How To Reset a TomTom Car Sat Nav

If you have a TomTom sat nav and the firmware on it is playing up, constantly freezing up on the welcome screen or the battery life is not lasting as long as it should, then you should apply a reset to your TomTom. Usually a reset fixes these type of symptom problems.

How To Reset a TomTom Instructions:

1)Make sure the TomTom sat nav has a battery that is charged, if the battery is dead the reset will not work, so doing it is pointless with a TomTom with a dead battery. So if the battery in your TomTom is dead, plug it in for a quick charge and then perform the reset.

2)If your TomTom has a SD memory card inserted into it, remove it.

3)Make sure the TomTom is powered on and then look for the small reset button hole, it is found near the mini usb port on the bottom of the device.

4)Once you found the small hole, with the reset button inside it, get a small pointy screwdriver, pin or needle and place it through the hole, pushing the reset button down. Press the reset button in for about 5 seconds and release it.

5)Insert the SD memory card you removed from the TomTom into the memory card slot and power on the device, the reset is now completed.

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How To Clean a Car CD Player Head Unit

After some time, the faceplate on your CD player car head unit will become dusty and dirty and if cleaned, it will look brand new, once again.

Instructions:

1)You want to get hold of a cleaning cloth that is has soft fibers, you could use a dashboard cleaning cloth, but make sure you dont use a towel because you dont the appropriate cloth, you will cause large scratches to be visible and seen on the faceplate.

2)Dashboard cleaning spray works perfect for shining plastics, so it will work perfect for a CD player faceplate because that is made from plastic. So remove the faceplate from the CD player head unit, there sold be a release button and it should pop out into your hands.

3)Spray the dashboard cleaner spray onto the faceplate and using your cleaning cloth, rub it in upwards and downwards. Dont clean in any sort of circular motions, if will causes small circle scratched that can been seen in direct sunlight.

4)Once polished, re-attach the faceplate back onto the CD player head unit.

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What Do Spark Plugs Do In a Car Engine

You might be wondering what do spark plugs do inside a car engine and why are they needed, well I am going to explain it. A spark plug is a small device that is placed into the cylinder head inside a car engine because it was invented in 1860 by Etienne Lenoir, when he created the first engine that runs because of combustion.

The explanation why it is placed into the cylinder inside a car engine is so the electrical spark that is created by a high voltage coil, which also travels through a spark plugs wire, when the on board computer tells the spark plug to create a spark when you start up your car. When this happens, it will ignite the combustion mixture of fuel and air inside the car engine; this is to make the car engine start up and function. 

The combustion occurs inside the car engine, when the spark from the coil ignites the squashed fuel vapor into the cylinder. This then will cause an explosion to be created and will force the piston and piston rod down; this makes the crankshaft rotate, then makes the gears rotate and then finally the wheels turn, when you apply pressure to the throttle. Once the spark plugs has triggered the combustion to occur, the engine no longer requires them, as the fuel burns repeatedly because it will be entered in the combustion chamber.

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How To Fix a TomTom SatNav Thats Not Charging In Car

A TomTom is a great gadget that is a must if you want to get to your detestation, without using a physical paper map. All TomTom models will have an internal battery pack that holds an electrical charge. When you dont connect your car charger to it, the sat nav then obtains its power from the internal battery pack. The power that the battery pack can store is sufficient enough for local trips. If you are planning on going on long distance journeys, it is essential to plug it into your car cigarette charger socket. This will provide constant power to the car sat nav and will no longer rely on the battery packs power. If the green charging light on your TomTom is not lighting up, it is a symptom that it is not charging. You want to find a solution to this problem before you set off or you will eventually have a dead sat nav.

1) Ensure that the USB lead is connected both firmly into the sat nav and car cigarette lighter socket. Loose connections are likely to cause charging problems. If either connectors are loose, the pins inside will not connect properly to their sockets, causing a bad connection.

2) The charging lead could be faulty. If you notice that when you move the wire around, the TomTom charges sometimes and sometimes not, it is probably the cause to the problem. So wiggle the connectors to see if you can get it charging. If you can, then replace the existing cable with a brand new original replacement.

3) Check if the USB adapter is working. Some newer models of the TomTom GPS sat nav come supplied with a USB adapter. Sometimes the pins inside the USB socket you connect the charger plug into can become bent or broken. Look inside the USB socket, you will see four metal pins. If you see any bent pins, straighten them out with a flat head screwdriver. If any pins seem to be broken off, there nothing you can do. You will have to purchase a brand new replacement adapter.

4) The metal pins inside the charging socket could be dirty. It is possible that dust and dirt have contaminated the pins from every day use. When this happens, the metal pins cant get a good electrical connection with there sockets. So obtain a cotton swab and give all sockets a quick clean. Then reconnect everything and see if the device now charges up successfully.

5) Replace the battery pack. If the battery pack is getting charged up, but it is not holding charge long enough, it is faulty. This can happen if you have used up the maximum charges the battery pack can hold or it is damaged from overcharging. You will need to open up your TomTom sat nav to replace the battery pack. No soldering is required, you simply unplug the old battery pack and replug the new one. You can do it yourself at home or send it in for a repair.

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