How To Charge Car Battery Through Cigarette Lighter?

With the help of a car cigarette lighter, you can power a lot of electronic devices. Such as mobile phones, seat warmers, laptops, etc. If one can power up a variety of portable devices, then a car battery should not be out of the equation.

So now you might ask, can you charge car battery through cigarette lighter? Depending on the type of car, you might need your ignition switch turned on. And then, you need to use a self-charge auto jumper.

While there are other methods of charging a car via its cigarette lighter, we have focused on the auto jumper method. This is very easy and gets the job done quite simply. So, keep reading to learn more!

Do All Cars Have Cigarette Lighters?

No, not all cars these days have cigarette lighters. They were originally introduced in cars to light up a cigarette, but later on, they have been discovered to power up portable electronic devices.

Car manufacturers started to put cigarette lighters in vehicles in the 50s. And up until the 90s, it was a staple feature in almost any car. Since smoking was more accepted at that time than it is now, car companies used to offer built-in lighters.

Nowadays, the cigarette lighter of a car is more widely known as an automobile auxiliary power outlet. With the help of this tool, you can power up portable refrigerators, cooling fans, mobile phone chargers, and a lot of electronic gadgets.

How To Charge Car Battery Through Cigarette Lighter?

In order to self-charge a car battery through a cigarette lighter, you need an auto jumper. Currently, there is only one self-charge auto jumper available in the market, and it costs around 45 USD. Once you have it, you then have to follow the step-by-step methods below.

Step 1 – Turn off All Electrical Accessories

In the first stage, you need to make sure that all of the electronic accessories in your car are switched off. These include headlights, windshield wipers, AC, fans, radio, etc. And if you have an alarm, you also need to put it into valet mode by seeing the manual.

Step 2 – Plug in the Self Charge Jumper

The DC socket is the modern-day cigarette lighter socket. It is more widely known as an automobile auxiliary power outlet. You have to open it and insert the plug of the self-charge jumper right there.

Step 3 – Turn on the Charger and Wait

After you have successfully plugged the charger in, you need to turn it on and wait half for an hour to recharge the car battery. And one more thing, after turning the device on, it will show you a green light which indicates that the charging is being done correctly.

Is It Harmful To Use A Cigarette Lighter To Charge A Car Battery?

Yes, there are a few possibilities of damage if you use a cigarette lighter to charge a car battery. We highly recommend you not use a cigarette lighter to charge your car battery unless it is an emergency. There are small chances that your vehicle might encounter the following outcomes:

Blown Fuse

You will very likely blow out the accessory fuse if there is one in series with the lighter port. Since a car battery can demand a lot of charge current if the source can provide it, there are chances of short circuit damage.

Current Overflow

Any battery you attempt to parallel into the car’s electrical system will also try to feed back into the system. When the system demands current draw such as when you try to charge the car battery, current flow in these conditions could exceed.

Battery Damage

For long-term dependency, charging the car battery through a cigarette lighter is harmful. If you do it once in a while and that too for an absolute emergency, then it is fine. Otherwise, repeatedly doing it has downsides that can damage the battery.

FAQ’s

Well, there might be a few confusions regarding charging a car battery through a cigarette lighter. Since there are some downsides regarding it, people have a lot of questions revolving around this topic. So, let’s know about them.

How Long Would It Take To Charge A Car Battery Through A Cigarette Lighter?

Depending on the size and type of the battery, it can take up to six hours to properly charge a car battery through a cigarette lighter. But you have to charge it for at least 30 minutes to be able to jump-start it right away using a cigarette lighter.

Can A Cigarette Lighter Overcharge A Battery?

Yes, sometimes a cigarette lighter can overcharge a car battery. If there is an auxiliary fuse in series with the lighter port, you will very likely blow it. Short circuit damage is possible because a car battery can require a lot of charge current if the source can deliver it.

Can I Jump Start My Car Through The Cigarette Lighter?

Yes, you definitely can jump-start your car using a cigarette lighter. The method we described in this article is actually a jump-start method. So, you can undoubtedly use a self-charge auto jumper to jump-start your car when you need to. But you should always remember that jump-starting your car through a cigarette lighter is a critical process due to some risk factors while you can easily jump-start or charge a car battery through a jumper cable without any risk.

Which Is The Positive Terminal On A Cigarette Lighter?

The central connection is the positive electrode in 12-volt systems, and the ring is the negative electrode. Most cars link the negative electrodes to the vehicle’s structure (negative ground). The ANSI/SAE J563 framework comprises sockets and mating plugs.

Does A Cigarette Lighter Have A Positive And A Negative?

Yes, a cigarette lighter has a positive and a negative. The “positive” pole lies deep within the bottom or rear of the outlet, whereas the “negative” pole is formed by the metal frame (or metal clips within the socket on the edges).

Conclusion

Self-charging a car using an auto jump starter is quite rare. Most people don’t know about this method because charging your car with a cigarette lighter is not common.

On top of that, cigarette lighters are becoming obsolete in cars nowadays. The car manufacturers market it as an automobile auxiliary power outlet, for which people don’t even use the term car cigarette lighter.

And be sure to slowly charge your car battery with a cigarette lighter. Because otherwise, there are chances of a blown fuse that you do not want. Never forget that safety is the key to driving and its related activities.