Hardwire charger directly from fuse in car? - Treo Forums

Kwan · 10-13-2005, 03:57 PM

Has anyone hardwired the charger directly from the fusebox in your car?
I'm wondering if you can just cut the cigarrette lighter part off and tap into the power and ground of the car. This would create a custom car charger for the treo.

chris · 10-13-2005, 05:16 PM

I had something similar done on my old car -- but it was for the iPod. Not sure exactly what they did -- but it involved a Belkin Car Charger (similar to our Treo car charger) The only thing that came out of the dash was the iPod connector. While connected, it charged the iPod. The Belkin had some type of audio out -- which was connected to the Aux Out of my stereo. Not sure how they did it..but it worked great. So, my guess is that it wouldn't be too difficult (for those in the know) to set up a Treo charger -- It's probably wired similarly to something like this .

"You can just plug the cigarette lighter cord into your cigarette lighter or you can also wire the cradle directly into the car's electrical system with an optional hardwire power cable."

Kwan · 10-15-2005, 10:15 AM

Can one leave a charger plugged into the car at all times?
Even when the car is off, the light indicator is lit on the charger.

Kwan · 10-15-2005, 02:54 PM

OK, I finished my install. I tapped a switched power wire from the fusebox and linked it to a "female" cigarrete lighter, thereby making a supplemental cigarrete lighter adaptor. I plugged into this, a treo car charger and hid everything under the dash. Now I have a wire coming out where I plug the treo into.

Spbumpnva · 10-17-2005, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwan

OK, I finished my install. I tapped a switched power wire from the fusebox and linked it to a "female" cigarrete lighter, thereby making a supplemental cigarrete lighter adaptor. I plugged into this, a treo car charger and hid everything under the dash. Now I have a wire coming out where I plug the treo into.

Post some pics please.. I am interested to see how this was installed and how it turned out.

lulugirl896 · 10-17-2005, 12:41 PM

And whether your battery could withstand it!

Kwan · 10-17-2005, 01:38 PM

I'll post some pics by tomorrow. In the meantime, here's a more detailed install instructions.

First, I located a switched power wire from the fusebox. I used a voltmeter for this. Switched power is basically a wire that provides 12v current only when the engine is on.
Then I connected a 12V car power adapter outlet. The adapter I bought has a built in fuse just in case. There are 2 wires to connect for this adapter. One is for power and the other for ground. I connected the power wire to the switched power wire I had located earlier with a wire tap, and the ground wire went to a screw that was in contact with the frame of the car.
I then plugged in the treo car charger to the adapter and hid everything behind the car stereo headunit. The only thing visible is a short part of the cable that connects to the treo.
The reason I connected it this way was that I wasnt sure if the treo took a 12v current. The car charger I have didnt state the voltage on it. I know some phone chargers take 5v current.

Thats it.

PS: Battery doesnt drain because the connection is shut off when the engine shuts. Originally I had connected it to a constant 12v wire, but changed it because I'm paranoid about battery draining. :rolleyes:

Spbumpnva · 10-17-2005, 03:38 PM

Geez seems like a lot of work to me. I think I will just stick to pluging it in the outlet. I have 3 12V constants in my car. One for the iPod and one for the Treo. The other is in the trunk!!! GO FIGURE haha

lulugirl896 · 10-17-2005, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spbumpnva

Geez seems like a lot of work to me. I think I will just stick to pluging it in the outlet. I have 3 12V constants in my car. One for the iPod and one for the Treo. The other is in the trunk!!! GO FIGURE haha

Is there an extra steering wheel in there too?!?

Kwan · 10-19-2005, 12:10 PM

The nice thing about this setup is that I can charge my Treo BT headset too. Sorry, no detailed installation pics. Next time I open the dash, I'll take some.