dumb question- cigarette lighter socket
 

the cigarette lighter outlet for US cars is identical to the cigarette lighter for cars in Europe, right?

I am bringing my gps and will be renting a vehicle in Spain next month.

Renting a VW van with a manual tranny!

Yes, However Rental/For Hire companies are increasingly disconnecting cigarette lighters in vehicles knowing how much stuff people are plugging into them. Ask before you rent.

Hmm, does using the cigarette lighter to charge phones and things cause damage to the electrical systems?

(That might explain why i've been seeing a lot of actual 12v outlets in a lot of newer cars....)

I would believe there is a small portion of society that plug in other than cell phones, gps. Or use on plug to run multiple devices or a 110V converter.

Or this.:eek:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/339399-using-inverter-connected-300td-powering-tools-emergency-useage.html#post3153003

good point about the car rental guys disconnecting the ciggy outlets.

I will bring along the usb charger and my kid's ipod plug-in just in case.

Same as far as I know, but they deliver 220v....:eek:;)

I drive in a lot of rental cars and I'm always amazed by how many "ciggy outlets" there are in them. In most rental cars you will find two on the dash, one in the mid console + a usb outlet and in every SUV you will find one in rear, I always rent SUV's so it could be different for compacts. You wont find an ashtray or lighter in any of them.

Are rental companies actually disconnecting the outlets, or are imbeciles simply blowing the fuse by overloading them, and the rental companies aren't bothering to replace the fuse?

Used to be the euro hole was bigger than the US version. Devices like the old Escort came with a plastic sleeve to put over the plug to make it fit tight. My 87 SL is bigger than the one on my 2008 Jeep, but the SL is a real cigarette lighter, not just an outlet. But all devices still work. My old 6.9 was really loose.

If that's the case, I doubt they even check.