Thinking of upgrading your satnav? A caution for any member who has had a Garmin Satnav hardwired to their car that they need to be aware of a change in the size of the USB plug and socket used for the power supply lead on a current satnav. If you get a recent Gamin satnav, particularly the DriveSmart 66 device, you will find the USB size has changed and an existing hardwired USB connector will probably not fit the new satnav. Posted: 240207 Having your Garmin or Tomtom satnav or dashcam hardwired in your car It's a useful and convenient way of ensuring both devices are turned on when your ignition is switched on. There is no need to reach round either device and find the "ON" switch, they come on automatically. New satnavs with live traffic updates New models of satnavs models offer improved navigation services not least thanks to live traffic updates, diverting you away from congestion and accidents, which is useful on routes both old and new. Live traffic information, whether you're driving in a congested city or simply keen to cut out significant delays on your daily commute, is handy in almost every situation, alerting you to any potential obstacles on your journey. Traffic updates will usually come via your mobile phone data. Your satnav will connect to the corresponding app on your phone and use it to access the live traffic information. If this is a feature you're keen to explore, check out two satnavs: TomTom GO Discover 5" Car Sat Nav Garmin DriveSmart 66 with Alexa Hardwiring fitting service Halfords offer a fitting service (currently for a modest £35) which involves hardwiring the power supply to the satnav which avoids cables dangling over your dashboard and near your gearstick if you plug into a cigar lighter socket. In the photo above you can see that the hadwired power supply cable passes near the steering column and then for a very brief stage behind the edge of the "infotainment" screen and up onto the top of the dashboard to the suction pad holding the satnav mount. The power supply cable then plugs into a USB socket at the back of the satnav (see photo above). Caution if you upgrade to a Garmin DriveSmart 66 & have existing hardwiring When a new family car arrived In December 2023 I had both the dashcam and a relatively new Garmin satnav hardwired to the car by Halfords. The result was very good - both gadgets came up on screen as soon as the ignition was turned on. We then decided to go for a more sophisticated satnav with live traffic updates via a connection with a mobile phone. We chose a Garmin DriveSmart 66 but on trying to fit it on the dashboard suction pad mount the USB plug on our existing hardwire power supply cable simply would not fit into the USB socket on the new satnav. For an unexplained reason the size of the USB plug and socket had been changed to a smaller size on the newer Garmin Drive Smart 66! Solving the mismatch of the USB plug on the connector and the USB socket in the new Garmin satnav Essentially there are two options: Have the hardwiring modified so a smaller USB plug on the connector running up to and into the satnav will then fit the USB socket on the newer satnav. That will involve booking another hardwiring session with Halfords for the wiring modification involving fitting a new connecting wire with the smaller USB plug. or Stay with your existing Garmin satnav and rely of your spotting heavy traffic on the screen when the road ahead goes a bright red colour. Alternative rerouting will not be carried out by the satnav, it will need the driver's judgment as to whether a manual rerouting would be a worthwhile choice. Contacts with the Garmin online helpline On our asking "why has Garmin introduced this inconvenience and now expense? Surely Garmin can see that changing the size of the USB connector would affect users who had gone to the expense of having their satnav hardwired in their car with the existing USB connector for an earlier Garmin satnav." The response from Garmin was "unfortunately, I am unable to advise as to why this connection was changed between these devices I am afraid." I felt that was really not very helpful.