Cigarette lighter repair

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Mark Roth
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Cigarette lighter repair

#1 Post by Mark Roth »

My cigarette lighter has been inoperable for years. I don't want to use the lighter as a lighter, just want to convert the lighter to 12v for an iPhone charger. I already have a 12v converter for my mp3 player. My friend tested his iPhone with a working 6v socket and charger and it doesn't work. Needs 12v. Tried to test the socket today by putting a continuity tester on the middle of the socket at the bottom. Tester is an ice pick type with an alligator clip ground. Socket doesn't work. I took the hot wire off the back and tested the wire with the tester. Works. So there is power to the socket. Doesn't seem that complex as there should be a direct connection.
So any ideas as to why the center of the socket is dead? Thanks.
Mark Roth
65 C Cab (Black/black)

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Mike Wilson
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#2 Post by Mike Wilson »

I'd check internal contacts and see if it is well- grounded.

Mike
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'63 B coupe

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Jim Liberty
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#3 Post by Jim Liberty »

Mike, I suspect aground problem as well. Take a rough eraser, or something similar, and clean the contact down in the middle of the socket. An ohm meter on the side of the socket for ground. ………………...Jim.
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Bill Tate
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#4 Post by Bill Tate »

Mark, I wanted to convert my cigar lighter socket to a dual USB port. I went to our local Micro store and purchased three dual USB port plugins. Only the cheapest <$5 would regulate the 6 volt input down to the 5volt USB output. The better and best units both needed like a 9 volt minimum input voltage to provide any USB output. Of course they both provided greater current output but needed the higher input voltage.
My point is that the cheap lighter USB plugins may give you the output you need without the need for the 12 volt converter to then regulate back down to 5 volts. I run my Garvin GPS and cell phone from my lighter USB plugin. You can check the contacts with leads on a volt/ohm meter to confirm you have 6 volts and ground. The grounds on dash mounted devices are often the weak link in the circuit. I use separate ground leads on each wired back to a ground on the wiper assembly. KTF.
Bill Tate
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Mark Roth
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#5 Post by Mark Roth »

thanks guys
Mark Roth
65 C Cab (Black/black)

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Ben Wainscott
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#6 Post by Ben Wainscott »

Mark, we run our Garmin GPS and charge our I-phone from our 6 Volt lighter. Appreciate Bill Tate's input, and guess I just have a cheap converter. The only thing I do notice, is that the internal diameter of the socket is a little larger than our newer plugs. You can bend the tabs out a little on your plug, or in a pinch a tooth pick to shim it up and make it tight always works.
Ben Wainscott
65 SC S/R coupe
89 911 Carrera
63 Vespa 150
80 Vespa P200e

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Mark Roth
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Re: Cigarette lighter repair

#7 Post by Mark Roth »

It was the ground. I was grounding the alligator clip on the metal dash. I tried clipping it on the side of the lighter housing that protrudes from the dash. Works! I noticed that there was a separate ground wire to the housing. Maybe the housing is insulated from the dash? I didn’t explore the subject further. Now to find a 6v charger that works. My Amazon charger requires 12v and doesn’t light up.
Mark Roth
65 C Cab (Black/black)

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