Newbie question 346. My MINI is a 2008 R56 Coupe Hardtop .Just received my new Black & Decker PAV1200W @ http://www.blackanddecker.com/power-tools/PAV1200W.aspx Woohoo!.. Its the little things in life..

Went to try it out... Plugged it in with the engine not running and no power to either the front or back power socket plugs.. OK... Pushed the start button (without starting) so the radio and lights came on.. still no power to the sockets. OK.. Started the engine and the sockets have power. Which means unless I can figure out something else, the engine has to be running before I can vacuum.

My question is... I know you can program these cars to do everything from locking when a vagrant is in close proximity to a moon landing... There must be a way to get power to the accessory sockets without having the engine running...

I'm guessing theres a chimp easy secret I'm just missing...Unfortunately.. I had to lay off our chimp when the economy took a header.. Can someone enlighten me without belittling??

 

This is a common problem. Check fuse 47 (I think) under the hood.

 

Can do, but what am I checking it for? The sockets work when running.. Are you suggesting there is a fuse that may be blown that makes them "unswitched".. meaning they'll work without the car running?

 

Ths socket isn't energized until the "Start" button is pushed.

 

Yup normal for Mini.

 

10-4

That is correct.

 

and with the brain-trust we have at this site who can program every aspect of every fucntion including re-writing the DNA sequence of each car.. there's no way to have an active accesssory socket without the engine running?? really? other than wiring one directly to the battery, of course..

I'd have bet money that I wasn't the only one here who wants to plug in something for power when necessary.. Amazing...

 

push the start button without depressing the clutch. Car does not start but power socket is now energized. But, open the door and power shuts off. This is what my car does.

 

I am sorry, I breezed through you original post and misunderstood.

 

So if I can figure out how to vacuum the car with the doors closed.. I'm good!!

 

This isn't just MINI...my Mom's Honda MINIvan does the same thing. I think you'll find a lot of newer cars are like this. Not saying all, just a lot

 

I think the same applies to the hatch outlet but it couldn't hurt to test it.

 

It's an easy fix just add a outlet that is wired direct to the battery and put a fuse in line. I did this so i could have power to my GPS when motor was shut off. Have about $10.00 invested and an hour of time, hardest part is running wire thru firewall..

 

It sounds like you have the answer to "how to run the vacuum without starting the engine." Now you owe something to the forum. Not money, but kindly let us know how long you can run the vacuum before you kill the battery.

 

I forgot to mention this mod must be used wisely, any draw on the battery without the motor running could result in a DEAD BATTERY and thats no fun.I'm sure everyone knows that, right....

 

Good reminder.. and yes.. I'd assume most would know this...

Not sure about my peers, but I can vacuum this car in oh... under 6 minutes.

I world theorize that worse case scenario, if the person has been hauling firewood, pets, or un-bagged gravel they could still complete the job in an hour or so.. Hypothetically, the battery should power the little 12V Black & Decker for about 7 HOURS. I'd further theorize that the little 12V vacuum would shut down or turn into a molten puddle of plastic before the battery went dead. .. Just sayin'

BTW.. the little Black & Decker PAV1200W really sucks... In a good way.

 

Insert your key fob and press the start button (no clutch, no start) and you should have power.

 

Tried that... No power to the accessory sockets, but everything else..

 

You pushed the fob in, right?

 

Correctamundo... that was the first thing I tried..

 

First off: If you can vacuum the car in 6 minutes...why is it a huge problem that you have to have the car running?

2nd: If you wire the socket to constantly have power, it's going to constantly be pulling power from the battery even if nothing is being used. So when you turn off the car and get out, the socket will still be slightly draining the battery until you turn the car on the next time and the generator kicks back on to recharge it.

Your best bet, if possible, is to wire it into the system that turns on all accessory power when you hit the start button once without turning the car fully on. That way it has an "off" feature that won't drain the battery.

But really...unless you are vacuuming out your car every hour, I honestly don't see the point to mess with any of the wiring of the car for 6 minutes of vacuuming.

 

I agree 100%... I just figured that since everything else in the car is programable... there was a quick way around this.. Guess the accessory sockets are the one exception.. No worries.. Guess I'll just gleefully vacumm with the engine running.. Like a cockroach.. I'll adapt.

 

I just checked my car. I inserted the fob, pressed start and the socket was energized. I then opened the door, power shut off. I simply pressed start again with door open, and the power came back on.

 

I just checked my 2010 also and with the door open and fob in I had to push the button once and there was power to my cell charger. Maybe the Vac draws more power and the car has to be running <<< just guessing... Try something smaller like a phone charger to see if it works.