Garmin power cord in Europe

The standard automobile 12V socket is not quite so very standard, and I personally have had some pairs of automobile and cord or device not make connection. I've actually had better luck with my Garmin cords than others.

People supply 1-2 adapters mainly to support more than one device, but if you took one of these along that you know your Garmin will plug into it would give you one more chance at getting a connection.

Then, of course, the really simple possibility is that the accessory 12V fuse was blown on the vehicle(s) in question. To protect for that case you could take along a spare. One 15A fuse in each of the two currently common form factors (blade type in the regular and mini formats) plus one more of the older tubular style (J554 standard) if you are a nostalgia type should cover most cases.

I had a recent rental with a dead socket up front. That car had an extra 12V socket in the back seat area which was on a different fuse--something else to try in a pinch.

Maybe a remote possibility is that the car had a reverse polarity system?

I had that same thought... not all vehicles are 12v negative ground...

Back in the 1970s, plug in adaptors often came with a sleeve to allow use in European car receptacles, which were larger diameter.

A quick look on Wiki shows this may still be true:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cigarette_lighter_receptacle

I haven't noticed this problem lately, but it could be the problem.

Roy

Many power sources are just dummy or have fuses removed nowadays to prevent people lighting up cigarettes in cars. Alternatively, many of these cars actually have USB power sources hiding somewhere.

Unfortunately, I don't recall any governmental standards that cars must provide aux power source to power up our electronic gadgets. While in the old days, there was a law that cars must equipped with ashtrays and cigarette lighters.