14

The cigarette lighter outlet was never designed to be an electrical outlet the way it's commonly used today. Even so, I've yet to find a plug for charging USB devices that fits and doesn't fall out.

All plugs I know have some little metal nub in the center that practically never gets enough contact with the socket's center base, and the sides of the plug are never effective at keeping the plug pressed in well enough.

How can I make the plug stay in place? How can I easily modify the socket to make it work?

My car's socket is vertical (pointing straight up). I don't want to dismantle my car, although it would be cool to have a USB socket in the console! This must be a common problem; how do people solve it?

enter image description here

Torben Gundtofte-Bruun
  • 891
  • 4
  • 10
  • 18

8 Answers8

7

I would look at the item you are plugging into the outlet rather then the outlet. Most of the time the cheap USB chargers aren't built correctly. Some times you can just put a flat screwdriver under the wings on the side and pry them up so they stick out more. Another option would be to use an adapter like this.

With some tom foolery you could just wire in the guts of your USB changer and then mount the port somewhere tricky.

Good luck.

NitroxDM
  • 426
  • 3
  • 7
5

2 solutions:

(1) Use a tightest fit rubber 'O' rings around the plug - available from http://www.amazon.co.uk/Assorted-Rings-Plumbing-Rubber-Thread/dp/6040360860 - see pink bands on the image below.

(2) Use a short length of plastic-coated WIRE or a WIRE cable tie like those small black ones you get around a power cable when you unbox a new appliance (NOT a flat plastic 'garden' cable tie). Thread the wire THROUGH both the 2 silver spring contacts on the side of cigarette plug and twist the ends together to tighten it around the socket, than press/flatten the twisted ends to the socket - see yellow band on pick below. The good thing about this method is that the silver spring contacts stop the wire tie from rolling off. This worked so well for my loose USB cigarette charger that I have to give it a real tug to get it out! socketwithbands

Jase
  • 51
  • 1
  • 1
4

I must admit, I've gone for a very low-tec solution to this in the past: Blu-Tack. Simple, not the most elegant, but effective :)

Nick C
  • 28,941
  • 8
  • 56
  • 109
2

Certainly plugs vary in their quality and ability to stay put. However, I am certain there are differences in the socket diameters as fitted to different makes of vehicles. My Honda is OK but my Fiat Ducato based campervan will not keep plugs in. The answer is a cylindrical metal sleeve adaptor. I have got one of these which came with some device I bought. Maybe an early Tomtom. Sadly I cannot find a supplier of these, despite it being an obviously common problem. Does anyone know of such a supplier? The Fiat socket does not seem to have any kind of internal recess to help retain the plug. I have tried a plug to socket adaptor and that worked for a while...

Chris
  • 21
  • 1
2

I was having this issue and spent some time and even blew a fuze trying to rig a solution before I figured out a really stupidly easy one. If you have an inch of electrical tape, that is all you need! The trick is to twist it so that it is firm like a twig. Then use it as a wedge by simply pressing it to your plugin and gently but firmly push into the outlet. You are welcome.

Arron
  • 21
  • 1
2

I had the same problem with one of those cheap mp3-FM transmitters. The thing is that some lighter sockets aren't deep enough to accept the adapter, so the wings never go deep enough to click into the recesses of the socket. The best thing to do would be to find an adapter that plugs into the socket and then plug your USB adapter into that. Some hardware stores sell an adapter that turns one socket into two. Or you could try some DIY-fu and bend the wings forward and back to move the bulge closer to the front. Just be VERY careful not to snap them off. That metal is quite brittle. See the blue line I "Photoshopped" in ;)

enter image description here

Captain Kenpachi
  • 8,888
  • 3
  • 26
  • 43
0

I purchased a USB in car charger for my 2001 Astra does not fit. But my old tomtom 910 charger perfectly fits. This makes me think problem is with USB charger.

user13188
  • 1
0

I didn't realize how badly I had this problem until I plugged in a cheap MP3 player, which kept flashing back and forth between the normal screen and the "charging" screen, once or twice a second, as the connection came and went. Other devices just show a solid "charging" indicator but don't really charge.

It can help to use silicone grease on electrical connections to reduce intermittency due to oxidation. I haven't tried it in my car yet but that's what I was going to try before I read the other answers here. I use it on RJ45 ethernet connectors, and sometimes on the ends of batteries.

I was thinking of using silver conductive grease but then when I saw that someone blew a fuse, I thought maybe not such a good idea. But maybe just a tiny bit? On the tip? Hmm...

Metamorphic
  • 121
  • 1
  • 4