Powering a dash cam in your car can sometimes be tricky, especially if you want it to record even when your engine is off for parking surveillance. If your car’s cigarette lighter socket is always live, you’re in luck. You can easily use a male-to-female cigarette lighter adapter with a built-in low voltage cut-off switch. A popular and readily available option is the “battery saver” from Koolatron. Simply plug this adapter into your cigarette lighter, then connect a cigarette lighter to USB adapter, and finally, your dash cam. This setup is crucial because the low voltage cut-off will automatically stop power to your dash cam if your car battery voltage drops below 11.6 volts, preventing battery drain.
However, if your cigarette lighter only works when the engine is running, you’ll need a different approach for continuous power. This is where OBD2 power supplies become incredibly useful. These adapters, available on platforms like Amazon, plug directly into your car’s OBD2 port and often come with a similar low voltage cut-off switch. Using an OBD2 port is a clean and simple solution, avoiding any complicated wiring. It’s definitely preferable to attempting to splice wires directly into your OBD2 port, which could potentially cause issues.
For parking mode functionality, you’ll want your dash cam to operate in standby or surveillance mode. This means it will only activate and record when triggered by motion or a g-force sensor. If your cigarette lighter is engine-dependent, consider running a USB cable from your dash cam and tucking it under the dashboard. This allows you to easily switch between power sources: use the OBD2 port adapter for parking surveillance when the engine is off, and revert to a cigarette lighter connection when driving.
If your cigarette lighter is always powered, you can create a more permanent setup. Use a heavy-duty cigarette lighter splitter rated for at least 10 amps. Plug the Koolatron battery saver into one port on the splitter. Then, connect a high-quality cigarette lighter to USB adapter into the Koolatron. This powers your dash cam and leaves the other port on the splitter free for charging your phone or other devices.
When you need to access your OBD2 port for diagnostics or scanning, simply unplug the adapter. Importantly, powering a dash cam via the OBD2 port is perfectly safe in terms of power load. OBD2 ports are designed to supply up to 4 amps, and even dual dash cams typically draw 2 amps or less, ensuring you won’t overload the system. This makes using an OBD2 power adapter a convenient and safe method for powering your dash cam, especially for parking mode and battery protection.
