[driverseven]

I've got some kind of paper obstructing the connectors on my cigarette lighter / accessory socket.

Can anyone point me toward a resource for clearing it out? Is there a fuse I should remove first? Can the socket be un-screwed or replaced?

[MarcoZandrini]

Vacuum cleaner.

[driverseven]

Tried that. Not sure what is holding it to the metal contact but it won't vacuum out.

I think I'm going to need to pull it out and I may need to replace it.

[mdputnam]

If it is really just paper. Disconnect the battery terminal in the trunk. Soak a washrag in water with Dawn dish washing soap. Stuff the washrag in the socket and let it soak for about an hour, making sure it does not go dry. After about an hour the water and soap should have turned the paper into a gooey pulp. Wipe out the socket with a clean washrag soaked in plain water. Then dry with another washrag.

[driverseven]

Very interesting approach. Low cost, too.

[frenchfry675]

Tooth pic or wooden Skewers for grilling. I use more wooden skewers for cleaning things out of tight spaces then I use to make meat and veggies on the grill. Lol

[zipphreak]

I once dropped a foil gum wrapper in the socket.. It sparked too

Eyebrow tweezers, toothpicks, chopsticks, syringe needles. You get the point.

[driverseven]

I finally got around to pulling the battery cable so I could try and remove the debris. It looks clean but it won't charge. Any other ideas? It's still under warranty but I was doubtful it would be covered. Maybe now it would be covered since its clean.

Here are before and after pix


Any other ideas before I have to bring it in?

[frenchfry675]

Originally Posted by driverseven

I finally got around to pulling the battery cable so I could try and remove the debris. It looks clean but it won't charge. Any other ideas? It's still under warranty but I was doubtful it would be covered. Maybe now it would be covered since its clean.

Here are before and after pix


Any other ideas before I have to bring it in?

Have you checked the fuse?

[driverseven]

I haven't -- good idea. Why didn't I think of that?

[1FUNCAR]

Originally Posted by zipphreak

You get the point.

Pun intended? LOL

[BEM-S4]

Now that it looks clean just take it in for a warranty repair. Leave out the whole backstory. "My outlet quit working, please fix" is all you need to say.

[driverseven]

Yes, I figured I could probably get it covered under warranty but I also thought it would be a good opportunity to learn something.

Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions. I finally got it working. I dis-connected the battery and then went in with a tweezer and scraped out the debris. Then vacuumed the socket. After I re-connected the battery, it still wouldn't work. So I checked the fuses, found one out of the 3 associated with the socket was dead. Ordered fuses thru Amazon, and voila, it now works.

After 19 years of driving BMW's (I'm on my 3rd) this is the first time I had to replace a fuse -- hell, it's the first time I touched a battery or even located the fuse box on my car.

I may never even use the socket since I have the USB outlet a few inches away but at least I learned something.

[Maynard]

This is a good reminder to me that I should keep the plug in this socket when I'm not running the radar detector lead off of it - right now it is sitting open just waiting for me to drop something into it and have this same problem.