In Cab AC Outlet Plug And Play

I wanted to share this plug and play harness I built (see pictures).
The harness puts 2 120VAC, 2 USB A, and 1 USB C outlet in the cab.
The harness plugs into the stock AC inverter.
The harness is plug and play. Absolutely zero wire splicing, can be removed and vehicle returned to stock at any time.
The outlets are placed into a cutout in the center console.
This is handy for giving backseat passengers USB ports, too.
Huge shoutout to numerous Tacoma World members and forums for helping with the pinout and electrical diagrams to get this right!

If there's enough interest I was thinking I could build up a few and sell them to those who are interested.

 

OEM inverter is ONLY 3 amps output (A/C)...

 

Exactly. The AC outlets are mostly for convenience. Same limitation as the outlet in the bed.
High-power devices (saws, heaters, etc.) wouldn't really work here.
Charging my work laptop in the cab has been pretty handy, though.
Way better than running an extension cord from the bed!

Thanks for pointing this out, @caribe makaira !

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ith-30”-extension-by-redside-electric.746715/

 

I might be interested in one depending on price.

 

I'm in for this kit. How much?

 

Interested, DM me about pricing.

 

I’d be interested, depending on the price.

 

Hey everyone,

Thanks for all your valuable feedback and interest. Because of you I’ve decided to move forward!
The next step is figuring out how to get a bigger order of the components.
Then it’ll be lots of time in my workshop building splicing, cutting, crimping!
These two steps will take some time.
Also, I want to express a special thanks to all you early commenters. Once I can figure out building a bunch of these you guys will definitely get top priority on delivery!

Any feedback on styling/features is always welcome!

Thanks,
Taco Tech

 

I'd be interested as well. Put me on the list please.

 

A couple of things:
Why don't you incorporate the Anytime 400W mod.
Oh, OK only one.

 

That’s a good question. As of now, I’m in the camp of “Toyota designed the system that way for a reason”. I’ve read some other Tacoma World forums on the 400W anytime.
Here’s a guy with some calculations on why 400W anytime might be a bad idea: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/how-to-400w-anytime-mod-3rd-gen.436831/page-3#post-14832363
Here’s another guy who’s in the “400W anytime is fine” camp: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-and-400w-anytime.505598/page-3#post-18402486

 

Typical lighter socket is good for 10 amp I just plug in a duel USB adapter.

 

Just to clarify, does this require that the truck be equipped with the 400W output in the bed? Or would this work on an SR as well?

 

No.

 

This likely does not work in an SR. This harness mod I built requires the vehicle to have the AC Inverter box already installed. I don’t think SR has that. Quick way to tell, does your truck have an AC (3 prong household) outlet in the bed? If not, this mod won’t work. If so, this mod should work.

 

For those fofo'ing this mod, it's pretty obvious why Toyota limited the output when the vehicle is moving. It has nothing to do with the physical capabilities of the charging system, it's got everything to do with driver awareness. All vehicles will exhibit charging problems when there's too much draw and not enough capacity, more going out then is coming in. Perfect scenario that I've witnessed quite a few times when I lived in the NE, stick a vehicle in a snowstorm in stop and go traffic, defrost on high, headlights on, wipers on, brake lights on and off repeatedly every few seconds coupled with mostly idle speed and the load will often be more then the system is putting out (negative charge rate). No surprise, you're basically running most if not all of the vehicle's electrical systems when the alt output is at its lowest. Add in 400w of load in that scenario and it's more than likely you'll run the battery down eventually. It's not unique to this vehicle, many vehicles will suffer from from negative charge rate in those conditions w/o adding in an extra 400W.

For those of you who think this is a bad mod due to being able to pull more current in gear then toyota specifies should consider the 400W anytime mod has been around since this system came out in the Tacoma in 2005, lots of people on here and elsewhere here have done this mod including me with zero issues. Ever hear of any wiring or alt failures due to running the inverter in the 400W mode? I haven't ether.

Many of the limitations placed on the vehicle from the factory are to protect the owners from doing something that will leave them stranded, pulling an addl 400W in the scenario I described would likely run the battery down eventually so Toyota protects the drivers from that situation by limiting the output when the vehicle is in gear. If the owner is oblivious to that possibility then they probably shouldn't do this mod. One must also consider that the 400W is the system's peak output, unless you're running something that requires 3A of current you aren't using 400W.

I use it to charge a power bank that runs the fridge and to charge quite a few different types of batteries, none of that comes anywhere close to 400W but it does go over 100W when I'm charging 2 drone batteries (90W) while charging the power bank. Many get away fine with stock 100W in-gear output. If you add an inverter to your truck you're susceptible to the same risk, the difference is Toyota is protecting you with the built in 100W limitation.

Who wants 100 when you can have 400

 

This is the best explanation yet. Also, very true to day-to-day reality. Thanks for taking the time.

OP could just build the option into his mod and let the user decide to use it or not.

 

You can buy 400 watt inverters all day long for less than $50. Frankly it should be wired directly to the battery with two fuses, full smoke it will draw over 30 amps read #10 wire best to use two fuses + and -.