Power (cigarette lighter) outlet problem (2003 Protege 5)

[lue42]

I have a 2003 Mazda Protege 5 hatchback.

I was using an air compressor to inflate my bicycle tires a few weeks ago and it suddenly stopped. Before I had a chance to react, something burned out. There was a small puff of smoke where the plug goes in the outlet and all power to the outlet stopped. There is no longer power going to the outlet.

I normally only use the outlet for my GPS and to charge my ****...

So, my question is...

Now that I am faced with fixing this anyway... I would like to have the plugs out of sight (under the dash, or in the glove compartment). If I buy a new outlet with wire leads like this:


Can I hard wire it in? Is so, where is best to patch in? I only need power when the car is on.

Any help greatly appreciated

(It would be nice, but not required to have power back to the original in-dash outlet)

[lue42]

According to other posts on this forum, and other info around the net, 12V outlets usually don't have a dedicated fuse...? Not sure if the Protege 5 is this way.

Everything else (radio, etc) is working properly.

I will check the fuses tonight when I get home.

But, original question still applies. Can I, and if so, where do I hard wire a new plug into the electric system? Where is the easiest place to do it (without taking off the whole dash, etc).

Thanks!

[dtatham]

No fuses

I couldn't find any fuses for the lighter either. I'd handle your problem as follows: Disconnect your battery and remove the lighter. Look inside the socket for the retainer ring and use a thin screwdriver to push the retainer ring out, twist the socket, then pull it out. Unplug the socket from it's harness and reattach the battery. Check to see if the wires have power. Usually it's the socket that goes out.

You can do one of the following if it is the socket. You can put in a new one, or you can hard wire an after market like the one you pictured to the wires that fed your old socket.

If you really want to wire an aftermarket and you don't have power to the wires to the old socket, I would run a 12g wire to the positive terminal on the battery and be sure to use an inline 30A fuse somewhere on the wire that is easily accessible. Find a bolt under the dash that provides a good ground and run the ground wire to it. When I connect after market stuff I prefer not to tap into a harness because it's too easy to pull too much current and mess up things you need.

[cojsl]

(I know this is an old thread, but wanted to update it with a fix)
Mine didn't work either, here's what I found- There is a fusible link on the back of the cigarette lighter socket, that's why there isn't a dedicated fuse in the fuse box, and why the FSM recommends replacing the socket if there is power and ground at the plug that connects to the back of the socket. You can either replace the whole socket (recommended by the FSM), or solder a replacement fuse to the terminals that hold the fusible link (what I did)

[gdawg]

fusible link?

was the fusible link just the black casing? or is it some white piece that joins wire segments?

[MATT91GT]

check around your fuse box, sometimes the cigarette lighter has a fuse especially since most people have all sorts of things plugged into them. You could always trace the wires back from your power outlet to where it is burned out and put the splitter in the circuit

[gdawg]

no fuses are blown (nothing located in the fuse panels anyway). my situation matches 100% the first post on this thread - inflating a tire. i need to find my voltmeter and test a few things...

[MD323]

The wires on the outlet are TINY, its possible that the load burned the wire off the oulet but not blow the 15amp room fuse.

My plan to perminetly fix this it tap on of the extra circuits on the fusebox for 12V and wire up a relay and inline fuse to a new power outlet panel and use the original circuit to trigger the relay so its only on when the car is on.

[gdawg]

soooo, I found my ohmmeter and determined the problem was in my cigarette lighter assembly, as I had power to the wires. I did some soldering and it worked for about 4 hours today, and is not working now. No fuse blown, and I no longer even have power to the wires. I am thoroughly confused. And annoyed!

[gdawg]

soooo, I found my ohmmeter and determined the problem was in my cigarette lighter assembly, as I had power to the wires. I did some soldering and it worked for about 4 hours today, and is not working now. No fuse blown, and I no longer even have power to the wires. I am thoroughly confused. And annoyed!

okay, so i have since learned that the radio fuse also powers the cigarette lighter. it was blown, but all is working now. I still think I am going to hard wire a dedicated circuit for my cigarette lighter. I have unused fuses in my fusebox. Anyone know of a good guide for tapping into one of those?

[goldstar]

Try: http://www.wihandyman.com/forum/showthread.php?47681 post #2

Happy Motoring!