18:50	#4
trebor This is my second home Rover 75 CDTi Connoisseur SE & MG ZT Saloon 190 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Coven Posts: 12,523 Thanks: 526 Thanked 1,877 Times in 885 Posts	Thanks for the advice guys, i will obvioulsy not now remove the plug. The set up i want is the same as yours Duotone __________________ www.midlandsnanomeets.co.uk Robs Car Gallery Coven near Wolverhampton WV9 2000 Cowley Built Rover 75 2.0 V6 Club SE/ Atlantic Blue/ Sandstone/Walnut (daily driver) 2003 Land Rover Freelander 1 TD4 HSE Helsinki Blue/Black Leather (swmbo daily driver)

9th November 2007, 19:08	#5
trebor This is my second home Rover 75 CDTi Connoisseur SE & MG ZT Saloon 190 Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Coven Posts: 12,523 Thanks: 526 Thanked 1,877 Times in 885 Posts	I intend to do this tomorrow, my cigar lighter is " live " all the time so am i ok to connect the sat nav TMC directly to this or should i look elsewhere for a feed that only comes on with the ignition ? __________________ www.midlandsnanomeets.co.uk Robs Car Gallery Coven near Wolverhampton WV9 2000 Cowley Built Rover 75 2.0 V6 Club SE/ Atlantic Blue/ Sandstone/Walnut (daily driver) 2003 Land Rover Freelander 1 TD4 HSE Helsinki Blue/Black Leather (swmbo daily driver)

9th November 2007, 19:50	#6
baxlin This is my second home Volvo C70 Convertible and JZR 3 wheeler Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tring, Herts Posts: 3,960 Thanks: 124 Thanked 173 Times in 124 Posts	I took mine from an ignition controlled fuse (12?), and used a trailing ciggie lighter socket. This allowed me to just plug in the satnav plug, retaining the anti-surge protection etc. I actually mounted my Garmin to the right of the steering wheel, in the cubby hole below the vent. It's not as obviously visible from outside the car, either. This allowed me to have the socket in the void below the steering wheel, totally hidden, but easily removed if I want to use the satnav in another car. Wires just pushed in behind the trim where appropriate. Like many others I hate trailing visible wires. Malcolm

9th November 2007, 20:19	#7
Simon Banned - Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: - Posts: 10,318 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 3 Posts	When I wanted to fit a live feed for my SamrtPhone I too used the feed from the Cigar lighter. I bought a lighter extension cable from eBay (I'll try and find the link in a moment) and then wired it into the cigar feed. I plugged the in-car charger into the extension and trailed the wires behind the lower fascias on the dashboard to the cubby hold above the light switches. I poked it through the dash just to the side of the little rubber mat thingy and then used insulation tape to secure the wires and adapter in place. Wires are all hidden when not in use and just sit nicely inside the cubby hole. When I mount the phone to the windscreen I just pull out the wire and plug it in. Easy.