freelyfallin

hey all,
so i just got a nuvi 760, and the ciggarette lighter has given me a bit of trouble. I also just got a used 2005 mazda 3 hatchback. The plug for the 760 fits very snugly in the cigarette lighter...maybe too snugly. I went to pull out the plug without thinking I would need to hold the panel it is mounted on and the whole panel popped out. Turns out it's gonna cost around $250 to replace it. So a couple of questions...

1) Have you guys had similar problems?
2) The cigarette lighter for the 760 seems longer than the others because it incorporates the traffic receiver. Does anyone know if it has a larger diameter than the standard cigarette plug for nuvis? If so, I might want to go get the smaller plug so I don't run into this problem again.

Thanks!

stragf

I have an '07 Mazda Speed 6, and the Garmin 360.
I had trouble with a connection being snug the first time, but I never deconstructed my car when I pulled it out. I have three plugs in my Mazda, so I just leave it plugged in all the time. My 360 also releases from the bracket, so I never need unplug the charger.

I would go to a local place like bestbuy, and see if they have a male/female adapter that plugs into the lighter socket. I had a duo one that I used to use for charging my cell phone, and using my radar detector, so I know they are available. Then just plug the garmin into the adapter instead of into the lighter socket.

Now that I'm over 50, I don't need the radar detector!

Good luck.

dav

That's an incredible amount of damage for pulling out a cigarette lighter.

I pulled out the socket in my Lexus when trying to unplug a device (not the GPS). I just stuck the socket back into place. It is now loose, but stays in place. Did not cost me anything.

Max

Not to that degree, but sounds like you caught it just right..

Nope, it's the standard diameter. I have the GTM for my Zumo car kit and while it's definitely on the long side - it's not wider than anything else.


Maybe I can put a caliper on it tomorrow though and see just how big it is...

__________________
Nothing free is good, nothing good is free.

freelyfallin

It'd be interesting to see. Thanks to stragf, I ended up getting a splitter at circuit city, so now I can plug two devices into the cigarette outlet. What's even better is that the splitter seems to fit in the outlet a lot more loosely, so as long as I plug the Nuvi into that instead, I should never have the same problem again.

Max

Im tearing apart some stuff at the moment, but I have a gtm20 and digital calipers on the same table...later on I'll incorporate my camera in the mix and we'll be good

__________________
Nothing free is good, nothing good is free.

freelyfallin

Thanks a lot. So I said I got a splitter. It turns out the Garmin Cigarette plug is so large it has actually slightly damaged the splitter, pulling it apart a little along the seams. It still works, but jeez. I'm surprised that no one else has had troubles.

LoneDog

No one told me about that rule!!!! If you keep your radar detector, you don't need to get "safety alert" (i.e. speed camera) software.

LoneDog

I did notice that the plug for the 760 power cord/traffic antenna was quite snug when I put it in my Mazda3's lighter socket. I consider that a good thing. When I removed the plug to put in a 3 socket extension, I simply slightly rotated the plug, instead of pulling it straight out.

In case anyone is interested, I mounted the 3 socket extention high up on the center console panel in the passenger seat footwell. The antenna on the power cord is plugged in there. It's not generally visible, is way out of kicking range, and, if for some reason you want to, you can see the 2 lights from the driver's seat, with a not too difficult move, though I wouldn't do it while moving.