Truck inverter question

I have a question that has been bugging me and was wondering if anyone knows the answer. In our trucks that have the 400 watt inverter and plug in the bed the switch has two settings. 400 watts if the truck is setting still and idling and 100 watts if the truck is moving.

My question is WHY? What possessed Toyota to go to the expense of making an automatic switch that cuts the wattage if the truck is moving? Why not just on full wattage and off?

Anyone know the logic behind this? By the way I understand that there is a work around and I am not asking how to do that. I am simply asking is there a logical reason for the inverter to be set up that way?

 

It's because Americans are lawsuit happy. We should be lucky Toyota allows the inverter to be active while out of park.

Why do you think the rear view mirror is so low in the windshield?.. It's because if you leave your sunglass holder down, you can still see into the mirror. All it takes is one asshole to sue Toyota because the driver couldn't see into the mirror and a resulting accident caused injury and damage.... because the sunglass holder door was down.

 

400 watts is 4 100 watt light bulbs or something pulling 3.3 amps. I doubt anything that only pulls 3 amps is all that big. If they were concerned about a large load in the back then they should not have a bed on the truck to haul something large enough to kill a person if in a wreck.

 

I don't understand the correlation between the mirror, sunglass holder, and the inverter switch.

 

That's unfortunate, but I can understand your confusion.

 

You mean more than idling would stress the charging system while running full power?

 

So a little throttle isn't doing any good when I'm winching someone else or jumping their battery? I've always done this.

 

The alternator is regulated to give the battery a certain amount of voltage and not overcharge it. That's an old wives tale of revving the engine for more voltage.

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!

I've been doing this since I was a kid, helping the old man - since the 80's!

Old dog - new trick

 

While your alternator is regulated between 13 and 14.5 volts it does not put out full amperage at idle. Most alternators will only put out about 1/4 of their total amperage at idle. While jumping a dead battery or running a high amp load like a winch it is very helpful to run the engine around 2000 rpm so your battery isn't taking the full load.

As far as the OP's question about the inverter, I have no idea.

 

I think it's so you won't underpower needed electrical accessories while driving. Like the headlights and taillights. It's the only reason I can reason.

 

Or how about the biggest electrical draws on your truck, like the ABS / VSC modulator pump that is fused at 60A / 30A w/o VSC or 60A/ 50A with VSC) and draws a lot of power in the event it engages, and don't forget to add electric trailer brake draws of up to 15A if towing? I'd say it's all about ensuring plenty of power for the safety systems.

 

This, exactly, though most modern alternators are still capable of producing about 50% current at idle.

 

its likely some law. They probably dont want you powering some 400w light while moving the truck down the road.