Automotive circuit breakers

[cranky108]

In my car the auxiliary power plugs (12V) work when I plug in a camera, or a GPS, but when I plug in with a splitter (I have tried two so far), both, the plug fails. I have found the same thing when I plug in a mini-fridge. I found this on both plugs (front and rear).
Is there some sore of limiter, or maybe a circuit breaker going bad? That's the best I can figure out, without a total tearing apart the car.
Do car circuit breakers fail that way?

My older cars has fuses, and I have never had this issue before.
I had this issue with a car headlight switch once, which is why I am thinking this way.

 

[TugboatEng]

Aircraft mechanics have the same complaints about crappy access and such. Automotive engineers get the short straw. They're expected to pack the most comfort into the smallest and lightest packages for the lowest cost while having to function for the longest time with the least maintenance. My biggest beef with the automotive side is the lack of clear procedures for maintenance. They leave it on the lowest level person to figure out how to actually do the job.

 

[3DDave]

I just had a realization about the console side location of the fuse box - if the user fumbles the fuse it is adios, muchachos. That fuse is going to be wherever it falls until that car is in the crusher.

Here's when that fuse is going to decide to go unexpectedly - it's pouring rain with a howling wind and the driver is shivering, wet, and on their knees on the ground outside the car with a tiny fading flashlight trying to get a clear view of the hole they took the dead one from, in the parking lot of a car parts store. It won't fail when it is warm and sunny. Ever.

 

[itsmoked]

Well painted! (see place in hell)

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[cranky108]

Splitter plugs into the 12v receptacle (no longer a cigarette lighter), and has two (or more) receptacles on it.
Like it would make sense to have this built into the car. The camera came with a power adapter, but has a mini-usb connector to disconnect at the camera end. The GPS did not come with an adapter, but also has a mini-usb connector, and you can guess as to what is in-between.

Yes, the receptacle problems were distracting me from my driving, but why else would I care about powering anything in the car, if I was not driving.

Problems with access is the usual reason I pay to make fixing things someone else's problem. But when it comes to electrical, most mechanics don't have a clue why a nine volt battery on there tongue shocks them (seeing this is no longer amusing).

I actually don't want to take the dashboard apart, at least not today.

 

[3DDave]

So far it's established there's no circuit breaker, that you don't need to get under the dash to see or replace the fuse, and that it should be 20 Amp capacity fuse.

What's not established is what "it stopped working" meant. If there was too much current then that would finish off the fuse. The outlet would not return to functioning until the fuse was replaced.

It might be that the adapter became unseated. Or that it has some mechanical problem internally that is intermittent.

Lacking any other symptom description I'm leaning towards a badly made adapter.

 

[cranky108]

The adapter works, just not all the time, in this car. Which is the puzzling thing. Same with the splitter.
Or maybe it is just this car.

 

[3DDave]

I'm reminded of a guy who built a computer with the same parts as the one I had built for my wife so that he could call and ask for help. He got a modem card and said - it doesn't work. So I asked if the card was installed into the slot and he assured me it was. So I suggested he take it and the computer to the store he bought the card.

Next day he calls up to tell me he didn't realize that you had to push that hard to get the card into the slot. He had been afraid it would harm the motherboard.

So, there is no breaker. That's out. An intermittent fuse is possible and can be replaced in a few minutes, unless you drop it and then you'll need to get the other one that you should have purchased. I've experienced a turnsignal bulb with a poorly anchored filament that was intermittent, so maybe (not likely). You have a bad socket and that can be replaced. Or you aren't pushing the splitter or adapter hard enough into the socket to make good contact. Or they are both junk and don't work well.

I think that covers it unless someone got clever and cut that wire to add some feature you don't know about and don't use but the broken wire is still there.

 

[cranky108]

Start with the simple, and go on to the complex. I'll see if I can find time to look into this more this weekend.