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Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Sun Oct 09, 2016 9:31 pm
by Ginger
Hi Guys,

I know pretty much nothing about electrics other than it makes your tongue feel funny when you lick a battery and you shouldn't stick your fingers in a plug socket....

I am planning a long distance ride on a 1968 Honda C200 (charity ride) and it would be easier if I could fit the Sat Nav from my GS.

Its a TomTim Rider. So the question is; can this be done? The little Honda is a 6v bike but I assume the Sat Nav will need 12v to run.

I do not want to try and connect it to the battery to 'give t a try' as no doubt it will end up in flames!!! (or maybe not?)

Any auto electricians able to explain in lay-mans terms to me whether this can be done??

Ta

Andy

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Sun Oct 09, 2016 9:43 pm
by redbikejohn
It depends on the Tom Tom's input voltage. Check the lead, say something like primary voltage 12v and secondary 5v (guess). A lot of modern stuff runs on 5v dc ie phones etc so if it does you are in luck. The 6v should be OK with 5v equipment.

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Sun Oct 09, 2016 9:43 pm
by sprintster
I'm not an auto electrician either but I think satnavs have to reduce their power down to 5 volts anyway.Take the battery out of the bike for peace of mind before you "give it a try" but if there's not enough power it won't fry anything,it just won't work.

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 5:41 am
by Oop North John
Maybe something like this is what you need:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Industry-Grad ... 3641.l6368

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 7:35 am
by r6eck
I wouldn't be fitting it to a 6v setup on an old bike.
If its like my old dt175 then voltage varies all over the place.
Will hardly light a bulb at tickover.
Not the best for modern electronic equipment.

Have you considered upgrading your bike to 12v

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 7:37 am
by dodursley
I did a bit of looking around at adding satnav to my CT90. Most run on USB 5v ish power and I did find some power reducers, including circuits, on the internet but do not have the links.
I have just brought a C200 myself the electrics are a bit complex a mixed DC/AC system, as in many early small Hondas. Ignition, stop, horn and battery charging are unregulated DC (rectified AC) and lights are unregulated AC. Satnavs are sensitive to voltage so their power needs to be regulated.
Alternative have an additional small 12v battery on a carrier and feed some AC to a 12v zener diode to the supply the 12v battery & use a normal 12v-5v satnav/phone reducer. Not a very elegant solution. Try the C90 forum.

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 11:00 am
by nickoff
dodursley wrote:I did a bit of looking around at adding satnav to my CT90. Most run on USB 5v ish power and I did find some power reducers, including circuits, on the internet but do not have the links.
I have just brought a C200 myself the electrics are a bit complex a mixed DC/AC system, as in many early small Hondas. Ignition, stop, horn and battery charging are unregulated DC (rectified AC) and lights are unregulated AC. Satnavs are sensitive to voltage so their power needs to be regulated.
Alternative have an additional small 12v battery on a carrier and feed some AC to a 12v zener diode to the supply the 12v battery & use a normal 12v-5v satnav/phone reducer. Not a very elegant solution. Try the C90 forum.
If you have a modern mobile phone why not download one of the many satnav apps and use that? Buy yourself a power pack for less than 20 quid and it should keep you going fir ages.
Nick.

Sent from my LG-H815 using Tapatalk

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 11:41 am
by Rederic
Just use the sat/nav from its own inbuilt battery you can keep it topped up with a power pack or if your using a Montanna just use AA batteries
It worked for me on my KLX 250

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Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 11:48 am
by Peirre
I did wonder why the OP was considering fitting the satnav.
As most of us use them to navigate the last mile or two to the destination, which made me think why not just switch it on when your nearly there and use its internal battery power.

Re: Is it possible to fit a Sat Nav to my 6v vintage bike??

Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2016 12:29 pm
by Hugh
Greetings,

I do n't use a proprietary Sat Nav as such when on my bike but as back up I have an application called 'HERE' on my Android Motorola G3 water resistant mobile phone. It only takes seconds to park up and just check your location although you could mount your phone in a waterproof case on your handlebars.

I have also used this app own a Windows phone too and found it very useful. I have tested in many high end cars and it works just as well and the extra benefit is that it is free. If unsure about phone battery life just carry one of those little power packs.

TTFN

Hugh.