Suppressing battery message

[abacus]

I have a Start 60. When it's in the car, switched on, and connected to a 12v socket via a USB adapter (in other words, in normal use) it shows a "charging battery" message about every 20 or 30 seconds. It doesn't take long for this to get really annoying; is there any way to stop it?

 

[canderson]

Sounds very much like an intermittent connection. In between, there may be enough time for the battery icon to appear in the lower left of the screen.

Each time that you see that message, it should be indicating that the external power source has been restored. Is the plug firmly in the cig lighter socket, and does the light on the plug remain lit at all times?

I should ask -- are you using a TomTom cig lighter adapter and cable?

 

[abacus]

Is the plug firmly in the cig lighter socket, and does the light on the plug remain lit at all times?

Yes to both.

Are you using a TomTom cig lighter adapter and cable?

The cable is TomTom; it came with the device. As for the adapter, I'm not sure – I think it's the same one I've always used, but I can't see a TomTom mark on it.
I'm doing a long trip tomorrow (500 km) and I'll report on what happens.

 

[canderson]

Very good. I asked about the light on the cig plug end for obvious reasons. What may not be obvious is the quality of the connection to the Start 60 or the condition of the cable. Whatever is happening, the device believes you're getting transient power losses from the vehicle, but recovers almost immediately.

Let us know how your 500km trip goes, and we'll see what happens from there.

 

[abacus]

Just got back from the trip, and I'm happy to say that it seems your suggestion was exactly right. I simply cleaned up the contact bits of the plug, and the problem has gone away.

Thanks!

 

[canderson]

Which end of the cable was the main issue? Hard to clean the TomTom end, but perhaps it was the USB-A end on that plugs into the charger? It's pretty rare that one of these would need to be cleaned. The gold plating avoids any oxidation, so unless it gets something on it while it's disconnected ...

Anyway, if you have any details of your cleaning experience, it would be interesting to hear.

 

[abacus]

Sorry I didn't make it clear: when I said the "plug" I meant the thing that plugs into the cig lighter, and all that I cleaned was the spring-loaded pin on the end and the two springy contacts on the sides. I also twisted it around a few times in the socket in case there was dirt or corrosion in there. (In the process, I found the maker's name on the plug – it isn't a TomTom product.)

When that seemed to work, I didn't even try to clean either end of the TomTom cable.

 

[Andy_P]

Sorry I didn't make it clear: when I said the "plug" I meant the thing that plugs into the cig lighter,

That's a definite weak point. It's often dirt or corrosion on the car socket itself, espacially if it has ever been used with an actual cigarette lighter.

I also twisted it around a few times in the socket in case there was dirt or corrosion in there.

Good call. That often fixes it for a while, or for good.
In general, if anyone is tempted to clean the contacts with anything else, make sure it's non-metallic! (or make sure you take out the fuse for the ciggy lighter socket first so it's electrically dead).

 

[canderson]

OK. Understand now. The transient disconnect/connect was probably too fast for you to see the LED on the cig lighter adapter even flicker.

Anyway, glad to hear it's stopped bothering you.