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Power Outlets - Are they Switched?

One of my kiddos knocked the cover off of the electrical outlet in the back seat. I have it, and I can tell it's an easy fix. My question is...if the vehicle is off, is the outlet hot? I have to actually touch the inside parts to push the cover back on, so I want to make sure I'm not going to get zapped lol!

Thank you in advance for your input!
 



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One of my kiddos knocked the cover off of the electrical outlet in the back seat. I have it, and I can tell it's an easy fix. My question is...if the vehicle is off, is the outlet hot? I have to actually touch the inside parts to push the cover back on, so I want to make sure I'm not going to get zapped lol!

Thank you in advance for your input!
Welcome to the Forum.:wave:
It seems whether the outlets remain powered or not may depend upon the model year. The easiest way to determine if the outlet is powered is to plug something into it that requires 12V. I'm guessing that it is a 12V outlet that you are referring to and not the 110V one on the back of the front console.

Peter
 






making sure there are some clarifications.

part 1 - the round plug cigarette 12V power points are not switched with ignition. IE they stay powered off battery. They are however part of the battery saver circuit system such that as the battery condition degrades they should cut out to save the battery for starting.
-- side note - if your battery is already weak, battery saver isn't an end all be all solution. therefore with say 3 years or so on a battery it can and will still die.

part 2 - 110V AC power point - they are going to be timed out for 2 reasons. Power draw kills the battery because there is the ability to draw a fairly high load, bigger reason. as the line power to the inverter goes from the nominal 14V car power off the alternator, to 12V or less with the battery. Current through the inverter has to go up to compensate. Working harder makes it hotter and the timers is not just to save the battery but also the inverter circuit.

part 3 - USB power supply - those plugs cut out with the MFT system cuts off when you open the door. Or they are supposed to, the ones on my explorer do this.

Part 4 - switched 12V powered outlets. If you wanted to put the time in there is a relatively easy to way to wire in relay logic such as to kill a 12V outlet when the ignition is off, or when the door is opened (IE when accessory power is cut ).

in the fuse box find a spare fuse hole - with a multimeter check it's voltage with the car off - it should be 0 (most will be) - using a fuse tap - plug into the spare, fuse it with say a 5amp fuse - and wire that off to a relay that is normally open - then wire the other side of the relay to battery main power. Thus when the accessory power dies- the relay will open and shut off power to the lead side. At that point either re-wire one of the existing plugs to your new relay setup, or wire in and setup a new plug in a new home.
 






Thanks for the help guys!
 






The front 12V in my 16 shuts off roughly around the 60 minute +/- timeframe, haven't tried the rear or the 110V
 






So:

I've recently moved to the ford explorer from another brand (won't mention the name to keep the flaming down.. lol)

anyways.. I have a dashboard camera that I've wired into the 12V in the front dash. I've noticed that the 12V is not switched, and I've not seen anyone mention that it might be able to be changed with FreScan.

soo.. I'm thinking if I can wire in a "switch" to the fuse panel for the 12V..

like this..

1) replace the fuse with a lead that goes to a relay. (where ever the fuse box is )
2) put an inline fuse so it's still fuse protected
3) supply 12v input to the relay from a switched source on the same fusebox.
4) put in an "override" sitch if I even want to put it back temporarily to the non-switched mode.

what do you guys think?
 






Welcome to the Forum ckc123.:wave:
I think you meant Forscan. Not sure if you can use that for the purpose you desire. The Manual states you have 2 fuse boxes. One is in the engine compartment and the other is in the cabin up above the parking brake. The Manual also identifies which fuse is which.
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums...-fuse-box-location.320569/page-2#post-2902830
There have also been posts that some devices left plugged in have affected the range of the remote lock/unlock in a negative way.

Peter
 






Lots of variations here on what's hot, what's not.

On my 17 XLT, the power point in the bin below the radio remains hot for+/- 30 minutes. I know because I have a dash cam plugged there. The USB in the same bin remains hot because after I get in the vehicle I plug my phone into it & I immediately get the 'phone is charging' notification.This is before I push the start button.

I plug the phone in because I like to use the WAZE App.

I can't speak about the console USB, the power point behind the console, or the rear power point because I haven't had the need to use them.
 






We use a refrigerator/freezer in the space behind the third row and it works fine. The power behind the third row does not stay on permanently, rather it shuts down after 30 minutes or so. That really bothered me because our 2004 kept the refrigerator going 24/7. However, it seems that shutting down doesn't matter all that much if we're traveling. We stop in the afternoon/evening and leave the next morning from the hotel and the unit is still cold. After the fact I think I like the way the outlet is timed to shut off.

I too run a dash cam and it shuts off after 30 minutes or so. Seems the utility plugs all shut down. Haven't used the USBs
 






Lots of variations here on what's hot, what's not.

On my 17 XLT, the power point in the bin below the radio remains hot for+/- 30 minutes. I know because I have a dash cam plugged there. The USB in the same bin remains hot because after I get in the vehicle I plug my phone into it & I immediately get the 'phone is charging' notification.This is before I push the start button.

I plug the phone in because I like to use the WAZE App.

I can't speak about the console USB, the power point behind the console, or the rear power point because I haven't had the need to use them.

vehicles with push button start - are often accessory power live when the key is detected inside the vehicle. more specifically if your sync screen is on - the usb plugs are on.
 






vehicles with push button start - are often accessory power live when the key is detected inside the vehicle. more specifically if your sync screen is on - the usb plugs are on.
On mine, the Sync screen acts the same way whether or not I have the fob with me. Open the door and the Ford logo appears. The radio/sync is always powered just like the Home Link buttons.

Peter
 






I might have to test mine then. I know when I open the door Key or not - all the interior lights come on and the screens. But without the key I don't hear the other systems power on. I guess that's worth a test, but from what I remember reading if the sync system is on- the usb front outlets are on. Might also be a model year difference as somewhere the power delivered on the USB plugs moved up to 2 Amps vs the 0.5 amp
 






Hey all. I have a 2015 Explorer Limited. I would like the 12V power source to shut off when the ignition turns off. Right now it stays on even after I lock the vehicle. I know it is possible with my F150, is it possible with my X? Thanks!
 






Hey all. I have a 2015 Explorer Limited. I would like the 12V power source to shut off when the ignition turns off. Right now it stays on even after I lock the vehicle. I know it is possible with my F150, is it possible with my X? Thanks!
Did you ever check it later to see if the power saver feature turned it off? It kicks in after 10 minutes. Can't recall if the power outlets are included.

Peter
 






Did you ever check it later to see if the power saver feature turned it off? It kicks in after 10 minutes. Can't recall if the power outlets are included.

Peter

Thanks for the quick response! I did not check after 10 minutes, I will do that this morning and post my findings.
 






So my X has been sitting for three hours and the 12V in the center cubby is still on. Dash Cam won't power down when the car shuts off. Any suggestions?
 






There is an option on the F150s to change the amount of time the 12V power points stay on with FORscan. I bet it's an option on the Xs as well, we just have to find it. I'll plug mine in and see what I can find out.
 






Suggestion for folks : tap into the wire going to the headlamp selection knob. I will need to take a look at the car tmrw if you want to know wire rather than figure it out. One of these goes on and off with the ignition.
For low current devices, there should be no negative effects. I run my dashcam off of this.

The best solution is to use a battery discharge detector, which are about $15 if you source from China. This will energize a relay at a voltage you select and de-energize at a voltage you select. So if you enable at about 13.5 and disable at 13, the relay will only be live when the engine is running. You can run your own (fused) power to the relay.

Great for charging aux batteries and high current devices that would otherwise drain your main battery if left on accidentally
 






Suggestion for folks : tap into the wire going to the headlamp selection knob. I will need to take a look at the car tmrw if you want to know wire rather than figure it out. One of these goes on and off with the ignition.
For low current devices, there should be no negative effects. I run my dashcam off of this.

The best solution is to use a battery discharge detector, which are about $15 if you source from China. This will energize a relay at a voltage you select and de-energize at a voltage you select. So if you enable at about 13.5 and disable at 13, the relay will only be live when the engine is running. You can run your own (fused) power to the relay.

Great for charging aux batteries and high current devices that would otherwise drain your main battery if left on accidentally

Is it possible you can post a short tutorial on this? My current solution to my dashcam has crapped out and I was thinking of tapping into the rear view mirror but am not experienced enough with car electronics to tap into them without worrying about messing them up lol.
 



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