As I just got a 12-volt GPS for a truck with a 24-volt system and the GPS must be plugged into the lighter socket is there a cheap and easy way to connect the GPS into the truck's electrical system?

Answer 1

just so you know, all trucks used to have a full 24 volt system and cars had a 6 volt system so the design is not a nightmare. still a lot of tractors about with a 6 volt system. now a good electrician can connect a 12 volt unit to a 24 volt system if he knows what he is doing it is just a matter of knowing where to do it on a battery. you can also buy a voltage converter and wire it in. and yes you can still buy 24 light bulbs Before you go deep inside this, check the voltage on the cigarette lighter. It should only be 12 volts. The 24 volts are used in starting the truck only. By thinking this through, designing a vehicle that worked on a 24-volt electrical system would be a disaster. No one would buy it. All the current electrical components for vehicles are for 12-volt systems. Lights, gauges, radios - everything! How much trouble would it be to replace something like, say, a map light if a 24-volt lamp had to be located? Alternativley Check the powercable as many of them can work on different voltage say from 10 to 30 volts and power the gps with the correct voltage.