Cigarette Lighter Trouble Shooting

[Davo53209@yahoo.com]

Earlier this afternoon, I attempted to figure out why my cigarette lighter doesn't work, after weeks of frustration with not being able to charge my smart phone.

Just so that no one has to ask, I made it a point to check the 15amp fuse that it shares with the radio, whereby it was not blown. With that in mind, I went to two separate auto part store and installed two different universal cigarette lighters without any success.

At this point, I need to ask how to trouble shoot the problem, or simply ask what it my be if the problem doesn't involve the fuse.

[dirtydave]

Take the dash apart and make sure the wires are good and connected. If that still doesn't fix it go get an add a fuse and rewire it. Or alligator clamps. Or give up and buy a external battery pack.

[user removed]

Power to the fuse?
Power to the lighter base?
Good ground?

regards
mech

[Davo53209@yahoo.com]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Power to the fuse?
Power to the lighter base?
Good ground?

regards
mech

Oh there's power to the fuse and lighter base. I know this because I accidently create a spark to the aftermarket lighter and blew the fuse out.

[Davo53209@yahoo.com]

Originally Posted by dirtydave

Take the dash apart and make sure the wires are good and connected. If that still doesn't fix it go get an add a fuse and rewire it. Or alligator clamps. Or give up and buy a external battery pack.

External battery pack, what would that configuration look like?

[user removed]

Your charger is a cheap piece of chinese #%^&*. Does it work in another car?

If you shorted the lighter base out and blew the fuse, it was working right. Replace the fuse and test it a little more carefully .

regards
mech

[dirtydave]

Originally Posted by Davo53209@yahoo.com

External battery pack, what would that configuration look like?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00H9B...ref=mp_s_a_1_2

[Davo53209@yahoo.com]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Your charger is a cheap piece of chinese #%^&*. Does it work in another car?

If you shorted the lighter base out and blew the fuse, it was working right. Replace the fuse and test it a little more carefully .

regards
mech

I wish I could say that was the case; but I also tested the new lighter with my portable air compressor and still no results...I'm just stumped.

[user removed]

What you know.

The lighter base had power and a ground or it would not have blown the fuse.

Do you still know it will work after replacing the fuse?

If you have tested it again, after fuse replacement, and it seems to be OK, does anything work in it.

Does the charger work in another car lighter?

My lighter does not work in my car, but a spotlight does work, so I know the base is OK. The lighter element has to be bad or not connecting properly.

Test the base again and this time insulate the tester to eliminate the possibility of a short. Once you are past that point, the problem lies in the components you are plugging into the lighter base.

regards
mech

[mach4]

You don't say what your car is. Some older cars, particularly imports, used a cigarette lighter plug that was slightly larger than the US ones. Sometimes you need to either get a shim or put something around the charger to make it fit more snug. On mine, I used a bit of zip tie looped through the springs to wedge it in.

Use a charger with a LED to confirm that there is a connection and it's providing power to your device.

Also, on some cars where the receptacle is in the ash tray, the connection is provided through some sliders. These can get out of adjustment or corrode and prevent power getting to the charger.

Probably not applicable, but worth checking.