This thing is perfect! The things I looked for when shopping for my first auto vac were:
1) Length of cord plenty of legnth. DON'T EVER GO FOR A WIRELESS AUTO VAC! The suction power dies, and eventually, you'll have 5 minutes of good suction per charge. The cord for this vac is too long and that's a good thing. Of course you'll need a cigarette lighter input, which all cars should have. I am able to reach the back of my Scion tC with ease and extra cord available. And if you know anything about tC's, they are small cars so you big car owners should have no problem at all.
2) Suction power Since this is a wired-type, there's no need to worry about loss of suction power. With 12V, this thing will clean up your car pretty nicely. For those stubborn pieces of dirt, hair, cloth, etc. that stick to your car fabric, the brush attachment does wonders.
3) Attachments It comes with three attachments a brush attachment, a rectangle-to-circle attachment to attach the brush, and a tube attachment to reach those hard-to-reach spots. This vac comes with a pivoting action end which is, in my opinion, genius. It really helps to access under the seats and under the side-ends of the back seats.
4) Convenience It's lightweight, and comes with a bag, so you can carry it around for travel.
All in all, this is the best auto vac solution. Don't worry about the price this thing is worth every penny.
I like this vac, but I can't say I love it. If the suction were a bit stronger, I'd be giving it 5*. Although it doesn't have the more powerful suction that I'd hoped for, it is still strong, and certainly much, much better than my previous auto vac. I will also add that I would probably do a better job when not holding the pocket cam in my other hand, so take that into consideration as well. That said, I am pleased with the performance and the features.
AIR WATTS= 11 Bowl Capacity= 11.8 oz.(350 ml)
CORD LENGTH= 16 ft. Replacement filter= PVF100
Volts= 12V 2 Year Warranty
The pivoting arm also has a smaller arm that extends out from the end if you choose to use it for the extra reach. While I was able to get the arm down next to the seats, it couldn't go all the way down, which is what I will use the hose attatchment for. The arm did excel at getting in between the rear seats as I could hold the unit at such an agle as to easily reach deep in between the seat and back cushion to get all the crumbs that get pushed there over time.
I haven't used the rounded brush yet, however the small brush that fits onto the very end of the pivot arm extender is very useful in that it helps agitate the debris in the carpet fibers giving a much better pick-up than using the arm alone. The hose I have used once, and it works fine, however I found that I lost a bit of suction with it attatched.
Emptying the unit is a breeze. You just flip up the lid, and dump it right into say, a plastic bag that you keep nearby as I did. The cord which plugs into a cigarette lighter wraps around the unit and has a clip on the end to keep it inplace. The 16 ft cord length is actually a very beneficial feature as I was easily able to reach the back of the car to vacuum the trunk. I like the fact that it's corded also, because it seems to me that the cordless models would have less power to begin with, and that power would decrease as it's in use; as well as the fact that you can only use them for a limited time before the need to recharge them. No such issues with a corded vac such as this PAV.
You also receive a neat carrying case that is roomy enough to fit the vac and all attatcments inside without having to cram them or figure out the secret to making them fit back in like some other items that come with cases often do.
There is no way to plug it in the home, and though I do see adapters that are marketed to use with this, the reviews on many of them say that they are not strong enough to power the vac. Originally, that was my plan, but I've since decided to just buy something else small messes in the home, ie a mini 2hp shop-vac.I will also post some pictures of the unit/accessories above as well.
**Update**7/27/11-I found another way to clean deep along both sides of the bucket seats up frontI went to WalMart to purchase a micro tools kitSHOP VAC MICRO-CLEANING that is actually for a shop vac that Shop-Vac 5895100 2.0-Peak Horsepower AllAround EZ Series Wet/Dry Vacuum, 1.5-Gallon I also just purchased-and sure enough, the attatchments fit on the Black & Decker too, as they're for any 1.25in hose. I also used the mini brushes to get into the vents and other tight spaces throughout the car. This discovery makes the Auto Vac even more useful.The kit is available on Amazon, but I checked Walmart online first, and found them in stock, as another reviewer said they were cheaper there. (If you do go to get the micro toolsthey're in the tools dept. by the shop vacsnot the vacuum aisle; or so they were in my area)
Buy Black & Decker PAV1200W 12-Volt Cyclonic-Action Automotive Pivoting-Nose Handheld Vacuum Cleaner Now
It's the third vacuum cleaner I have experience with. First one was cheap and useless even it was plugged in cigarette lighter it never could pick up any dirt, the second was the same but wireless with 3 minutes of full suction and 2 minutes of slow death (30 min to recharge). I'm done with cheap (around $12) stuff. It was all wasting of money and I always ended up with brush cleaning. Even gas station vacuum cleaners with their nasty hoses never could done the job what I done with this fine product: Black & Decker PAV1200.
It was my first expression after I just started cleaning: "WOW!!!" and the same when I was done "Impressive!!!".
I came with two brushes, hose and adapter for hose connection. But it also has a nice feature as moving and extensible nozzle. You can adjust its position for your convenience and after you done you can fold it what makes whole unit is compact. If you look at the picture of cleaner you can see the red tip on the end of nozzle. That one is extensible to about 4-5". And its tinny so you can reach all slits.
I used one brush on this tip extending nozzle and I was done with cleaning of my minivan in 10 minutes reaching all spots including carpet mats, under pedals, under seats, between seats and decor. I got everything: fluff and hair with brush tip, dust and crumbs with cleaner suction which is pretty decent.
Cord is pretty long and easy to reel on back after you done.
Cleaner comes with nice bag with handle, so all parts including the unit you can keep together and it does not take to much room.
I Highly recommend this unit for everyone who got tired of search of decent vacuum cleaners and want to keep his car clean.
P.S. I cleaned with car engine running (did not want to waste my battery)
Read Best Reviews of Black & Decker PAV1200W 12-Volt Cyclonic-Action Automotive Pivoting-Nose Handheld Vacuum Cleaner Here
This is the best handheld vac I have ever owned. Cord is long enough to reach from the cigarette lighter to the back of a Honda Odyssey. All tools store nicely on the unit or in the included carry bag. This vacuum uses the cylonic action to trap the dirt. This keeps the dirt out of the filter and makes for easy emptying. Excellent vacuum that you can store in your trunk.
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Excellent item! I recently purchased a new BMW and was looking for a small, handy vac, that I could power/stow in the car, to pick up lint and dirt. Although the vacuum seems a little bulky at first, the nozzle extends to get between and under the seats. The attachments are nice, and the filter is easy to empty. For the price, it's a must have.
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I have several of these lighter adapters and they work great with the Battery Tender Plus. Many car manufactures have their cigarette lighters controlled by their ignition. So when the key is off the lighter is not functional. That is not the fault of the battery charger company. This is the design of the vehicle.
