Garmin GPS Wiring

[ElNormo]

I got a Garmin i2 (http://www.garmin.com/products/spi2/) GPS unit for Christmas. I've been very impressed. For a relatively inexpensive navigator, it's just what I need.

It comes with a cigarette lighter adapter. If you disconnect the adapter, it recognizes that vehicle power is lost, and will power down after 30 seconds. This is good. Problem is, it appears that my 535i continues supplying battery power even after remove the key.

Is there another power source (preferably easy to tap) that will supply power only while the car is running?

Thanks in advance for any info,

Norman

[ElNormo]

Shameless bump...

[Jay 535i]

I could be really wrong about this, and I don't want your battery to pay the price, but.....

I believe that power is supplied to accessories for just a limited time. Maybe 20 minutes or so. So it's safe to walk away even though the unit is still getting power immediately after pulling the key.

Alternatively, can't you just hit the power button on the i2 when you're done with it?

Is the i2 small enough to mount in place of the OBC? I've been wonderin' about that.

Nice unit, BTW. I'm savin' up for the C330 (http://www.garmin.com/products/sp330/) :D

[azale]

Congrats on getting a Garmin. I gave my wife the Quest (http://www.garmin.com/products/quest/) for Christmas and we love it.

I don't know about the power schematics but I'm going to have to side with jaylebo on one point: The power button is the big one on the right.

Furthermore, (at least with ours) it is relatively easy to remove the Garmin from its cradle or even take the cradle down when you are parking the car . . . not a bad idea when you are driving a BMW. You don't want a thief to check out your $300+ GPS system in plain view and fantasize about what he can't see . . . in your glove box or under your driver's seat.

Last month my buddy had a cellular phone and purse stolen from his car (through his passenger window, which was closed) while he was eating at Outback in a nice part of town. Needless to say, they were in plain view.

[ElNormo]

Thanks for the responses. I'll have to test the automatic shut-off. It would be interesting to find out.

Originally, I was planning on mounting the unit down near the shifter (next to the cigarette lighter), and leaving it there "permanently". Since it was out of the way, I figured theft would be less of an issue.

In hindsight, you're probably right. It would be best to leave it in the glove compartment and use it when needed.

[Jay 535i]

Originally, I was planning on mounting the unit down near the shifter (next to the cigarette lighter), and leaving it there "permanently". Since it was out of the way, I figured theft would be less of an issue.

When I get one, my plan is to mount it just where you say, between the shifter and the back of the console, and cut up a used E34 center console to make a faceplate for it so that it looks "installed". Similar to what some people do with boost guages, etc.

I'm just talking about a piece of vinyl that stretches the width of the center console and has an opening for the unit's screen. All wires 'n' stuff are hidden behind the 'faceplate'.

Would love to see someone else try it first ;)

[ElNormo]

Interesting, do you have any pics? I seem to remember seeing pictures with gauges down there, but never paid much attention.

Thanks,

Norman

[Jay 535i]

Interesting, do you have any pics? I seem to remember seeing pictures with gauges down there, but never paid much attention.

Thanks,

Norman

No, but here's a quick Photoshop lash-up. Notice you only see the screen, because I'm pretending that the rest of it is hidden behind a custom faceplate.

Y'know the flat vertical panel at the back of the console, under the ashtray? I'd have to make another 'false' one to cover up all of the GPS unit save the screen. That's the kind of faceplate I'm talking about. Then it would look sort of OEM.

Doing this would also enable me to rig up some wiring so that the unit gets power without the ashtray having to be open (which is currently necessary to access the lighter jack). All the wiring and newly-drilled holes would be hidden by the faceplate. :)

That's my idea, anyway.

What I would REALLY like to do is mount the GPS unit in place of the OBC. Since the GPS unit has all of the OBC's trip functions, I wouldn't be missing anything. But getting it to look good would be much harder. But, if pulled off successfully, it would look very much like OE, which is way cool IMHO. The two problems would be 1) getting it to fit and 2) making a very well-finished faceplate. With my other idea above, the faceplate wouldn't have to be so precise, and I think making it out of used E34 trim pieces would be pretty easy. See that vast vinyl panel that surrounds my shifter? I figure if I could get my hands on another one I could cut it up pretty easily to make a nice faceplate.

http://www.moniqueandjay.com/gps.jpg

[Paul in NZ]

The two problems would be 1) getting it to fit and 2) making a very well-finished faceplate. With my other idea above, the faceplate wouldn't have to be so precise, and I think making it out of used E34 trim pieces would be pretty easy

find Jon K.s post about installing his computer or stero in place of half his temp control panel,i have often thought about doing something in place of the ashtray....

[Jay 535i]

find Jon K.s post about installing his computer or stero in place of half his temp control panel,i have often thought about doing something in place of the ashtray....

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Jon now unable to control which vents the air comes from, since he deleted the sliders?

I couldn't accept that.

[Paul in NZ]

it wasnt what he actually did its how he did it....making up a faceplate

[E34 530]

Hey El normo, not sure if you saw my thread, but I just did a similar setup with a satellite radio. Here is the thread..
http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=17436 Put it where the ashtray is and cut the metal to make a mounting bracket. Hope this helps a little.

EDIT: Just saw that you responded in the thread. Anyway, pm me if you have any questions or something.

[romus]

Guys, I know installing the GPS units permanently sounds cool and looks great, but in my opinion is not very practical. Many (if not all) GPS units out there have software with glitches (so far every software i got my hands on and tested had something that needed improvement - voice guides you to turn into a side street that doesn't exist, being just one example). This is why I mounted my pda holder just to the left of the cluster, directly above the center air outlet on the top of the dash - easy to see the screen without taking your eyes off the road. Because believe me, you'll have to look at the screen from time to time, and having it look nice but impractical could prove unsafe.

[Jay 535i]

Practical schmratrical.

[E34 530]

Practical schmratrical.

Haha true.

[romus]

:) well then, put it on the back seat for all i care.

[Jay 535i]

:) well then, put it on the back seat for all i care.

But it won't look cool there :)