Connecting a car radio in a VAZ 2109 yourself

Operating rules

If at some point the cigarette lighter stops working, what will happen? All your additional equipment will no longer receive power. As a result, you will be left without a media center, navigator, will not be able to charge your phone, and so on.

There are several important rules that are recommended to be followed when operating your VAZ 2109 equipped with a cigarette lighter.

1. It is not recommended to connect compressors directly through the cigarette lighter, which many people use today to pump up their tires on the road. It is better to connect it directly through the battery. Such devices consume a lot of energy and create an impressive load on the vehicle's electrical wiring. At some point it may melt or a fuse may blow.
2. Do not try to insert devices whose connectors are larger than the size of the cigarette lighter into the cigarette lighter socket.
3. Do not connect metal objects. Also, when connecting the device, do not use equipment that has metal rings on the body. They often fly out, resulting in a short circuit. At best, your battery will quickly run out.

And what's behind it?

Instructions for repairing and replacing the mechanism

How to remove and replace a failed cigarette lighter with a new one?

In accordance with the connection diagram, the dismantling and installation procedure looks like this:

1. First, you need to unscrew two screws located on the right and left of the panel with the radio in the center console. Remove the panel itself while simultaneously disconnecting the control buttons.
2. Then find the power connector for the cigarette lighter, use the tester to find the plus on it and remove the plug itself. Remember that the color of the wires connected to the device does not always correspond to reality. If the wires are really mixed up, then you need to remove them from the connector; to do this, press the special latch with a screwdriver or an awl. After that, remove them and swap them in order to avoid such a problem later. Bend the latch and install them so that the wires are securely fixed in the seat.
3. After this, the power wire must be cut if you want to connect a fuse directly to it. This is not necessary, but it is advisable. It would be even better to make a new wiring for the connector, since the existing standard cable is very short. Install a fuse in the electrical circuit and wrap everything with electrical tape so that the device does not fall out.
4. Then connect the connectors and, using the tester, check if you did everything correctly. You need to make sure that the power and other connections are properly connected.
5. If the old cigarette lighter was not equipped with a light bulb, you can additionally install one. To do this, you can use a wire to activate the parking lights. Remove the wire from the connected connector, and then connect the power supply circuit of the cigarette lighter bulb to it. The connection must be insulated, then the connector is installed in place.
6. When these steps are completed, you need to reinstall the cigarette lighter on the previously removed center console panel. It must be inserted from the outside of the panel, where there is a small cavity - a plastic part is installed into it, after which the lamp should be installed and fixed in the grooves. Please note that the lamp itself must be fixed directly in the plastic, and not in the cavity of the device, otherwise this may result in a short circuit.
7. When the lamp is installed, the device is connected to the connector, and note that you also need to connect the ground. Then the lamp itself is connected. After assembly, you need to check the functionality of the device. If everything is fine, then reinstall the panel and secure it to the console with self-tapping screws. Connect all buttons and connectors to them.

Photo gallery “Replacing the cigarette lighter yourself”

How to use it correctly

What happens if the cigarette lighter breaks? In this situation, the additional equipment installed on the machine will not be able to receive electricity and, therefore, will stop working.

To prevent this from happening, when using a cigarette lighter, you just need to follow a few fairly simple, but very important rules.

First of all, you should not connect the compressor, which is currently used by many car owners to pump up wheel chambers, directly into the connector, that is, directly. It would be more correct to power it from a battery. The thing is that these types of devices require a lot of voltage to operate and, therefore, create high loads on the wires. As a result, the latter often overheat and even melt. This most often happens on machines where fuses are replaced by jumpers.

Under no circumstances should you try to insert too thick plugs into the socket - they will damage the connector elements, some of which are made of porcelain.

General information

An electrical circuit is understood as a combination of various radio-electronic devices connected to each other by conductors. The task of such a set is to ensure the flow of electric current of the specified characteristics. The parameters of such a system are described using three main quantities:

• current - the ordered movement of charge carriers caused by external forces, for example, an electromagnetic field;
• voltage - the work performed to move a charged particle from one point of the body to another;
• resistance - a value that depends on the impedance of each element of the circuit.

There are two ways to analyze an electrical circuit - energy and information. The first refers to the study of processes associated with the transformation and transfer of energy. Finding currents and voltages in different places in the circuit. The second involves clarifying the reaction when the external influence changes.

There are two states of an electrical circuit - closed and open. If there is a gap in some place, no current will flow through it. This means that no potential difference (voltage) will appear between two points of the open section. A closed circuit allows the circulation of electrical charges. The connection between the elements of the circuit is carried out using conductors. That is, bodies with little resistance.

In order for electron movement to occur, a source of force—energy—is needed. This is a generator that produces current or voltage. They call it the source. The difference between generators is that the current one is able to maintain a constant current strength at its output, regardless of the rest of the circuit. The voltage source produces a constant electromotive force (EMF), the magnitude of which is not affected by the current in the circuit.

Thus, the simplest electrical circuit consists of three elements - an energy source, conductors, and a consumer. A real electrical circuit can contain any number of consumers. Some of them can accumulate energy and then release it, while others only consume it, converting it into another form.

Main nuances

So:

• Before connecting the car radio, you must carefully study the instructions, since incorrect actions will lead to equipment breakdown or even fire.

Connecting a VAZ 2109 car radio

• In modern players with automatic tuning, due to the wiring features of domestic cars designed for older models, settings may fail when turning the ignition key.

Note: therefore, it is also necessary to study the features of VAZ cars.

Causes

Practice shows that there are two main reasons for cigarette lighter failure on a VAZ 2109.

Cigarette lighters are designed for a certain load, exceeding which leads to failure of the unit. When developing the VAZ 2109, engineers at that time could hardly have taken into account that the cigarette lighter would be used to connect portable compressors, powerful multimedia centers and other energy-consuming equipment.

The cigarette lighter doesn't work

Pros and cons of a cigarette lighter

Connection diagram for direction indicators VAZ 2108, 2109, 21099
Its undoubted advantage is that many electrical appliances that are so necessary on the road and make life easier can be connected to its socket: a charger for a smartphone and laptop, a recorder, a mini-electric kettle and many others.

The big disadvantage of the cigarette lighter is that the switching of high currents, by design, is not highly reliable, and many modern electrical appliances, such as a laptop or a car refrigerator, have a high power requirement. But the higher the current passing through the circuit, the stronger and more reliable all connections should be. Of course, it would be good if, in order to increase the strength of holding the plug in the cigarette lighter socket, they began to produce forks that had more presser feet. But today, on most forks, only a spring-loaded contact and two mass pressing pads are installed, and the central contact area in the socket is placed at different depths, sometimes very small.

During the trip, shaking and various types of shocks cause a violation of the reliability of contact between the socket and the plug. This could cause the connection to spark, cause a short circuit, or even a fire. In addition, the use of various splitters and adapters for cigarette lighters is now becoming increasingly popular, making it possible to connect several electrical appliances at once, and this increases the load on the network and reduces the reliability of the system.

Why it breaks and what to do

Experts say that there are only 2 reasons leading to cigarette lighter failure:

• fuse blown;
• loss of any contact.

In the first case, you will need to replace the melted protective device with a working one. It is located directly in the mounting block. So, if you have:

• low instrument panel (that is, an older car), then this is F4 or F10;
• high panel – 11.

It is worth noting that in this situation the following will also stop working:

• rear window heating element;
• socket for extension cord.

In early cars the fuse rating was 20 amperes, in new ones it was only 16.

By the way, the stove is powered through F7 in old models, 4 in new ones.

The blown fuse is removed with the battery disconnected and replaced with a new one. It is important to monitor his condition for some time. If it burns out again, then you should look for the cause in a short circuit.

If contact is lost, you must:

• inspect the cigarette lighter socket;
• make sure that all wires are holding well;
• use a tester to check the voltage (black and red wires - should be 12 volts).

If everything is in order, then you should look for the problem in the socket. If there is no electricity, inspect the wiring for integrity.

It is important to understand that the cigarette lighter itself has a certain margin of safety, and not every load will pass without leaving a mark on it. If the norm is exceeded, the risk of breakdown increases. Therefore, you need to be more attentive to the selection of gadgets, giving preference to the most energy-saving ones.

What can cause a fuse to blow?

A fuse protects a circuit from higher current than the circuit can handle. If the fuse is blown, it means there is a short circuit somewhere. It can be between two wires or the power wire and ground (car body).

A fuse can also blow if the equipment draws more current than it is designed to handle. For example, if the windshield wiper or fan motor is blocked when turned on, it will draw higher current and possibly blow a fuse.

The same thing can happen if the winding inside the motor is shorted. There are several common problems that cause fuses to blow in many cars:

1. The most common case is when a metal object (such as a coin) falls into the cigarette lighter socket.
2. The wire harness that goes into the trunk lid frays where it bends and shorts out and trips the fuse associated with the taillights or brake lights.
3. An incorrect bulb installed in one of the headlights or taillights can also cause the fuse to trip.
4. Damage to trailer wiring harness.
5. A wiring harness connected to any equipment inside the engine bay is wiped and shorts the fuse. For example, in some older Mercedes-Benz vehicles, it was a fairly common problem where the insulation on the engine wiring harness would crack, shorting out the wires.

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Design and purpose of the cigarette lighter

The cigarette lighter in VAZ 2108, 2109 and 21099 cars is used:

• for its main purpose, that is, for lighting cigarettes;
• for powering devices such as video recorders, navigators, radar detectors, etc.;
• for charging mobile gadgets, players and tablets.

As for the device, the cigarette lighter consists of:

• a housing in which all the constituent elements are enclosed;
• insulator;
• terminals for connecting to the power circuit;
• holder contacts;
• heating element - the main component of the device;
• metal legs fixing the element;
• a spring that knocks the cigarette lighter itself out of its seat in the event of full heating.

Device

The standard cigarette lighter design includes 2 elements:

• cartridge;
• nest.

The chuck (in the center) houses a metal rod that is used to create positive contact. The contact with the “-” sign is created using the outer metal shell of the device. A gasket is placed between the contacts to prevent short-circuiting of the device. The connection of polarities is carried out using a nichrome spiral, which performs the tasks of the heating element.

After electricity is supplied, a discharge is conducted through the coil, heating the element to an elevated temperature. After reaching the maximum temperature, the transmission of current using a relay (in a plastic handle) stops. The car device socket is a rounded depression in the dashboard of the car. A metal tube is built into the socket, and a central contact is also provided.

To contact in from the battery device. The side covering serves as “-“. A backlight is mounted on the cigarette lighter body, which lights up automatically when external lighting devices are turned on. The cigarette lighter socket has a direct current of 12 volts.

Some cars can use additional elements that are included with the cigarette lighter. Automotive departments offer melters or splitters for devices. The device is a block with 2-3 sockets. The product is connected to a regular cigarette lighter using a connector.

The device is very convenient to use, because... The design allows you to connect several gadgets. You can build in a switch for melters.

Connection diagram

When deciding how the device works, it is necessary to study the installation diagram of the car lighter with the names of the elements of the complex system. The cigarette lighter is started from the car's electrical network and connected through the mounting block without using a relay from the battery.

The network connection is protected by a fuse that is designed to operate at a voltage of no more than 10 amperes. If a short circuit occurs in the network, the electric current will increase sharply, the fuse thread will heat up, melt and break the electrical circuit, preventing the electrical wiring from catching fire.

The possibility of increasing the protection of power circuits is provided by using a different connection scheme through a relay. This scheme is used in imported machines.

According to the rules, 3 wires are connected to the socket on the panel:

• constant "minus";
• constant “plus” (passed through the fuse from the car battery);
• “plus” from side lamps, suitable for the lighting of the device and functioning only when external lighting devices are turned on.

The use of the ignition system to connect a cigarette lighter is only used when a relay is included in the electrical circuit, because Without this element, the circuit will not be able to withstand overload.

The relationship between a car lighter and a radio in VAZ cars

A common problem for all VAZ car models (2114,2115, 2109, 2110, 21099), this is the same voltage supply circuit to the car player, with output to one common fuse, which is additionally responsible for the power supply:

• cabin heater (stove);
• cigarette lighter;
• heated rear window;
• the radio itself.

Thus, a failure as a result of a break, short circuit, etc., in the electrical circuit of any device leads to the shutdown of the rest.

Since the tape recorder is equipped with an additional safety device, coming after the main one, after checking them and replacing them, if necessary, the operation of the head unit, like all the above-mentioned equipment, is restored. If only the cigarette lighter (without the player) resumes operation, the cause of the malfunction should be sought in the car radio itself (which is the topic of a separate article).