Are there any gurus out there that can point me in the right direction? I have no clue about all things electric and I want to install a 12-volt power outlet/cig lighter in my 71 Mav so I can run an inverter/cell phone charger etc. (the car does not have one). Ideally i would like this to wire in with ignition shut off to avoid the possibility of battery run down. How do i find and identify wires that will allow me to do this? :confused: I have already purchased a socket that has two leads running off it... Any help is appreciated. Thanks -- Scott / 71MaV4dR
The simplest way, since you stated your lack of knowledge on 12Volt, would be to run the hot wire to the postive terminal of the battery. Run an inline fuse near the battery post. Simply ground the other wire to something steel and mount your 12 volt port. But you wanted to have it switched. So the safest way to do this is to find your fuse box. Using a test light find out which switched fuse you want to use. You could use windshield wiper fuse location, or heater, to name a couple. I think if you use a spade on the right side of the fuse that is the side that will not have power if you should blow a fuse. I would still run an inline fuse on this setup, it is safer, since you have limited knowledge. Follow the same procedure for ground. A tip, once you have determined how you want it all setup. Disconnect the negative battery terminal while doing the wiring install. When you reinstall, if you did anything wrong the inline fuse will save ya. If not and you made a mistake, smoke will roll. Dan
I couldn't have stated it better myself, Dan. I have to repeat something dan said..FUSE, FUSE, FUSE!!! For the sake of your car, NEVER install anything that isn't fused. Also, when you identify which fuse you want to tap off of, check which side of the fuse socket is hot with your 12v tester when the ignition is on. You'll have to remove the fuse to do this. Put your outlet feed wire on the other side of the fuse than the hot side is. This way, you have double protection. The circuit is protected by the fuse in the block and also your outlet is double protected by that fuse and your inline one.
Thanks Dan and Wes. That sounds pretty easy. I'll make sure to fuse my setup. I suppose Radio Shack would carry something like that. Both very helpful! Scott / 71Mav4Dr
The lighters in these cars run on the same circuit as the dome light. Just find the corresponding fuse on the fuse box and connect your positive wire there. It's not supposed to be switched, but of course you can do it like that if you want. No need to run a wire all the way to the battery. THe fuse box is right up under the dash on the firewall...The lighter socket is automatically grounded on the metal dash...
My car has the empty plug for both a cigarrette lighter and a light for the ashtray dangling right behind the ashtray inside the dash. Check your factory harness.
That's what I used on mine, the factory plug that would have been used if the car had come with a lighter. It's already fused. I mounted the outlet on the back wall of the underdash tray, up high. It can't be seen, and only you know it's there. Comes in handy for plugging in the G-Tech and the radar detector, too. If you really want to you can add an auxillary accessory fuse block that turns on with the key. I installed an 8 position fuse block on the tray underneath the radio. An 8 AWG wire from the battery feeds a 30 amp relay right next to the block. The relay is turned on by a wire tapped into the original radio power lead. So the relay only applies power to the fuse block when the key is on. Sure is lot easier wiring up accessories there than trying to reach the original fuse block (which I also relocated ).
ooohh radio shack!? youre better off at autozone or another car store for those electrical parts as well as a lighter replacement. i avoid the morons at radio shack as they dont know anything and finding the right things are next to impossible at that store. trust me - parts house. mike
