This is probably a stupid question, but I've been sitting outside under my dash and reading the helms for the last half hour. I'm looking for a wire to tap that has a constant 12V and comes on with the ignition and stays on until the car is turned off. I'm installing the Escort SR7 and I'm just not sure which would be a good wire to use. Any advice?

 

Tap the black/yellow coming off the ignition cylinder going to the fuse box, that is ignition.

 

I believe I used the accessory fuse to wire up my V1. Works perfectly.

Use a fuse that isn't important if it does go out... don't use headlights, blinkers, etc.

 

Look in the FAQ for a thread about hardwiring a detector.

There are two open taps on the fuse box by the drivers left knee, one switched and one always hot. I tapped in there with no problem.

 

Take a look at this thread. I posted a picture of the fuse box with various power source taps.
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=172619

The red wire in the "12V when engine is on" slot is my V1. Hope this helps.

 

I used the power mirror fuse for my V1. Just stripped the wire wrapped it around the fuse & pushed it back in.

The 12V constant pic above I used for my shock sensor.

 

If you need constant uninterrupted voltage, the yellow/black wire as stated above is the one you need, but if your hooking up an item with an on/off switch, the ignition on outlet as described by allout will suffice. the black/yellow wire works well with the electric boost gauge because it requires an uninterupted source of voltage. I tried it on the ignition switch outlet and had some problems at times. hope this helps.

 

Does the 12V Accessory connector lose power momentarily when turning the key from ACC to ON? I'm working on a project in which I'll be installing an M1-ATX power supply directly into the ignition, so a mini-ITX computer can boot up automatically when the car is turned on, but I'm not exactly sure if I should be tapping the 12V ACC or the 12V ON plug...

If anyone is interested, this is the device I'll be wiring into the ignition:
http://www.logicsupply.com/product_i...roducts_id/285

Also, what's the best method for running an actual 12V line from that plug to the trunk? Down the centerline of the car and under the rear seats, or is there some other method preferable to that? What kind of gauge of wire should I be looking for?

'01

 

I have also been thinking about installing a carputer in my 01 CL. If you have navigation are you going to replace the nav screen with Xenarc (or other)? I have read a lot at mp3car.com, but have not decided exactly which case to go with even though I like the Ampie.

 

i ended up tapping the main ignition wire off the rear of the fuse panel... my radar detector now turns on with ACC and ON.

 

I'm not quite sure if that would work for me, but it depends on whether there's a power drop when the key moves from ACC to ON. If I have the computer powered off the ACC power, and power drops from the time the key moves from ACC to ignition starting (ON), the computer would reset.

Perhaps the safest bet is to power it from the 12V ON position, so it doesn't get any power until the car is started.

awraynor: I've seen the ampie case before... don't like it. No room for a cd-rom and the cooling fan is very small. My system will be mounted in the trunk and I need a decent fan even though it's a mini-ITX system. However, going by appearance alone, it's a very nice case.

'01

 

Have you read the install notes on this TL?

https://acurazine.com/forums/audio-video-electronics-navigation-22/diy-doms-nav-dvd-install-w-pics-2000-tl-312145/

It is for a DVD player with Dom's Nav to TV adapter. I am thinking about installing similar to this. I want to run the nav in normal fashion and switch to the carputer with a Xenarc when needed. I do not want to replace the indash factory nav screen. I want to have an adapter so I can plug in the screen when I want to use the carputer, but otherwise leave the nav as the main unit.

 

I'd use the on power. This way your's sure the pc will only turn on & off with the ignation. Not just a key turn.

 

"a constant 12V and comes on with the ignition"

Constant & comes on with? Having enough trouble dealing with my bday & xmas, don't need anything else to mess with my head.

 

Yeah I'm thinking that's the route I'll take. That way turning to the ACC position I can still make use of the Alpine headunit I'm going to put in, and not worry about the computer booting up and drawing a lot of power with the car off.

Anyone have any suggestions on the gauge of wire I should use to run 12V from the fuse panel to the trunk, and is that fuse panel in the photo the best/safest/etc place to tap the 12V to run it to the trunk?

'01

 

This forum is awesome! still helping in 2021.
Can someone tell me what kind of connector will go in that Ignition On socket ?

 

What are you looking to power? I just tapped into the radio fuse power for my dash cam. Works great. Would do the same if I still ran a radar detector.

 

I want to make my own steering wheel heater. Using a nichrome wire. Now I have decided to use 12V from the available socket. I was originally planning to have the heated steering wheel even while driving. But routing the wires through clockspring would have been a nightmare. So now planning to use it as just an initial warm up and then plug off once heated. So the 12V plug is enough for now. Using about 1-1.5 Amps. Should be okay.

 

Not trying to bump an old thread, but I would love to see this done. If you do this successfully, it'd be cool to see a write up on what you do. I might be willing to try it in the future.