I have a Countryman on order and as such I have ample time to research a few things I may want to do to it. Not having an actual car to reference though has left me with a few questions that I haven't been able to find on the Internet, so I figured I'd turn to the friendly folks at NAM.

We already have a Garmin Nuvi GPS, so my goal is to get one of those GPS mounts that connect behind the tach. Some of them appear to come with a kit which has a solution which seems to be installing a Y at the existing cigarette lighter and then plugging the GPS cord into the other end of the Y. From the available instructions it's a little vague on exactly what the part is and where it is going. Comments from CM owners lead me to believe that the part was designed for non-CM Minis and there isn't really the same amount of space in the area near the existing cigarette lighter on the CM.

So, I've been looking at the Add-A-Circuit, which turns one circuit on a fuse panel into two, thinking that there may be a little more room near the fuse panel, or at least somewhere inbetween. This leads to the question, where is the fuse panel? Searching I could only find fuse panel locations for non-CM Minis. Also, does anyone know if there's enough clearance for the Add-A-Circuit which sits on top of it?

Once the Add-A-Circuit is in it seems like there's a few ways to go. I think I'm leaning toward adding a 'hidden' 12v socket and installing a flush 2 port USB converters. I feel like there should be something smaller out there, but I'm just not finding it. Then using an extension to actually pop out behind the tach. I would possibly look to extend the 2nd USB port to the console near the Aux jack for iPhone power (I didn't get the Bluetooth option) or just leave it unused for a rainy day (or just get one that's a single USB, lots of options!)

So, for those of you that have actually been inside a Countryman's electrics, is there anything I need to know/worry about? Or do I have a sound plan. The one thing I do have is time to revise the plan. My car was just ordered yesterday, so pretty much 6-8 weeks to go!

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

Could you tell us what model Garmin you have as that might influence some of the answers?

E.g. in my non-CM case, I did a hardwire into an Add-A-Circuit. This means my normal cable is available for use in other vehicles (like when I had to take a loaner on a long trip). The trade-off is I don't get the traffic signal since the receiver for that is built in the cable for my 755.

 

You need to be careful to not run the full 12v into the nuvi. I think it runs on only 4 - 5 volt.

 

I'm not 100% sure, as I'm not with the unit, but I think it's it's a Garmin Nuvi 3760. It doesn't currently have traffic, so keeping an antenna live wouldn't really be a big concern. I suspect there problably won't be a lot of room in easily accessible portions of the car and I'm hoping to avoid taking too much apart right away. Don't want to get in too deep too quickly!

 

I'd be using 'something' to convert the 12 volt to USB. Either a cigarette light outlet with either a USB converter or the original cable, or a direct USB outlet cable.

Here's links to example parts...
USB Outlet Cable

 

nitty is correct. The internal voltage is ~3.7 volts. You are safest talking to Garmin to see if they have a cable with a two-wire pigtail end meant for the 3760. The cable should have an in-line voltage "reducer" in the shape of a small black box. You may also want to consult GPSCity.com. Talk to them about THIS cable.

HTH,

 

Thanks for the replies, I'm well aware of the voltage reduction needed which is why I'm planning on using a USB cigarette adapter. The main questions I have are really are if there is room in the fuse panel for an Add-A-Fuse (and where it is) and if there is room to stuff the socket and adapter somewhere convenient.

Anyone been inside a Countryman with experience in this?

 

If only I'd seen this post back when I had a CM loaner...

anyway, can't help with verifying the location of fuse panel and I couldn't find anything definitive on realoem.com, but I would suspect it is in the same location as non-CM MINIs - in the passenger footwell just forward of the front door.

In non-CM MINIs, there is definitely room for the Add-A-Circuit as it is a lower profile than some of the OEM relays. If it is like a non-CM, to put a external socket it will require stuffing it up under the dash somewhere like behind the glove box.

 

There is enough just enought height to use a Add a fuse..I usually buy mine on Amazon..I did for my V1 Radar Detector. There is enough room for socket...barely... If you stuff it above the side panel towards the firewall you will be ok. Everything is really tight under the dash but you will be ok! Hope this helps.

 

Can you tell me where you found a good ground location for the Add-A-Circuit? I have one for the mini fuses but can't seem to find a good place for the ground wire. Also, which fuse did you tap into?

 

On mine, when I open the globebox, down at the lower right corner there is a screw that I used.

I don't remember which fuse I used, but you may be able to do some research in this thread --> https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...not-fuses.html. I'm thinking I probably used F42 (cigarette lighter) since I wanted the GPS to turn on and off with the MINI. If I ever get around to wiring in my satellite radio I'll go the opposite and pick something that stays on and manually shut off the radio since it does not have a graceful auto shutdown like the gps.

I believe MINI has changed the fuses since that was posted, so not sure whether it would be applicable for your year/model.