fuse blown

[kkb]

Has anyone had the experience of TomTom blowing the fuse for the plugin? I had the fuse replaced with a heavier duty one after the first time, and now it's blown the new fuse after a few uses. I'm driving a 99 Ford Focus, if that matters.

 

[mikealder]

Are you refering to the fuse within the ciggy lighter plug supplied by TomTom (2A IIRC) or the one protecting the cars socket which should be more like 10A, if its the fuse integral to the charger lead plug then you need to either try another charger lead or get the device sorted out as these fuses should not blow at all.

Replacing the fuse with a higher capacity one is not a good course of action as it offers little protection and could fry the PND before it blew - Mike

 

[kkb]

fuse

Many thanks for your help!

 

[CynicX]

Definitely dont use a "heavier duty" fuse. A fuse is just a purpose built "weak link" so instead of the wires catching on fire, or the GPS device shorting out permanently the fuse blows...

If your car fuse is blowing you either have the circuit overloaded or there is an intermittent short somewhere. If its the fuse in the charger, CAREFULLY examine the wire, you'll probably find it pinched or something, you could try repairing however it would be best just to replace it. If you dont find it damaged just assume its bad and replace it, because its cheaper then an internal short in the GPS device to fix...

 

[Sidicas]

Sounds more like an electrical problem with your car.. Poor grounding (corroded connection to battery) could be the culprit. Could also be a bad voltage regulator in your car, but this would typically generate a dashboard light.

The fuse is designed to blow at the point where exposure to anything higher would damage your TomTom.. So if it's blowing, then there is something wrong with your car's electrical. An incorrectly installed subwoofer, alarm system, or speakers could easily cause electrical spikes that would blow the tiny 2 amp fuse in the TomTom charger.

Also, water leaking into your car and shorting out your electrical system could also cause electrical spikes big enough to blow a 2 amp fuse.

Putting in a bigger fuse is like a deaf person constantly turning up the volume after damaging their hearing from having it too loud to begin with..
You're not fixing the problem, you're making it worse and the probability that you'll damage the TomTom or the TomTom's battery by putting in the wrong fuse is very high. The fuse is there for a reason.

 

[canderson]

Has anyone had the experience of TomTom blowing the fuse for the plugin? I had the fuse replaced with a heavier duty one after the first time, and now it's blown the new fuse after a few uses. I'm driving a 99 Ford Focus, if that matters.

I've read all the other posts, and beyond agreeing that a larger fuse is a bad idea, I doubt if it's your vehicle's electrical system that's biting you. You'd have bigger problems.

I'd guess any one of the following:

a) TomTom bad. Not likely, but what happens when you plug your TomTom into your USB cable to operate from your computer? Normal operation? Normal light lit?

b) Short in car charger cable. Possible, depending upon how it was installed.

c) Short in charger/charger electronics. Perhaps the most likely.

d) You've got your TomTom hooked up to another device (e.g., you are using the Aux Out for audio) and that device is also vehicle powered, is badly grounded, and is pulling a ground through your TomTom's car charger cable.