I don't like that my car has to be on in order for the power outlets to keep working. Does anyone know what I can do to re-wire this. I want my cell phone to charge while my car is off.

 

are you sure? I don't usually use the power outlets, but did the other day for the first time, and after I had turned the car off, my phone was still charging. I may have had the key turned part way though, so maybe that was the difference.

 

Cross-referencing a thread I just started on the very same subject:

http://www.acura-tsx.com/forums/show...&threadid=4745

Hey bunny, larch wants to know if you're a guy or girl and then (assuming you're a girl, I believe) we're supposed to discuss amongst ourselves.

 

I stuck my finger in one of the outlets while the car was off and nothing happened either:P

 

^ Well, thanks for trying. Hey, lick your finger and try it again! Maybe you can get it to work.

 

Yes I am a girl, but that has nothing to do with the fact that I want my power outlets to work while my car is off. I do not know a lot about that kind of stuff but can follow directions really well. I am ready to rewire that son of bitch so they work......

 

I'm pretty sure that the power still works when the car is off. Or at least I assumed so and have left my cell charging in the car!

 

Not to worry, I don't think anybody was looking at it that way. I guess not too many of us, of either gender, are sure about how it is or how to do it. Although on the other thread (see above link), one member (TSX007) thought you could do it pretty easy.

 

Are you all absolutely sure that you cant get power when the car is off???

 

hi playboybunnie! Hey, just curious, do you know of an asian girl in Houston with a SSM/5AT/navi?

Anyway, this website might help. It doesnt really explain step by step on how to rewire the outlet, but it does provide helpful diagrams for most of the parts.

http://www.acuraparts247.com/sunnysi...NG&ListAll=All

 

Just tried it -- you can't.

In case some people might get a different result.... I suppose it's possible that if the car was on right before, there might be some residual power that would make the outlet still work for a while. But basicallly the answer seems to be that it doesn't.

 

I have a Belkin iPod adapter plugged into the 12v socket inside the armrest console, and when I turn the key to "OFF", the adapter powers off, so I assume that the circuit is only hot when the ignition is in ACC or ON. (Same goes for the socket next to the NOT AN ASHTRAY.)

 

Well thats just :ghey: :thumbsdn:

 

Ok... i dont know if this has anything to do with the outlet... but if you turn off the ignition and pull out the key, you can still roll the windows up and down until you open the door. Maybe the outlet has the same feature?? Im too lazy to walk down to my car but it's worth a shot.

 

No I don't know that person in Houston.

I thought for the longest time that it was charging my phone until one time my phone was really dead and left it to charge and needless to say it was still dead after several hours....here in determined the power outlet not to work....

Well I guess I am shit out of luck....but not to worry I will keep trying. I go out of town alot and don't want to leave my car on or the keys in the car just to charge my phone. I would bring my charger with me but that is more of a hassle and sometimes don't have a power outlet to even plug it in. I am determined to find an way.

Thanks anyway

 

I posted on the other link, it might be labor intensive(removing the center console or pockets below the radio, etc.) but you can run one (long)wire from the positive or hot connector on the power adaptor thru the firewall grommet to the positive on the battery, this would bypass the ignition to give constant power at the adaptor.

 

Yeap. Do this. It's actually not really that hard. Go directly to the battery with one wire from Radio Shack (a long one). You gotta have some electrical skills and some idea of how you're going to get it to the outlet. I have some other options though:

1) Buy a super-fast charger (I think they still have these)
2) Buy a bigger battery for your phone (this depends on your phone)
3) Have 2-3 batteries
4) This is the most pratical alternative to rewiring. Buy a solar cell phone charger. Yes, they have these. You could put the solar panel on your dash and charge away. Here's an example: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...&category=3240 Don't know if it works all that well. It could be an inexpensive fix.

 

You can rewire it under the dash if you have the right tools to check for the wire. Near the underdash fuse box, there should be a big white wire. This wire is hot all the time. Then search for a thinner white with red stripe wire (IIRC, there are couple wires with the same color config, and a tester comes in handy to locate the right one for the power outlet), cut this wire and splice it into the big white wire.

 

Yeah, there should be something running to the stereo that is always hot (it keeps your presets and other settings)

 

This is just my , but I suspect that rewiring it in such a way that those power outlets could work even when turned off, it could void your warranty, at least for the battery, because of usage of the outlets that was not intended for, nor designed for. (read: you could empty your battery)

 

Good point! This is sort of like a "do it at your own risk" mod, I guess!

 

Heh, I guess Acura and I see it as a feature. Many cars keep it on all the time, which means that if you have a radar detector, cell phone or audio device that it will power 24/7, draining the battery. A switch that controls this though might be nice, or perhaps one always on while the other switched. Good luck!

 

An Acura service technician told me that he rewire his acura and it drained his battery....so I am out of luck....So I am going to call Acura and tell them that I would like that feature. The power outlets work in my other car and it does not drain the battery.

-The Bunny

 

Yeah, depending on what you plug-in and for how long, it probably isn't an issue, but it's all a function of the load you're giving the battery and the remaining charge in the battery.

 

Bringing this one back to life.

Did anyone ever mod their power outlets so that they are constantly available for power? I understand the concern, but I am not too concerned with my cell phone draining the battery if I leave it charging for an hour or two. Any help?.

 

It's definitely do able. There are wires in the TSX that get power regardless of whether or not the ignition is on. This is going to drain your battery though if you forget and leave it on.

Ask Eldude about this. He'll tell you why or why not it's a good idea.

Why don't you just get extra cell phone batteries though? You can get dual chargers for most phones. This would be way better than risking be stranded somewhere with dead battery all because you wanted to charge your cell phone.

 

why dont u charge while you drive??? i know my cell phone charges faster in the car, and from dead it takes about half the time... soo theres ways aorund it i guess

 

maybe there is other stuff on that same circuit and when you wire the outlet to stay on all the time that other stuff is draining the battery. as a cheep fix you might want to go to radio shack and you can purchase an add on cigarette adaptor for a coupe bucks that come with the wiring and everything. all you would need to do is drill a hole in the box for the adapter and run the 2 wires to the battery.

 

i totally forgot about this, but now i'm going to do it while i'm at home. i worked around the problem with my old phone, but i have a sidekick 2 now, and the battery life is depressing.

i used to keep my cell phone plugged into the charger all the time in my old car, and the battery never ran down. i just really don't see how charging a cell phone is going to kill your battery. once the battery is charged, it stops taking the charge anyway.

if you throw an inline switch in there so you can turn the outlet off when you're not using it, i think that would take care of any chance of *accidentally* draining the battery.