Briz65 - where did you buy the covered 12v outlets you added.
Are they "constant on"? Did you connect these to the fuse box?

This may be a better alternative than pulling the relay and installing a jumper because I do not want an accessory(compass/mirror) to be always drawing power.

It did bother me when i did the Mod for Constant on power. thats why i went a huntin another wire for the switchable power source for the Mirror. I'm sorry i haven't gotten the info I promised. I got home late tonight from work. I start my Annual Army Training tomm morn. I will really try to get you that info in the next couple of days. mea culpa
MSG Briz:goinposta

Hey, don't sweat it.
I'm not in a big hurry anyway.

00328
I got the covered outlets at Wallywolrd. I think they were like $3.00 apiece. I did not connect these to the fuse box. I tapped into the powered outlet wires under the center console. one caveat though, I made the one in the back for my kids switchable. the only reason i did that was to make sure the kids didn't leave one of their electronic toys on when i shut off the truck.
MSG Briz

Finally got around to doing this today. Thanks so much for the info and write-up.

With the addition of a Lowrance GPS for xmas that has rechargeable batteries in it this kind of became a necessity. It only came with a cigarette lighter charger and since we couldn't charge it overnight before with the truck turned off...

Like I said, thanks. ;)

Ok...from a 12V persons standpoint..there are problems and great ideas in this..


My honest suggestion is that, that relay you have a hold of has a low-current circuit, and the high current circuit (the one you jumped) Use them and put a switch on it

Sorry i cant post pics to what im gonna describe, but i have a 3RD gen and i dont know if its the same back there..

Btw...i dont have a 3rd gen, and cant check that relay, how i am going to explain it is one way, but you could do it many other ways, if someone wants to send me one of their relays (if they just jumped the connections) i can test it and send them it back...
Furthermore, im not responsible if you zap, shock, blow fuses, or anything else ..im doing this off of my head...

Parts needed:
16 or 14 gauge wire (14 is better) (this is for the jumper)
Male spade terminals (get ones that the spade is the same size as the ones on the factory relay)
Female spade terminals (matching size to the male ones
Fuse holder
1 amp fuses
Solder / soldering iron
Tools to get to the fuse
Crimpers
electrical tape or heat shrink tubing
18 or 16 ga wire (to power the switch)




Start by removing everything as the O.P. described



Pins 1 and 3 (see diagram below)are you low-voltage activation wires

Pins 3 and 5 are your "high current" wires...

Here is what we are going to do, hook up your existing relay, to a switch so you can decide to keep the power on, or off, so if someone does need to power something when the car is off, you can just, flick a switch..

Below is a two diagrams:



1.make your "power cable"
using your minimum 18 ga wire, make the cable long enough to go from wherever you are getting power from to the switch (make it an extra foot or two longer for slack)

2.solder your fuse holder onto one side of the wire and solder the other side of the wire the switch, cover your connections (electrical tape, or heat-shrink tubing)...

3.Solder a wire to the other terminal of the switch, make sure it has enough room to go from the switch, to where your mounting that factory relay and mayb a little extra, and crimp on a female spade connector to the loose end

4.You will need to make two jumper wires...16ga or 14ga the thicker the wire the better (better safe then sorry). Simply make the two wires long enough to go from the factory relay socket, to where you are mounting the relay... strip both ends of both wires, and crimp on female spade connectors on the side going to the relay and male spade connectors on the other side...

(Be carefull on this next step, if your battery is hooked up, these wires could be "hot" DONT LET THEM TOUCH ANYTHING

5.Install the male side of one jumper cable into the factory socket pin 3, and the second jumper wire male side in the factory socket pin 5.

6.Connect the female spade of one jumper cable onto the factory relay pin 3, and the second jumper wire female side on the relay pin 5

7.Grab your switch (which should have your "power cable" soldered onto it, and a wire soldered to it with a female spade connector.. )Plug the female spade onto pin 1 of the factory relay

8.Now, make a wire that has a female spade connector on one end, and a ring termail on the other, this will be your ground wire. Connect the female spade connector to the factory relay, and ground the other end by securing it to some metal (easy place is the sheet metal in the drivers kick panel) by screwing it in (use a star washer to lock the screw in...) with a self-tapping screw...





Double check all your connections, cover all bare wire connections, and mount your switch...






9.Connect the power cable to a constant +12 volt line (you can even use the power from one of the two jumpers your installing if your feeling a little advanced(you would need to test which one is power..like i said, i dont have one, cant test it))

You should be able to hear the relay click if you flick the switch back and forth, and your cigarette lights will switch between constant and switched power...

You now have a switch to select the power to the lighter plugs to be constant or accessory...

Based on the last post from nserpa9248, can a +12v power source be added to the the +ve side of the low voltage pin on the relay ( terminal 1 or 2) to activate the relay and have constant power? I was thinking that if I have a constant power source to a switch and run it to the proper terminal on the relay I would have a switch to control the relay for always on power and be able to control the acc plugs and whatever else I tap on to the circuit (was thinking of a dvd player and headrest monitors).

I guess the real question is what would happen to the relay if multiple 12v sources fed into it? Is this even reasonable or is this idea against electrical principles and a fire hazard?

If this is feasible does anyone know which terminal I should tap into?

Thanks
Jim

I did the mod with just the jumper wire. I only use my outlet to charge my cell phone, so I'm not concerned about running down the battery with any larger loads. Would the compass/mirror be a significant draw on battery if it is "on" all the time?

For those who've experience the problem with the mirror staying on, were these all factory installed mirrors? If so, I may have a solution, I can check this weekend. I installed my mirror after purchase, so maybe the wire I tapped for it (from the installation instructions) isn't the one for the 12V outlets.

Actually I found the thread, I think this is right. The wire I tapped is for the LH tension reducer solenoid. If you read through this thread, specifically the ones with MikeLoeser's pics, it goes over that. Maybe tapping this one will separate the mirror from the power outlet circuit. I'll try the jumper mod over the weekend and post results.

I'm confused. I did the jumper wire technique and have full-time power to my 12 v outlets.
But my factory mirror/compass is dark unless I start the car. So maybe it doesn't feed through the same relay?

Not to bump a thread, but I just did this mod (at 0155 in the morning no less) and it worked like a charm.

Total time involved.. >6 minutes not including time to fabricate jumper. BIG thanks to Kmvreter for the write up. Back when I had my E46 Bimmer I loved forums like this and members who take the time to share detailed how-tos on modding.. this is no exception. ipod power all the time..

Next up- blitzsafe ipod interface!

So, I'm getting ready to do this mod - sounds really cool. The question I have is what's connected to the relay terminals 1 & 2 and what is the operational impact of not having these two terminals connected to the relay? Basically, this mod permanently disconnects what ever this is, if anything.

Thanks in advance.

Lou

Think of a relay as an electronically operated switch. One circuit contains a switch to break or supply +12V to the outlets, and the other "flips" the switch. What you are disconnecting is the control or trigger circuit for the switch. There is no adverse impact and it's totally reversible. I think it's mentioned somewhere above, but I have my relay in a little baggy zip-tied to the jumper, so if I ever need to revert to stock, it's right there. Just pull the jumper out, reinstall the relay, and no one will ever be the wiser.

To be honest I've had warranty diagnostics done on several of the electrical systems for some problems with trailer wiring blowing some uncharacteristic fuses, and the jumper has never even registered an error.

Well said InterGalactic.

There is nothing else attached to this circuit so there is no "operational impact" other than the desired outcome of constant 12V at the power outlet. It's "permanent" but can be easily reversed by plugging the relay back in.

See the diagram.

Attached Images

298 053po12v.pdf (14.2 KB, 521 views)