I got SIRIUS satellite car kit which plugs into the electrical outlets in my Honda Accord (2004) and the first one died after less than a week, then I exchanged it for a new charger and that one died in 5 minutes. I was then thrilled to find that a charger I have for another device matches the specifications of the Sirius charger, so was using that and now this morning that charger is dead. I'm starting to wonder if maybe a power surge is causing this? Should I always unplug these chargers when I turn off the car, and not plug them in again until the car has been started? I took the one charger apart...can I repair it by just replacing the little cylinder fuse inside? Are they easy to find? Any help would be appreciated.
Could you elaborate , please? Also, I should note that this has happened with two Sirius radios (same model). When I first exchanged the car charger I also was forced to exchange the radio (inventory / return conditions).
OK, I'll have a stab. I think that the sirius probably has a surge current, or a strange effect when it is first turned on... If you're blowing chargers then i'm inclined to believe that it's not the chargers that are incorrect, but that they're being overstressed when you start the car. So either:
Siruis is drawing too much current on turn on
Car voltage supply is exceeding maximum input voltage for charger on turn on
Would help to know what the sirius and charger make and numbers are and what exactly the fuse protects.
If you say that the sirius is changed too, it could be a design flaw, or it could be your Honda has a wobbly 12V when you turn it on. But i'd not think that was a likely candidate.
Hi, Jeff. Mr. Todd has given good advice. But if you happen to have a voltmeter, check something else, too. Turn on the engine, then with all the accessories off, read the battery voltage. (Be careful to keep the DVM leads away from the fan and moving parts). If you're reading much over 14.2V, it's possible your Honda voltage regulator may have gone south. The high voltage could be stressing your plug-in power adaptor, causing it to fail.
Voltage regulator problems sometimes take a bit of time to kill the battery, but especially if your car is starting sluggishly or you find yourself needing a jump start, that's something else to look at.
You may also want to look inside the cigarette lighter socket for a burned connection. If something pitted the pin contact in the middle of the socket, that could cause an intermittent electrical contact which could also kill the adapter. The socket is easy to replace (make sure you diisconnect the car battery before attempting this).
After you've cleared these things up, you might want to go with an OEM adapter from Sirius. They're not that much more expensive.
It may be a spike that is causing the problem. At a minimum, put a 1.5KE15A transorb across (banded end to + ) the input to the charger.
Some people recommend using 2 transorbs - one rated at 15 volts like the 1.5KE15A, and one rated a lot higher, like the 27 volt 1.5KE27A, both in parallel across the input.
If a power surge caused your problem, as detailed in the other newsgroup (alt.auto.honda?) where this same poblem was posted - how great must 12 volts increase and not cause damage? Even 15 volts is well below what any electronics must withstand without damage. Any replied should have known that. Sirrius hardware design is a more likely suspect - bad design.
I looked at what is being sold in Radio Shack. Now that Radio Shack is more dominated by bean counters - which is why they are doing so badly - not corporate management with technical background - now Radio Shack starves us of basic facts. For example, what is the output current for a Sirruis AC adapter? RS cannot be bothered to provide useful information even on the box - a corporate bias that you are and should remain technically naive.
So I look at the size of those adaptors. Only using ballpark estminates and decades of experience, that 2 amp fuse may be too small
- a design error.
Now we discuss what all responders here should know. Does a 2 amp fuse blow at 2.5 amps? Of course not. Fuses follow a well defined and commonly known curve - I squared t - current squared times time. If a power supply outputs 2 amps constant, then its fuse should be three or four amps. Maybe larger is the load current varies significantly. 2 amp fuse may blow after maybe 24 hours of operation at 2 amps.
Let's say lower auto voltage during starting causes adaptor to draw increased current. Then we demand a number. A 2 amp load might increase to 2.3 or 2.5 amps for a short time (notice time is also a necessary parameter). Fuse then can provide 2 amps for years should then not blow at 3 amps for a short period - if properly sized when designed AND confirmed by top management in the design review.
In short, I suspect design used a fuse too small. But again, since Radio Shack now shows contempt for the technically literate, then they don't put any numbers on those many Sirrius adaptors. No numbers on that AC adapter suggests the AC adaptor would not be UL approved - another indication of inferior design.
No way a power outlet has any relationship to a fuse that blows inside the Sirrius adaptor. Another suggested a weak Honda outlet caused lower voltage and therefore increased current. Good until we apply numbers and the I squared T relationship - how fuses are sized. With numbers, then a subjective idea has no merit.
Due to a disrespect for the more technically informed (by Radio Shack), then your responses are speculation. However some speculation is based in science. Other speculation - such as the Honda createing a surge too large - is total bullshit.
Try a 3 amp fast blo type fuse - 32 or 250 volts. Also posted elsewhere was as kludge soluti> Could you elaborate , please? Also, I should note that this has
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