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Front power sockets - max continuous current?

2K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  sonatahybrid12 
#1 ·
Hi,

My front 2 12V sockets are marked 180W, so 15A at 12V.

However, I'm finding that a Cellink-B LIFePO dashcam battery pack charging plug is running rather warmer than I'd like.

It has 2 settings:

7.5A - says "hardwire only". However, as the scokets were marked 180W, I gave that a try. 15 minutes and the plug tip was too hot to touch, so I'd guess about 60-70C - the working limit of PVC insulated cable.

The official setting for plug in mode of 5A is better, but the plug still runs very very warm after 15 minutes. I'd expect it to be cold.

So I am thinking 180W is time limited and the continuous running current is rather lower.


Had anyone had any experience of larger continuous loads through the aux power sockets?

Cheers,

Tim
 
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#5 · (Edited)
That seems good in theory - but a poor contact (for example) could cause a valid load to overheat the plug, to the point of melting.

The socket is fused at 15A but if you put 15A though it for an hour, I predict with some certainlty that the plug would melt, at least on the basis of what a claimed 7.5A load did. You see why I am antsy.

Two scenarios - either the plug is dodgey (I could change it if I found a better make of plug), or there simply is a max continuous current these things can really cope with and 180W is aimed at short term loads (minutes, not 10s of minutes).

It's a pity we've ended up with such a poor design of socket for aux power - but that's another thread!

Of course, hard wiring would be a better solution, but thanks to Hyundai's "it might invalidate your warranty" stance, we're not going down that road for 5 years :)
 
#7 · (Edited)
Cigar lighters been around for over 60 years now, case was spring loaded, element at the tip was a cup that clamped in solid to a U shaped bimetallic connected, it would expand with heat letting the lighter pop out. Key point is that cup made solid contact with that bimetallic socket on both sides.

Tradition stuck with this design, don't know why, but with these adapters, no longer using that solid cup for good contact, but just a tiny spring loaded pin, in brief, for the informed, stupid, couldn't have picked a worst means of connectivity. And that spring loaded tiny little pin does a far better job of shoving that adapter out than making good connectivity.

Being weird like I am, didn't want to replace that old radio in my Supra, it matches the rest of the panel, so I purchased an adapter with an MP3 player, hands free calling, and a USB output to plug my Garmin into. Dang thing kept on popping out on its own, even land up on the floor at times.

Dug into my junk pile and found an old cigar lighter with that cup on it, removed that and attached it to that little tiny pin, of course, it does not heat up that bimetallic strip, but is locked in solid. All these adapters could have been made the same if they had any brains, so just another new problem with the worst possible connection possible,

Elantra has a 25 amp fuse in it, if I drew that kind of current, battery would be stone dead in less than two hours. That relay can be bypassed, just left it.
 
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