USB Charging ports in an xk8

[Terry1961]

Hi All

It's fair to say my 1999 xk8 is great, best car ever etc. However it's of an age before usb ports. Up to now (3 years) I've been using one of the plug in adapters that fits into the cigar-lighter socket which works fine. However I usually have 2 bits of kit in the armrest on charge meaning cables dangling out the front and plugged into the adapter all the time.

I searched online for solutions, found references to installing a double socket unit in the back of the arm rest cubby hole, ideal I thought . So I pulled the arm rest out and the box beneath. There is lots of room to fit a socket all I needed was a ground and a switched 12v supply, i.e. ignition switched.

A common solution is to remove the centre console to get at the cables feeding the cigar lighter socket, but I was wary of that incase I damaged the j-gate wood surround. So an alternative was needed.

I found an article on another forum about using the supply for the redundant telephone module, there is 12V and 0V on the 25w D-type connector, but that cable wasn't there. After studying a couple of photos I was able to see that the telephone module cable plugs into the spare socket at the rear of the armrest space, so all I had to do was check which pins/wire colours the supply was on.

Green = 12V
Black = 0V

I buzzed the green wire back to the fuse panel just inside the LH door, at the end of the dashboard, it is labelled in the handbook as "mobile telephone handset", its fuse is rated at 5A, perfect for a 2 port socket.

Now then, I do not have a mating connector to connect it up, so took the drastic decision to cut the 2 wires off the socket, however I left a short length of wire on the socket so IF there was ever the need it could be put back as it was.

2 wires soldered on to the green and black wires, covered in heatshrink sleeving, 1/4" crimp sockets on the ends plus an in-line blade fuse holder with 5A fuse as a precaution and it's good to go.

End result works a treat.

A word of caution, not all sockets out there are well made, the first one I bought looked nice BUT thankfully I connected it to the supply and plugged 2 tablets in to test it out before I drilled the hole for it, just as well as it was a white noise generator when it had a load attached. It wiped out weak stations on my radio - yes I still use it sometimes ☺. I duly returned it and bought another one from amazon (a SONRU QC3.0 Dual USB Charger Socket) this one tested ok so I drilled the hole and fitted it.

Job done. I now have 2 usb sockets permanently fitted and can always plug the old adaptor in to the cigar lighter socket on the odd occasion I need more.

I would post a photo of it in situ but cannot see how....if anyone can point me in the right direction I will add one.

Terry

[mike020150]

An excellent modernising tip for XK8s. To add pics, use the attachment tab below the message box and follow the instructions. Providing the pic isn't too large, it should transfer. Alternatively you can drag and drop files into messages. Mike.

[Terry1961]

Thanks Mike

Must be going blind, just didn't see the attachment tab ☺

Terry

[andypryce]

Looks really good, nice job. I wonder if anyone has done the same on the 06 onwards model? There is no obvious feed in the central cubby box as there is no phone. If anyone has I would be interested to know how.

[mike020150]

Check out the wiring for later X150 models which have both USB and ipod connectors in the centre console. That may give you clues where to add a suitable socket. Mike.

[Andy P]

Hello Terry,
That's a very neat addition and well thought out.
Might look into doing something like that on my X308.
Well done
Take care and enjoy your XK8.
Andy

[Terry1961]

Thanks Andy

My XK8 is gggrrrreat!

Next mod is a switch to stop the aerial rising when I'm listening to tapes or music via a bluetooth adapter, but thats well documented fortunately.

While we are on the subject, those plug in bluetooth / vhf radio adapters, have had 2 with mixed results, main issue is them picking up ignition whine through the 12V supply, it's very faint but still slightly annoying on quiet tracks. One solution is this little module, it really does work well, might be useful for other owners.
https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B ... UTF8&psc=1

Terry