Chevy Colorado & GMC Canyon banner

Continuous Power to Power Outlet (APO/RAP) outlets/USB

123K views 107 replies 57 participants last post by  Browneye 
#1 ·
Having some trouble (I think) with my power outlets.

2015 Colorado CC LT SB 4WD

I have the following, from front to back:

- Center stack (defined in manual as "below the climate control system"): 1 USB, 1 APO (cig lighter)
- Center floor console (inside armrest): 1 USB
- Rear of the center floor console: 2 USB, 1 APO

The vehicle manual states (9-25) :
"The APOs on the center stack come from the factory powered directly from the vehicle battery, and supply accessory power at all times, regardless of ignition key position. If electronic items are left plugged into these APOs for long periods of time with the vehicle off, the vehicle battery could be drained".
I tried to leave a phone plugged in here for an hour when I was away from my truck, but returned to find no charge. Upon further testing, none of the center stack outlets provide any power when the vehicle is off, despite what the manual says.

I tested the other two outlet locations (console), and there is no power from any of them with the vehicle off (which is correct, per the manual). The center stack, however, should have power, but does not.


I'm also not happy with the amount of power outputted by the USB outlets (tried all 4 of them) when the vehicle is actually running.

When I connect my phones, the phones treat it as a computer connection (all the icons in the status bar about USB debugging, Media Device MTP connected, etc). I understand that's probably because of the MyLink interface, which is fine. But the actual power outputted seems to be barely a trickle. I'd like to use these USB ports to charge my phones, but while on an 8 hour road trip last weekend, the charge could not keep up with the batteries of two different phones when running anything on them - Nav, music, web browsing, etc. When completely off, the phones would charge very slowly, but with any use they would not charge at all, or even lose power while plugged in. If I plug an inverter into the cig lighter, and use that to charge, I get plenty of power. It's the USBs themselves that are not performing as expected.

This defeats the whole point of having USB ports all over the place, IMO. I want them primarily for charging, not interfacing with MyLink. I can use Bluetooth for that if I want. I'd rather not have to use a separate inverter to charge my devices. Seems like a step back.

I don't know if these two power issues are related, separate, or even an issue (I assume the constant-power on the center stack is a real problem per the manual). Anyone else experience this, or find a work-around? Is anyone able to watch a movie on a tablet and actually have it charge (actually increase charge) at the same time? Thanks!
 
See less See more
#2 ·
The 5v usb ports have a certain wattage output.

A USB socket has four pins and and a USB cable has four wires. The inside pins carry data (D+ and D-), and the outside pins provide a 5-volt power supply. In terms of actual current (milliamps or mA), there are three kinds of USB port dictated by the current specs: a standard downstream port, a charging downstream port, and a dedicated charging port. The first two can be found on your computer (and should be labeled as such), and the third kind applies to “dumb” wall chargers. In the USB 1.0 and 2.0 specs, a standard downstream port is capable of delivering up to 500mA (0.5A); in USB 3.0, it moves up to 900mA (0.9A). The charging downstream and dedicated charging ports provide up to 1500mA (1.5A).

Not sure what spec the trucks ports are. IF they go by standards it could be anywhere from 500 to 1500ma. If you are using GPS/Navigation on the phone actively plus all the other features it is not going to charge very fast if only 500ma is being put out.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Thanks! I've heard some of that before, but never in such a clear concise manner.

It sounds like GM decided to go with the low end here... I'm guessing most people would rather have their phones charge faster than have a USB interface with MyLink. Bluetooth works fine for connecting.

Or at least split the USB ports up - there's 4 of them - why have all of them as MyLink connectors? Should have dedicated a couple for charging only. All those USB ports are basically useless for me as they've been designed.

Guess I've got no option here other than to go back to the 20th century and use the cig lighter to charge. Now if I can only figure out why I'm not getting power all the time in the center stack.
 
#5 ·
If you plug a standard adapter for the cig lighter to USB port, does it charge faster, as opposed to an inverter?
 
#6 ·
My little 12V to dual-USB Griffin from my old truck had burned out, so I only had an old 400W inverter available to test, just to make sure the cig lighter put out more power than the USBs, which it does.

As for what charges faster - wouldn't that depend on the adapters used? My broken adapter was 1 Amp per port. Using an inverter would let me use whatever AC charger I want - e.g. the one that came with my HTC (also 1 AMP), or the charger my wife got with her Samsung (2 AMP), which should charge faster.
 
#8 ·
I have this same issue with my Samsung Galaxy S3 and the USB ports in the Canyon. They will charge my S3 but only at 500mA. The phone settings show it's charging as USB.

I ended up using a standard charger plugged in the APO port and when I do that, my phone shows it's charging as AC (1 amp) instead of USB.

My ports don't stay powered when I turn off the key either even though the manual says otherwise.
 
#10 ·
Here is the explanation and fix according to a dealer.
The vehicle is fitted with 12 V accessory power receptacles which are controlled by an ignition operated relay and only operate when the ignition is in the on or run postions. The accesssory power receptacles may be configured to be operational when the ignition is off by changing the postion of the 50A fuse from the F44DA position to the F40DA postion. These outlets will then run off the battery consistent with what is indicated in the Owners Manual
 
#11 ·
Here is the explanation and fix according to a dealer.
The vehicle is fitted with 12 V accessory power receptacles which are controlled by an ignition operated relay and only operate when the ignition is in the on or run postions. The accesssory power receptacles may be configured to be operational when the ignition is off by changing the position of the 50A fuse from the F44DA position to the F40DA postion. These outlets will then run off the battery consistent with what is indicated in the Owners Manual
That is very interesting, would not have been able to tell by looking at the owner's manual (for the Canyon) that a simple fuse swap would correct this issue.

Have me wondering now - My Samsung phone will charge from completely dead on wall charger in about 2 hours. My Samsung Tablet took all night, probably 9 hours, to get a full charge on the same charger. I need to look at the charger that came with the Tablet and see if it is rated for a higher output.
 
#12 ·
Very interesting and helpful discussion. It is my understanding that the charger plugged in to the 12v socket reduces to 5v. The amps will vary from one charger to another and will determine how quickly it charges.

The USB charge ports are already 5v, but I don't know how many amps.
 
#13 ·
Got linked here from IRV2.com the motorhome forum for getting hot sockets for the Colorado with ignition off to power a brake unit.

I'm curious who figured this out...
This is a very easy switcharoo...the red 50a fuse holder at the bottom between the 2 purple 15's has 3-blades - you just unplug it from the bottom 2 and plug it back in on the top two. I'm guessing the center is the source power. 50a is a pretty big fuse...I wonder what else it powers.

Yep...both 12v sockets are now live! Whoot!

All over this truck are these neat little sound deadening pads, nice touch.

I also noticed the loom holder was just floating - evidently the loom is preassembled and they got the strap in the wrong place so assembly guy couldn't make it fit so just left it hanging. I loosened the strap and moved it up to where it's supposed to be and pushed the holder into the hole for it just under the fuse tray. It also holds the tray to the body, so it's a double purpose plug and a good idea to have it in there.





 
#15 ·
wonder if that's the way it's supposed to be from the factory?
 
#18 ·
Is there any way to figure out what else would be changed by moving the fuse? If that's a 50 amp fuse, it has to do more than just that USB and 12V port, no?
 
#19 ·
I don't know how to link to the Electrical Schematics, someone earlier had posted a link and I downloaded it - a large file, titled Canyon_Colorado_Electrical_Body_Builders_Manual. It is a 717 page PDF.

On page 229, shows the schematic of Fuses F40DA and F44DA. Basically, the 50 AMP fuse can be placed to provide switched or retained power to the circuits. The circuits are further protected by a separate 15 Amp fuse feeding the Accessory Power Receptacle located under the main stack and in the center console. That is to say, there is one 15 AMP fuse for each of those power receptacles. See fuses F39 and F41. (Fuse descriptions are on page 10-40 of the Canyon owner's manual as well. )

So, the 50 Amp fuse is not powering anything else,
 
  • Like
Reactions: kevin1
#23 · (Edited)
Sorry, both pics show the red 50 in the top position. The tabs for the fuse sockets are right next to each other. Stock is in the bottom and middle for switched power, in the top and middle for continuous power - regardless of key.

If you take your cover off and locate that big red 50a fuse, it will be in the bottom position for switched power.
 
#25 ·
I'm on day 5 with my Z71 Colorado CC 4X4, and today my phone died while I was working. This is a problem because I drive 100+ miles a day for work, and I skipped on navigation since I'm used to just using my phone. My work also requires me to take 100s of photos of construction sites each day, so my phone having some charge is crucial. I tried plugging my phone into the old school outlet with a USB adapter and my phone still died! It literally doesn't give my phone enough charge to stay on while plugged in. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
#26 ·
Using the 12V adapter socket should give you all the power you need depending on the 12V adapter you are using. 500ma is not much for charging, I would prefer an adapter that supplied at least 1.5 to 2 A. Unfortunately many manufacturers don't list the specs. And just because it says its fused for 15A means nothing as far as the current it will supply to the device.

This place says this is the best one out there...who knows.
The Best USB Car Charger | The Wirecutter
 
#28 · (Edited)
To get a MUCH faster USB charging speed (faster than the standard 500mAh rate), I got this:

It charges my phone a lot faster than before, about 10% increase every 15 mins or so (Sony Z3c). This works for the front port, the center console port, or either of the rear ports.


Edit: don't use these cables to try to transfer data through your computer. Just keep them in your truck. I've got 3 in my truck in case my passengers need them, or as extras for using at airports (I don't trust those public USB chargers to not steal my data. This cable doesn't allow ANY data transfer)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dl55
#31 ·
I have attached the images of the fuse panel located on the right side foot well. There is a wingnut that holds the panel in place. Once off simply remove the panel cover from it's location. The first image shows the fuse "as installed" and the second "as modified" to the new location. The fuse is a tight fit and I had trouble grabbing it with pliers to pull it out. I actually broke off the purple plastic cover, but was able to put it back on. The second photo shows the now un-used terminal that powers the outlets in the ignition on position.
 

Attachments

#32 ·
Piper,

Thanks for the pics. I didn't feel like crawling into my passenger seat, standing on my head, with my feet in the air, to get where I could see that fuse box the other day. But, the phone/camera works well. :grin2:
 
  • Like
Reactions: 16WhiteColly
#37 ·
cigarette Outlet Power

Is there a way to bypass the key switch so that the cigarette outlet powers with the Key Off for charging phones? I believe the USB port charges with the key off but I prefer the cigarette outlet power because it charges the phone faster than the USB port next to it.
 
#39 ·
#40 ·
12 volts in cabin?

The cigarette lighter doesn't have 12 volts with the key off.

Is there another source inside the truck that has 12 volts all the time?

OR is the cigarette lighter programmable to provide 12 volts when the key is off?

Thanks, Dave
 
#41 ·
  • Like
Reactions: RatRacer
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top