Cigarette Splitters Damage

[Rakip123]

Theres a video by Scotty Kilner on youtube asking people to avoid using ciigarette lighter adapters as they can cause damage in modern cars, I was hoping to use an Amazon dual cigarette splitter, has anyone had any experience of damage to their cars using one of these?

[Krikkit]

Check your car's manual to see what power rating the socket is, and don't exceed it with whatever you're plugging in. Generally they're fine if you don't take the piss.

[Pothole]

Rakip123 said:

Theres a video by Scotty Kilner on youtube asking people to avoid using ciigarette lighter adapters as they can cause damage in modern cars, I was hoping to use an Amazon dual cigarette splitter, has anyone had any experience of damage to their cars using one of these?

Kilmer appears to be the Daily Mail/Express of youtube car people. Almost everything he posts looks like oversensationalised "warnings" about inconsequential stuff.

[bunchofkeys]

Pothole said:

Rakip123 said:

Theres a video by Scotty Kilner on youtube asking people to avoid using ciigarette lighter adapters as they can cause damage in modern cars, I was hoping to use an Amazon dual cigarette splitter, has anyone had any experience of damage to their cars using one of these?

Kilmer appears to be the Daily Mail/Express of youtube car people. Almost everything he posts looks like oversensationalised "warnings" about inconsequential stuff.

Lots of unnecessary "Barry Scott" shouting too.

[Rakip123]

Krikkit said:

Check your car's manual to see what power rating the socket is, and don't exceed it with whatever you're plugging in. Generally they're fine if you don't take the piss.

Thanks so it's 15amp fuse so in other words do not exceed 15 amps X 12v = 180 watts, then I assume I shouldn't charge any phones with quick charge capability to be on the safe side

[Krikkit]

Rakip123 said:

Thanks so it's 15amp fuse so in other words do not exceed 15 amps X 12v = 180 watts, then I assume I shouldn't charge any phones with quick charge capability to be on the safe side

Quick-charge will be fine, I'd probably stick to around 100W to leave a healthy safety margin, very inconvenient to blow the fuse!

[donkmeister]

I found him entertaining at first but he tends to present opinion as fact so wouldn't pay much attention...

OP, every cigar lighter socket I've seen is fused at 10A so can provide ~120W. So a few low power devices won't be pushing your luck. A travel kettle and a laptop would be.

[KillerHERTZ]

He is just awful in everyway.

[Haltamer]

Even the fastest USB chargers will only draw ~45W, which given most 12v sockets are good for up to 180W, means you should be fine.

Only thing I'd say is don't buy the cheapest chinese crap; Get something of decent quality from amazon as you say, or look at Belkin / similar.

[Limpet]

Krikkit said:

Check your car's manual to see what power rating the socket is, and don't exceed it with whatever you're plugging in. Generally they're fine if you don't take the piss.

Really is as simple as this.

Number of devices plugged doesn't matter. Total current draw absolutely does.

Same principle as mains sockets at home.

[LimSlip]

Shoddy Kilmer is a dangerously useless hack who should be ignored.

[LimSlip]

Rakip123 said:

Thanks so it's 15amp fuse so in other words do not exceed 15 amps X 12v = 180 watts, then I assume I shouldn't charge any phones with quick charge capability to be on the safe side

The maximum that the USB C standard can provide is 100 watts, and even the fastest charging phones around right now only take about 65 Watts.

[Rakip123]

ok so decided to use a 100w max splitter, for some reason although the fuse is 15a the 12v socket has a flap which shows 120w so i assume max 10a, then separately i need to ensure no more than 10a so 1 standard phone = 2.1, each of the other ports will have other items in max 6.6a = 79.2a should be well within the limit for the port, to avoid any risk to ecu or any other components

[Tannedbaldhead]

Do you drive a Toyota?
If so Scotty will probably say you are fine.
If you own a Chrysler however you're fked.

[Rakip123]

well its a Lexus so esentially a Toyota with a different badge, the video implied there were electrical issues created when using 12v cigarette adapters especially with those with more than 1 port

[anonymous-user]

What risk to the ECU or other components though? What do they even mean by "modern car"? What are the changes which make a "modern car" much more sensitive to what's plugged into the 12v socket?

If you try to draw too much current from it, either via a splitter or via one thing which is plugged in then the fuse pops.

Biggest problem with things plugged into the 12v supply is usually they are cheap crap which causes electrical interference and blots out radio/DAB signals.

[gmaz]

I have a webcam and my phone charger tapped into the cig lighter feed and also 2 x USB adaptors front and rear. Never had a problem.

Maybe a 240v inverter would draw too much current, but even something like this can supply 350w from the ciggy socket

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SUDOKEJI-Inverter-Convert...

[blademansw]

LimSlip said:

Shoddy Kilmer is a dangerously useless hack who should be ignored.

This. The bloke is a weapons grade nuck fugget.

I watched a couple of his vids as YT suggested them to me, as soon as I saw him crying about BMW coil packs and leaning into the engine bay with a big bunch of keys on his belt I thought "Yep, clown confirmed".

[Rakip123]

Ah so you mean to tell me the " I've been a mechanic for 50 years" line he uses is a front and he's only doing this for views now

[littleredrooster]

charltjr said:

What risk to the ECU or other components though? What do they even mean by "modern car"? What are the changes which make a "modern car" much more sensitive to what's plugged into the 12v socket?

If you try to draw too much current from it, either via a splitter or via one thing which is plugged in then the fuse pops.

It really, really is as simple as this ^ ^.

I cannot even vaguely imagine what 'damage' could result from plugging too much in. It will just pop the bloody fuse when it's had enough!