Controling Power To The Cigarette Lighter?

[Bill440cars]

I am setting up the cigarette lighter, just for a power source, for things like GPS, Cell Phone charger, etc. I know I will have to set up a switch for this, as I don't want to have to plug it in & unplug it all the time. At the present time, I don't have a handy copy of any kind, showing what fuse is for what (in the fuse box) and with it being located upside down under the dash, at my age I could stand having an idea, where that fuse location is, before I get into the position, to try to locate it. So, a bit of help, would sure be appreciated. When I know for sure which fuse is for the cigarette lighter & figure out if I will need to make any adjustments, as to wire size or not, for the additional draw of charging a phone & running the GPS, as far as wire size & fuse size. Anyone done this & got some input? Sure would be appreciated. Open to suggestions. Thanks, in advance. BTW, this is on my 1971 Swinger. Not that big of a deal, but never know when someone else has some input, that just might be something that hadn't even been considered.

 

[Dana67Dart]

If you are only using a GPS and phone charger what ever wire size the cig lighter has will be good, neither draws a lot of amps.

Just a thought... why not start at the cig lighter. I believe there is a single post on the back side, disconnect it and make a mating plug to attach your (I assume) dual cig lighter adaptor

Forgot to mention mymopar.com has free wiring diagrams and FSM

 

[tonysrt]

Cigar lighter is like a short across the battery with a nichrome wire that has resistance in it. The fuse may be a 20 Amp., plenty of amps for you're use.

 

[Bill440cars]

If you are only using a GPS and phone charger what ever wire size the cig lighter has will be good, neither draws a lot of amps.

Just a thought... why not start at the cig lighter. I believe there is a single post on the back side, disconnect it and make a mating plug to attach your (I assume) dual cig lighter adaptor

Forgot to mention mymopar.com has free wiring diagrams and FSM

I appreciate the the info. I actually have a setup, I bought, that plugs in where the cigarette lighter did, has about a 2' wire (double wire in 1 insulation, of course) , that is going to be plugged in, in place of the cigarette lighter & has a double USB plug on the other end. I am going to plug the GPS & Phone cord into that. And, the USB plug, is lighted and would want to disconnect it, if when I shut down the car, for it to sit for awhile, especially overnight. And I want to use the accent light, it has.

 

[Bill440cars]

Cigar lighter is like a short across the battery with a nichrome wire that has resistance in it. The fuse may be a 20 Amp., plenty of amps for you're use.

I appreciate the input, but I want to kill power to it, when I turn the ignition switch off. I guess I could have worded it better, sometimes, I don't do a good job of that. On the much later model vehicles, you can reposition the fuse, to control whether the power outlets lose power when the ignition switch is turned off or not. That's what I am needing now, since I am assured that the wiring is good enough. ;-)

 

[tonysrt]

You could remove original wire from ashtray that is always powered and run a new wire from fuse box that turns on and off with ignition switch. Easier than running a separate switch which you might forget to shut off anyway.

 

[Dana67Dart]

Find the power wire for the radio and tap into that.

As for the light you described I got nothing.

How about you post the part number for the USB charger device you bought.


On a side note.... some GPS units that have realtime traffic (my 7 year old garmin) has a receiver built into the cig lighter adaptor and will not work if you use any other power cord.

 

[67Dart273]

I would do none of this. Build a separate circuit, fused, driven with a relay. FIRST determine the max amperage you need. If you are going to have multiple items on/ connected at same time, search around get a multi power outlet you can mount somewhere, hide under the dash, whatever

If IF IF your wiring is in good shape, you can pull power off the "hot" buss in the fuse panel. This is the "input" into the fuse panel that feeds the other unswitched fuses. This is the buss that is "hot" at all times Go from that buss through an appropriate fuse/ breaker to a bosch relay.

"Fire" the relay with a small wire also tapped off the fuse panel, an accessory of "your choice." As mentioned above, the radio circuit is OK

So with key in "run" or "accessory" the radio circuit will power up your relay, and that will feed the outlet(s).

If your wiring IS NOT in really good shape, run a new wire through the firewall coming off the starter relay "big stud." Put an appropriate size fuse/ breaker close to the relay, run the wire through the firewall, and feed to the relay. As before, "fire" the relay off your radio circuit

If you have an automatic trans, one possibility for the wire feed-through is to run through the plug for the clutch pushrod

Bosch relay wiring:

30 is fused main power for the accessory "coming in"

87 is out to the load, in this case your outlets

86 is ground

85 is the control wire, this is what "fires" the relay from say, the radio circuit

 

[Bill440cars]

I would do none of this. Build a separate circuit, fused, driven with a relay. FIRST determine the max amperage you need. If you are going to have multiple items on/ connected at same time, search around get a multi power outlet you can mount somewhere, hide under the dash, whatever

If IF IF your wiring is in good shape, you can pull power off the "hot" buss in the fuse panel. This is the "input" into the fuse panel that feeds the other unswitched fuses. This is the buss that is "hot" at all times Go from that buss through an appropriate fuse/ breaker to a bosch relay.

"Fire" the relay with a small wire also tapped off the fuse panel, an accessory of "your choice." As mentioned above, the radio circuit is OK

So with key in "run" or "accessory" the radio circuit will power up your relay, and that will feed the outlet(s).

If your wiring IS NOT in really good shape, run a new wire through the firewall coming off the starter relay "big stud." Put an appropriate size fuse/ breaker close to the relay, run the wire through the firewall, and feed to the relay. As before, "fire" the relay off your radio circuit

If you have an automatic trans, one possibility for the wire feed-through is to run through the plug for the clutch pushrod

Bosch relay wiring:

View attachment 1715330093

30 is fused main power for the accessory "coming in"

87 is out to the load, in this case your outlets

86 is ground

85 is the control wire, this is what "fires" the relay from say, the radio circuit

You know, all things considered, this is most likely the way I will go. at the most, I can mainly see having it to provide power for the GPS & Phone charging. I haven't really looked into the present wiring, yet (though I do plan to). It DOES look like I need to "Clean Up" the wiring under the dash too. A Pioneer radio was installed, sort of haphazardly (wiring looks a mess) I may end up having to remove the seat (Bench Style), just to be able to get down there, so I can better see just what there IS up under the dash. Sure wish the fuse box would have been mounted like my '69 GTX was (if you don't know, it was accessible in the glove box).

 

[Dana67Dart]

I may end up having to remove the seat (Bench Style)

I cant recommend it enough... 4 nuts, a neighbor to help and you can work under the dash in relative comfort... our old bodies can't contort like they used to.

and while the seats are out you can get a look under the carpet... who knows what treasures await!

 

[Dana67Dart]

assuming all you plug into your USB adapter is a GPS and a phone charger (assuming worst case and some newer phones might be a little higher like 15W) 2.4A @ 5 V USB = 12W, 12W/12V = 1A, 1A times the 2 devices and you are pulling 2 amps. Assuming the radio doesn't pull much more then the old one did I think you would be fine to directly tie it into the radio feed wire. I had a CB radio tied to the radio wire in my dads dart and never blew a fuse. (and yes I know that my single good experience does not detract from the multitudes of bad experiences others have had)

again what usb adapter did you purchase ALOT of info can be had from it like the max input and output. Some charges can only do 1A, 1.5A, 2A, 2.4A etc at 5V USB which results in roughly 1/2 in Amps to the 12V system

 

[Bill440cars]

I cant recommend it enough... 4 nuts, a neighbor to help and you can work under the dash in relative comfort... our old bodies can't contort like they used to.

and while the seats are out you can get a look under the carpet... who knows what treasures await!

Yeah, I have to agree, on all points (more room, better access, "easier on my old body (besides my body not contorting like it used to, it is a bit bigger & taking up more room). When I got the Swinger, I didn't see the rear seatbelts. And I thought, great, they are hopefully "under the rear seat cushion" and I was right (like to have NEVER gotten that seat cushion (bottom), to unlock, so I could raise it to see if the seat belts WERE under there. Fortunately, they were. While I can appreciate that the seat cushion (bottom) is secure, it sure can be a pain, to get that one out of there. At this point though, I am wishing I had pulled that seat bottom out, to see what else I would find, besides the seat belts & a small purple "Hot Rod" truck about 2 1/2-3" lg. It was in perfect shape too! Yeah, I'm thinking you are right, about that seat. I'll get me some help & get that one out of there & I can then get to everything I might need to & check to see if there is anything else, that I might want to address, as well. Thanks, I should of thought of pulling the seat. All I thought of, was how little room there was, in that floorboard area. BUT, ya have to realize that most of the Mopars I have had, in the past (except for the Volare' road runner, the '84 Plymouth Turismo 2.2 & the '78 Plymouth Horizon) have been "B" bodies ('66 Charger, '69 road runner, '69 GTX) & a '75 Dodge Royal Monaco (Ex Arkansas State Police Car). Plus, I was ALOT younger ( 72yrs old now). Still moving on my own, just not always as good & definitely not as agile.

 

[Dana67Dart]

a small purple "Hot Rod" truck about 2 1/2-3" lg

I found some of my dad's business cards from the early 70s mint condition, just left them where they lie and put the carpet back down (OE carpet complete with tag)

Now how about that USB adapter part number!!!!

 

[Bill440cars]

I found some of my dad's business cards from the early 70s mint condition, just left them where they lie and put the carpet back down (OE carpet complete with tag)

Now how about that USB adapter part number!!!!

Kinda cool, about those business cards. I have 2 different kinds of adapters actually. I'll have to go out to the car, to get the info. I have one though, that I recently bought from Walmart, that has the one end, that plugs into the outlet, has about a 12" wire, to another piece, which is a double USB piece, to plug 2 cords into and both ends, that light up, in blue. and the other style, is simply a cigarette lighter that can be mounted under the dash. I'll get & post up, the specs, here, in just a few minutes. Thanks, for the responses.

 

[tonysrt]

I have a 74 Duster that didn't have a cigar lighter, but I bought one for the GPS and the phone charger. I never leave that stuff in the car so I didn't need to shut off outlet.

 

[DemonK9]

I would do none of this. Build a separate circuit, fused, driven with a relay. FIRST determine the max amperage you need. If you are going to have multiple items on/ connected at same time, search around get a multi power outlet you can mount somewhere, hide under the dash, whatever

If IF IF your wiring is in good shape, you can pull power off the "hot" buss in the fuse panel. This is the "input" into the fuse panel that feeds the other unswitched fuses. This is the buss that is "hot" at all times Go from that buss through an appropriate fuse/ breaker to a bosch relay.

"Fire" the relay with a small wire also tapped off the fuse panel, an accessory of "your choice." As mentioned above, the radio circuit is OK

So with key in "run" or "accessory" the radio circuit will power up your relay, and that will feed the outlet(s).

If your wiring IS NOT in really good shape, run a new wire through the firewall coming off the starter relay "big stud." Put an appropriate size fuse/ breaker close to the relay, run the wire through the firewall, and feed to the relay. As before, "fire" the relay off your radio circuit

If you have an automatic trans, one possibility for the wire feed-through is to run through the plug for the clutch pushrod

Bosch relay wiring:

View attachment 1715330093

30 is fused main power for the accessory "coming in"

87 is out to the load, in this case your outlets

86 is ground

85 is the control wire, this is what "fires" the relay from say, the radio circuit

67Dart273 always has the best wiring advise and info...I consider him the resident electrical god!

They do make pre-made kits........if your skill set is not up to fabbing your own, like 67Dart273 has set out for you.

example: Painless Wiring

 

[Bill440cars]

67Dart273 always has the best wiring advise and info...I consider him the resident electrical god!

They do make pre-made kits........if your skill set is not up to fabbing your own, like 67Dart273 has set out for you.

example: Painless Wiring

Well, I have decided to remove the Pioneer radio, that someone, along the way, put in there & put one that I bought new, a few years ago & never got it put in (It also is a Pioneer, but it came with 4 speakers & I have the full instructions. Anyway, when I get inti the removal of that radio and it's messed up speakers, I will be looking at what shape the wiring is in, under there & I do like that wiring setup, he posted.