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I just bought a 1978 VW Super Beetle, and it's my wifes' dream car!
It's a convertible, and the previous owners took great care of it.
I was wondering if I can install a cigarette lighter adapter in there
so that my wife can charge her cell phone while driving. Any
thoughts or suggestions? Neither of the two service manuals I have
(Muir and Chilton) mention this.
Blake wrote:
>
> I just bought a 1978 VW Super Beetle, and it's my wifes' dream car!
> It's a convertible, and the previous owners took great care of it.
>
> I was wondering if I can install a cigarette lighter adapter in
there
> so that my wife can charge her cell phone while driving. Any
> thoughts or suggestions? Neither of the two service manuals I have
> (Muir and Chilton) mention this.
>
You should be able to pick up an aftermarket cig lighter socket and
install it. I have one in my car attached to the parcel shelf. I'm
not sure where it hooks up to the fuse box (which I'm sure is what
you were asking). Maybe someone else has specific instructions on
that.
Blake wrote:
>
> I just bought a 1978 VW Super Beetle, and it's my wifes' dream car!
> It's a convertible, and the previous owners took great care of it.
>
> I was wondering if I can install a cigarette lighter adapter in
there
> so that my wife can charge her cell phone while driving. Any
> thoughts or suggestions? Neither of the two service manuals I have
> (Muir and Chilton) mention this.
>
Go to your local autoparts store (Kragens/ Checkers/AutoZone. etc.)
They should have a cigarette lighter/power adapter with an L
bracket. You can do like I did and install it under the dash and
back several inches so that it is not readily visible. Drill a small
hole up into the trunk and run the hot wire to the fuse block the
adapter will get it's ground from the bracket mounting screws into
the sheet metal under the dash. Use a slide on lug to connect it to
the fuse block. you can wire it either to a continuously hot point
so that the cell phone will continue to charge with the ignition off
(my recommendation),or to an ignition switched terminal your choice.
It's always a good idea to use an inline fuse, but if she is only
going to use it to charge her cell phone, a fuse is not absolutely
necessary. Net damage to car three small holes in sheet metal under
dash. Go to
http://www.sounddomain.com/member_pages … _id=216911
and click on the picture of the dash area through the passenger door
and you can see the adapter as installed in my car (small siver
thing under dash).
Blake wrote:
>
> I just bought a 1978 VW Super Beetle, and it's my wifes' dream car!
> It's a convertible, and the previous owners took great care of it.
>
> I was wondering if I can install a cigarette lighter adapter in
there
> so that my wife can charge her cell phone while driving. Any
> thoughts or suggestions? Neither of the two service manuals I have
> (Muir and Chilton) mention this.
>
Yes Blake, you can install a cigarette lighter in your superbeetle.
In fact, it was optional equipment back in the 1970's. There is
already a hole in your dashboard specifically for this. There
should be a round black plug to the left of the small fresh air fan
switch. This is where the lighter should go. Be careful when you
pry the plug out, as it is really easy to permanently dent or mar up
the dash. It would be wise to disconnect the negative battery cable
before you do this. If you leave the radio in, you will have to
find an inconspicuous place to attach the ground wire too. If you
take out the radio, you will see a cluster of "grounds" and there
should be an empty one. This is where the ground for the cig
lighter goes. Installing an inline fuse on the "hot wire" as Steve
suggested is not a bad idea. Now you can either connect the "Hot"
wire to the terminal in your fuse box that gets constant power (fuse
#9 I think). Or if the radio has to be connected to the "Constant
Power" terminal and there are no free connectors, you can connect
the "hot" wire of your cig lighter to the empty terminal on the
headlight switch.
One thing to keep in mind, the run of the mill cig lighter that I
bought at Shucks, did not fit right. The outer lip of the lighter
was small and when tightened, dug into my dashboard and remained
loose. This probably could be solved if you found one with a larger
diameter lip, or were able to find one with a plastic ring or
plastic washer around the outside of the lip. I found an original
on ebay for my super and it fit perfectly. One thing to, make sure
the back of the lighter is not touching the body of the car at all,
or it will ground out and arch. It took me a few tries to figure
out exactly how the wiring was suppose to go. So before you put
everthing back together, I would reconnect the battery and make sure
everything is working okay. A test light is a must. Hope this
helps you!
jc
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