G'day, I have a 12V air pump that I used to run from my 2003 Echo's 12V battery to pump up bike tyres as well as the car tyres. I'd simply open the bonnet (hood?) and connect to the + and - terminals of the battery. I now have a 2016 Prius c and would like to know if I can use the 12V battery access points as per its manual for 'jump starting' the Prius should its 12V battery be flat. The positive terminal for this procedure is in the fuse box and the negative is a connection to the car's 'earth', that is, to the chassis or similar conductive location. The alternative seems to be to remove the 12V battery cover under the rear seat and do the connections to the battery terminals. Are these readily reachable (I haven't looked yet )? This looks a little more cumbersome than the under-bonnet connection but I would welcome advice on how simple this is if someone has tried this (or both ways) for 12V accessories like a pump/compressor. I also have a 150W inverter (12V DC to 240V AC) which I could run through the 'cigarette lighter' socket under the dash but the possibility of a more direct connection to the 12V battery would be nice to know. Thanks, David S. Chatswood, NSW.
welcome! no problem connecting to the jump point. if i were going to go directly to the 12v, i would hardwire it and use some kind of plug/jack left under the seat when not in use.
Good idea to have the car in "ready" mode (the car on, supplying voltage to the 12 volt battery) while using such a pump. Myself I use a (manual) floor-standing bicycle pump, works fine.
Never draw load from your battery when the car is not in Ready. The jump start post should be fine to run the air pump. The 'cigarette lighter' socket will only be active when the car is Ready, but that would have been my recommendation anyway. It is possible it will blow a fuse before consuming a full 150 watts. (I think it is a 10 Ampere fuse) Welcome to PriusChat I hope you find it informative. (I do not own a c, but I owned a Gen 2 and now a v)
I run a 12V air pump off the power socket (cigarette lighter socket) to inflate tires. But as previously advised keep the car in Ready Mode, in a Prius C you can easily run the 12V battery flat unlike in a traditional car. I would recommend using the jump points rather than direct battery connection as its tricky to reach that terminals and risk a short circuit. Also if you hard wire anything to the battery make sure you install a fuse to the line.
G'day, Thanks for all your helpful replies. I'll feel confident next time the grandkids invade with their bikes with often flat tyres, to do an inflation or three. I take your general warnings to do this in 'Ready' mode. Looks like the jumper-lead method will be simpler for starters, as the air pump didn't come with a 'cigarette lighter socket' plug (a bit unusual for an Aldi offering) and I think the direct battery connection does seem a bit more 'fiddly'. David S.
