cigar lighter usage

[rlp]

High all, hope someone can advise. I recently bought an adaptor to plug in the cigar lighter , the adapter has 2 usb outlets allowing me to charge and use my mobile and my wifes mobile at the same time and or the sat nav. Works well with all the wires ect hidden under the centre consul. My concern is leaving things on charge or the adapter plugged in and draining the battery, I think I read a post somewhere on this site that said that the cigar lighter tuns off within a certain time after the car is locked, can anyone comfirm this, Bob

[KBPhoto]

General consensus is that it doesn't turn off automatically.

It will eventually drain your battery.

[eccleshill]

It will eventually drain the battery but "eventually" is a long time. A phone charger draws maybe a couple of hundred milliamps so to drain a 70 Ah battery would take a couple of weeks.

Certainly occasionally leaving it plugged in overnight isn't going to kill the battery (unless it's already close to death!) but wouldn't want to leave it plugged in permanently.

[blackspaven]

Yeah, bought a single adaptor one and took it apart but coudn't work out a reasonable way to make it only switch on when something was plugged into it, but it may well be possible just out of my knowledge.

You could always rewire the cigarette lighter socket so that it's connected to the ignition live instead of permanent live. That way, it'll only work when the keys are in the ignition and not 24/7. Or you could install a switch somewhere in-line, but you might as well just take it out the socket in the first place for the effort it'd be!

[FUBAR]

You could do what I did and make your own switched one can route your multi adaptor anywhere and keep it all tidy. Some do sat nav cable in this way too and stand it in the top dash cubby hole with a hole in back for cable.

The centre console 12v socket in mine is permanent live by design. I have accidentally left camera running for 3 days before. Not killed battery thankfully.

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/265343-dash-cam-12v-multi-adaptor-hidden-install-driver-storage-compartment/page__hl__%2012v%20%20multi%20%20adaptor

[rlp]

Thanks for all your replies and ideas, will have to give it some more thought , don't really want to mess with the wiring, not really my thing.

[xpower]

I've changed my ciggy lighter to be live only with the ignition as I leave an in-car charger pluged in permanently. As an example an iPhone charges at 1amp @ 5v so let's say 0.4amp @ 12v (close enough). A 60ah battery with be flat in 150 hours or 6 1/4 days continuos use.

Of course once the phone is charged it won't draw 0.4 amp at 12v as it will only take enough to trickle charge.

Easiest way to avoid battery going flat is to do what I did and break into the ciggy lighter live at the fuse box with a relay to stop it becoming permanent live. Just my 2 cents :-D

[rlp]

WHHOA that is comprehensive and sounds complicated - where do I take a feed from and what sort/ type of relay do I use. I am no autoelectrian, but I do know which fuse it is. got to be worth 10 cents. Bob.

[enbl80]

hello, its was very good guide and the pictures with comments of every move.

now its so easy.

i have one question - why you choose 5 amp for the triple socket cigarette and not more like 10 amp ?

 

thanks

[Ampere]

Just a quick tuppence worth here...

 

We once left an electic cool box connected through a permanently live ciggy socket - by the following morning there was no charge left in the car battery. A cool box will draw about 5 amps - over 12 hours that's 60 Amp Hours - more than enough drain to stop the car starting.

 

We won't do that again!

 

Thanks for the heads-up on the ciggy socket - I had assumed it switched itself off after an hour or so.

 

[JeremyAndrews]

I wouldn't be concerned about phone chargers etc unless you don't use your car for a few days at a time.

I leave my iPad on charge constantly, normally a set of Bluetooth headphones and my iPhone if I'm in the car.