[Davenci]

I was using a 3rd party 12v air compressor to fill the air in my motorcycle tires. It was working fine then it quits. Never had this problem with my other cars. Checked the fuses and they were fine. After pulling the control unit out of the dash I check the voltage at the back of the 12v accessory port. I had good voltage there so I had to pull out the socket and figure out what was wrong. Turns out that the 12v socket has a safety device that cuts power or fails when it gets too hot. Mine had melted too far to recover. I soldered it solid so it would work again and presto I have my accessory socket back.

Moral of the story - be careful with what you plug into the accessory socket. I only ran the compressor for about 2 or 3 minutes.

If you loose power to the socket and the fuse is good, you probably need a new socket.

Davenci

 

[insightfully]

Possibly related (?) - but the directions for using the Honda 12V compressor is to have the car powered on. See similar thread regarding compressor use, in-tact fuses, but car only in Accessory mode (vs powered on).

Honda doesn't provide a full explanation for this, but a theory is that being a hybrid with 12V battery charge maintained by the HV battery (instead of alternator), there's an interlock to prevent 12V overuse (?).

It sounds like you found/replaced where that interlock exists, but you may want to be careful about checking your 12V battery state of charge before/after use... especially with other reports of the car going haywire when the 12V battery isn't in a healthy state.

https://www.gen3insight.com/forum/161-tires-wheels-brakes-steering-suspension/3264-tire-repair-kit-immediately-quits.html

 

[Davenci]

I had the car turned on and running. No problems there. I think the plug on the compressor was a little corroded thus making it get hot. Tripped the safety in the socket.



We just need to be careful on what we plug in to this socket.


I am going follow the instructions on putting an accessory socket in the console. But I will probably only use the Honda compressor from now on. (Trunk was full so hard to get to it)


I will hit 20,000 miles on Monday and no other problems, car has been very reliable.



Thanks

 

[andrew28]

I assume we have a really sensitive 12v battery in the Insight hence not being able to do things like jump starting other cars. The 12v battery is used to start the car, activate/deactivate the parking brake, electric power steering, running the infotainment software at all times, Honda sense, etc... So it makes sense that Honda has these safety measures in place to protect the 12v battery. I try to keep my power demand on the Insight low. Just charging one smartphone and powering a dashcam.

 

[insightfully]

I assume we have a really sensitive 12v battery in the Insight hence not being able to do things like jump starting other cars. The 12v battery is used to start the car, activate/deactivate the parking brake, electric power steering, running the infotainment software at all times, Honda sense, etc... So it makes sense that Honda has these safety measures in place to protect the 12v battery. I try to keep my power demand on the Insight low. Just charging one smartphone and powering a dashcam.

I have similar thoughts, based on reading about battery experiences and effects across forum. For me, one add to the above is that I unplug anything charging from USB and/or accessory outlet if the car isn't powered on. It's a little overkill, but precautionary so that I'm only pulling energy from the 12V battery while the car is running and it's being charged from the HV battery.

 

[Wifey'sInsight]

I have similar thoughts, based on reading about battery experiences and effects across forum. For me, one add to the above is that I unplug anything charging from USB and/or accessory outlet if the car isn't powered on. It's a little overkill, but precautionary so that I'm only pulling energy from the 12V battery while the car is running and it's being charged from the HV battery.

The USB ports shut off, so you don't have to remove those cables, although I get the precaution.

I think maybe Honda went a little small on the AGM side, whether it's for physical space constraints, or a weight savings gesture. It'll be interesting as more people buy the car, and express different electrical loads via accessories. The real question when it comes to cigarette port devices is that some of them draw an unusual amount of current even when "not being used". I've seen all kinds of weird things over the years, related to cheap plug in adapters.

I wonder what the charge cycle looks like for our 12v systems, it can't be completely terrible since some people are running amps and aftermarket audio. Although most amps will work even under-volted, down in the mid 10v range, while other electrical accessories are much more demanding of constant power, especially vehicle sensors, communications and the like.

 

[Wolverine51]

I'd have thought that the 12v accessory outlet was sufficiently protected by it's in-line fuse.

 

[insightfully]

I'd have thought that the 12v accessory outlet was sufficiently protected by it's in-line fuse.

It seemed sufficiently protected in the case of the stock air compressor, which kept shutting off... but there are limits to everything (?).

 

[Wifey'sInsight]

I'd have thought that the 12v accessory outlet was sufficiently protected by it's in-line fuse.

Most fuses will allow a higher than stated load if continuous. It's an engineered tolerance, quick bursts of amperage are more than likely going to cause a fuse failure. Also as mentioned the plug had some corrosion, which most likely increased the heat at the connection point, which is why this appears to be a thermal type of failure. Luckily the port is designed to prevent this from cascading into a larger failure.