Can someone post a picture of the backside of the cigarette door mechanism?

[maillemaker]

Hi all,

My flip up/down door on my shifter bezel for the cigarette door is broken. There appears to be a little plastic finger on the mechanism that has broken off. I can probably fashion or 3D print a retrofit mechanism that slides over the body of the lighter housing.

Can someone take a picture of a functional door backside so I can understand how it is supposed to work?

Thanks.

Here is my broken one:

 

[maillemaker]

This one looks intact, but I don't know how the spring fits.

 

[badass98svt]

@Slice has his out right now I think. Maybe he can take a pic or 2 for ya

 

[maillemaker]

I believe it should be possible to make a sheet metal or 3D printed "collar" that slides down the body of the lighter housing tightly, and that collar will have an arm bent away from it that duplicates the old plastic geometry, giving a permanent and rigid mount for the spring.

Just need to figure out the positioning of the spring.

 

[maillemaker]

I'm thinking 3D printing might not be a good choice as if the lighter is ever used as a lighter I suppose the metal body gets pretty hot. But sheet metal should work fine.

 

[Slice]

I'm thinking 3D printing might not be a good choice as if the lighter is ever used as a lighter I suppose the metal body gets pretty hot. But sheet metal should work fine.

 

[Slice]

Here is left and right view. I agree 3D printed may not last as there is moderate stress on the arm. You could probably get the whole assembly cheap from a wreck. I doubt there is big demand for this trim piece. BTW are you converting to a USB charger?

 

[maillemaker]

Here is left and right view. I agree 3D printed may not last as there is moderate stress on the arm. You could probably get the whole assembly cheap from a wreck. I doubt there is big demand for this trim piece. BTW are you converting to a USB charger?

Thanks so much for the pictures! So that spring just floats in air! That's easy peasy.

I think 3D printing would be fine from a strength perspective as I can make it as beefy as desired to make it massively strong. Biggest issue is my intent was to friction-slip something over the lighter housing and that is likely to get very hot if used as a lighter and would melt the 3D printed part.

But I will approach this by making a C-shaped piece to tightly hug the lighter housing, with a little arm coming off of it to give a mount point for the spring. Might give the C-shaped piece a clamp screw to hold it tight, or could just use a pipe clamp to hold it on tight.

I should be able to knock one out in my shop tonight.

There are many assemblies listed on ebay, but all but one had the same problem with the busted-off arm.

I don't intend to replace the lighter with a USB port, but hope that one of those super-flush USB adapaters will plug in and still fit behind the flip-up door.

Perhaps one like this, that someone mentioned in another thread:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09N9CSBC9

 

[Slice]

The problem with the plug in USB ports is they are too long. The lighter socket is only 1.25 inch deep so the cover will not flip shut. All the plug in USBs seem to be like 2 inches long.

 

[ttocs]

this really should not be this hard to need 3d printing and such.

 

[maillemaker]

3D printing is easier than fabbing out of sheet metal!

 

[ttocs]

why can't we just unscrew the factory lighter and then put the new carger in?

 

[maillemaker]

I'm sure you can.

 

[badass98svt]

I already mentioned I did that a few days ago in the other thread

 

[maillemaker]

So, did some quick and dirty fab work tonight, and now my cigarette lighter door flips open and closed like it supposed to.

Once I figured out that the lighter housing screws together, I abandoned the slide/clip on idea and just added it as a shim trapped between the two lighter pieces. Now it's not going anywhere for sure.

This is, of course, a very crude prototype. I can offer these for sale as precision-made components if there is any interest. I suspect they would cost about $10 each.

I'll knock out a few production prototypes and post them here later.

 

[95SN95]

I have a flip open door the lighter on my car that keeps falling open. I’ve been wondering how it’s supposed to stay closed. Are you showing there is supposed to be a spring that keeps it closed?

 

[maillemaker]

I have a flip open door the lighter on my car that keeps falling open. I’ve been wondering how it’s supposed to stay closed. Are you showing there is supposed to be a spring that keeps it closed?

Yes, there is a little torsion spring that you can see above the lighter socket in the picture.

It attaches to the door (mine was still attached to the door) and to a plastic arm that had broken off. I fashioned a new arm out of metal, and bent it off of a piece that I secured under the socket.

You might find your torsion spring somewhere in the dash guts where the panel was.