Instruction on how to fix your cigarette lighter
 

Do it at your own risk!

To remove the center piece:

1. Remove the coin tray, and unscrew the 2 screws hidden under it.

2. Open the elbow rest and take out the little carpet piece on the bottom,
and unscrew the 2 screws.

3. Move the 2 chairs all the way back and unscrew the side screws. By now
you should have 6 screws total.

4. Using the flat head screw driver and pop up the black plastic piece around
the shift knob. The (PRND321) piece. There should be a bulb attached to
it, take it off.

5. Carefully lift up the center piece, you may have to shift the shift knob
around to get it off. BECAREFUL!! Before you pull it out all the way, there
are about 4 plugs that are attached to your center piece, unplug all of
them. One plug from fog light, two from the seat warmer, and one from
the cigarette lighter.

6. Once everything is off, unscrew the top screw of the bracket that holds
the cigarette socket. You can unscrew the bottom of the bracket too if
you want, but it is unecessary.

7. After you got the bracket off, unplug the bulb in your cigarette lighter
housing. You'll need a plier to unscrew the cigarette lighter socket
housing. After you got the housing off, unscrew the small screw in the
middle of the socket.

8. If you do it correctly, the socket should come off easily. Take out the
socket and look at it carefully from the outside, at the bottom of the
socket; you should see a small wire that connects the two hooks. In my
case, that small wire got burned and it was covered by the black cover.

9. Replace that small wire with a regular copper wire and sodder it if you can,
I recommend you use a volt meter and test it to see if there's current
going through the socket. If there is, the whole socket is positive, and
the ground is the housing (gold color) for the socket.

10. If everything works, put everything back to the way it was before. If you
forgot, post it on here and I could probably guide you through it.

Once again, do this at your own risk, I'm not reliable for anything if it doesn't work. But the main problem that I could happen to everyone is that small wire. It is very easy to cause a short circuit due to plugging and unplugging regularly. My cigarette light works now, it was worth the time, now I can charge my phone and use my radar dectector. Good Luck!!

if u want to remove the center console much easier.. there is a way to unplug the cif lighter before doing everything... right under your radio on the left side... u can pull that cover open.. it is like a little flap... i suggest getting a meter and testing those wires before u do anything to determine whether u need to replace the socket or it is something else electrical... if there is juice going to those wires then u know to continue.. otherwise u know the problem is somewhere else in the car... i must have been playing w/ theis cig lighter problem for about 2 yrs then i finally fixed it about a year ago... and oh yeah... u can reach ur hand in and unplug the heated seat wires right after u remove the black center frame around the shifter...

i dont get it... whats wrong with your cig lighter in the 1st place?? its not getting hot when you press it??

Basically, yeah. And for those who look for a fuse to replace, there isn't any.

So I've had a dead lighter for 6 years now. I've never needed to use it, and I was too lazy to fix it.

I just bought an Ipod Nano, so I suddenly need the lighter socket to work. I followed your instructions and found the problem:

It.....wasn't.....plugged......in..... :doh:

The second bit of good news is that I found about 3 bucks in change that has dropped into the console over the years. First time I ever paid myself to fix my own car...

Thanks guys, for inspiring me to get off my lazy arse and get it working...lol

WOW, bumping a thread that's even older than Devastation has been bumping!! That deserves an award!! Seriously though, glad that it wasn't something more serious and all you had to do was plug it in. Also, one of my m8s found $60 under his carpet when he swapped interiors, hehe.

~Cheers~

Thanks for the DIY, I did it earlier today :)

Exact same issue too.

Lol, yes he been Goin thur alot of old threads.


MODs- I think you should just sticky this DIY cuz it is a common problem in our TLs

:werd:

Stickied

thanks for the sticky. I will try to fix it this weekend.

Very helpful, Im gonna have to try this.

I'm totally new at this and need help.. My 97' 3.2TL cigg lighter is broken. I took it to a friend/mechanic and he said i have to replace the whole lighter.. no power is going to it. $56 dealer cost to replace that thing.. anyone know of a good place to get one? and does it have to be car/make/model specific?

Got up to taking the center armrest thing out, got everything unplugged except for the black plug going into the cigarette lighter, right by the white plug. Do I just pull the black plug out? I used a good deal of force and it didn't budge.

you may need to turn that plug counter-clockwise, if that is one of the lights (thats what it shows in my manual)Attachment 54527

Thanks for the diagram! The light in the bottom of the picture is the one I'm having trouble with. I'll try giving it a twist.

Actually, never mind. Apparently my cigarette lighter works, it's just the thing that actually heats up and lights the cigarette that doesn't. I bought a cigarette lighter powered cell phone charger, tried plugging it in, and it worked.

Thanks for this tip.
 

Dropped a penny with a million to one shot and put it into the open receptacle for the lighter. Shorted out the system of the interior lights, alarms and the radio. I guessed a fuse replacement would fix it but this put me right to the spot.

On the 96 Acura TL 2.5 the Cigarette Lighter fuse is in the Engine Compartment labled under Interior Light. It a blue fuse 15amp.

very useful, thank you!
 

TL-Ridaz96, thank you for the detailed DIY info. I got it work!

Loose Cigarette Socket
 

Hi!
I am hoping to tighten the socket. There is no problem other than the socket is loose. I bought a car mount for my cell phone and it wont stay in the socket, the socket is too loose and once plugged in the mount spins around. Please let me know if there is a way to tighten the sheet metal?

Do you mean the "ring nut" in the diagram six posts up?

Loose socket
 

Yes, I believe its the ring nut.

Tightening the cigarette lighter Socket
 

Need to tighten this socket so when I plug in the cell phone bracket/holder it doesnt swivel as I drive. Help!