So Im wondering if anyone knows how the cigarette lighter power outlet works, specifically the rear outlet. I just bought a varex muffler (shout out to TSelanne for pointing me in the right direction) which basically has an adjustable butterfly valve inside to control flow and noise. The wiring uses the cig lighter as the power source. Id rather not use the outlet itself as Id like to keep it free for my back seat passengers to charge their phones and crap. However, the instructions for the muffler installation state "DO NOT hard wire the muffler as the constant power source will burn out the butterfly valve motor, hard wiring will void the warranty".

Im really not following how that would burn it out. What I'd like to do is to cut off the cig outlet plug anyways and solder the wires to the wires of the cig outlet. Basically the same exact power source, just not using the plug. Would doing this somehow change the power output? 12v is 12v so Im thinking it should be ok. Also, as Im not too experienced with electronics - would using that outlet to power the muffler motor make the outlet plug no longer work? For example, I should still be able to use that outlet even though power is being drawn from it already?

Idk if that all makes sense but hopefully someone knows whats Im trying to get at lol. Thanks guys.

 

Let me answer the easy questions first.

12 volts is 12 volts, it doesn't matter where in the car you are measuring or tapping into.

Tapping into a wire so you can hook up something else (your muffler solenoid) does make a difference, but not necessarily to the voltage. What makes a difference is how much additional amps is the extra device going to pull? There are 2 things to be concerned with. #1 - Everything is on a fuse, so will the additional amps cause the fuse to blow? #2 - When you use more amps, you need a bigger wire.

Now to reality. The cigarette lighter socket is on a 15 amp fuse. Unless you are using an actual cigarette lighter, very few devices will come close to that. A phone charger certainly won't, the dual ones are around 2 amps.

How many amps does the muffler solenoid draw? Solenoids can vary quite a bit, the manufacturer has to tell you. I would be surprised if it needs 5 amps, but who knows, I don't.

Then there is the part about "DO NOT hard wire the muffler as the constant power source will burn out the butterfly valve motor, hard wiring will void the warranty". This needs clarification. What I think this means (the key word being "think") is do not wire a constant, never turned off, 12 volts to it. When you are driving the car, you would want the solenoid to have power so it can channel the exhaust, at least that sounds logical to me.

If I am correct then you don't need to worry about using the rear cigarette lighter as it is turned off when the car is off. Depending on how many amps the muffler solenoid uses, I think you should be able to tap into the cigarette lighter wire and still have people use it to charge their phones.

 

Dennis you are THE man. Always coming through with the knowledge, props.

I knew I was forgetting something crazy simple (amps). Looked into it and it the controller device, which in turn gives power to the solenoid, draws 3 amps. Meaning I should be perfectly fine tapping into the cig lighter wiring rather than using the plug itself.

As far as the hard wiring thing, their installation papers say verbatim "DO NOT hardwire this system, IT WILL result in the control box failing (due to constant power supply) and could also damage the electronics in your vehicle due to incorrect installation." Since tapping into the cig lighter wires would effectively be exactly the same as using the plug as far as supplying power goes, I should be ok, although I bet theyll consider that a breach of warranty regardless lol.

Waiting for my 3'' catback kit to come in the mail and then nice weather to swap my cattmans off the 4th gen and onto my 5.5 - should have this exhaust up and going within a week or two!

 

If that is their sole explanation, they really need to find someone that knows a little bit about electricity, or at least someone that has heard about this thing called electricity.

But when they say do not hardwire, I again have to assume that they mean do not connect it directly to the battery.

 

 

Hey Slamrod, not sure if you'll see this - 'cause old thread - but you should be fine hardwiring it. I finally got around to hardwiring mine this weekend. It's sooooo much nicer having it on a switch vs the remote control.

I'm far from an electrical expert, but if you wire it with a momentary on-off-on switch, you won't have continuous power to the motor/solenoid. You'll only be powering it when it needs power - to open or close. So it will work just like it does from the factory, except with a switch instead of with the remote from the factory.

Few pics of my install:





The spade connectors aren't pushed all the way on yet in those pics fyi.

I had to shave down the edges of the switch, and coin-holder opening, with a razor blade to get the switch to fit.... but when pressed in, it almost looks like factory, so pretty cool. I filed the edges after taking this pic so nice & straight.





I ran the wire from the varex through the grommet in the spare tire cavity, underneath that metal backseat plate, and fished it under the carpet along the middle hump and into the center console area. I used the factory ground screw right next to the airbag controllers, and tapped into the rear cig power source.



It should've been a real easy install...... but it was my first time so I went really slow measuring the wire and thinking everything through, and ran into a few headaches along the way..... so it took much longer than anticipated. Some headaches were: I first aimed to ground on a bolt that covers the parking brake cable, but that bolt snapped 'cause so rusty..... so I had to drill it out and re-thread that hole. Later, the center console fell backwards and pulled the power and ground wires off the spade connectors and the switch, and of course they touched together, and of course I had forgotten to turn off the ignition switch..... so loud spark and popped a fuse..... took a really long time to figure out which fuse as I never knew the rear cig lighter is not labelled in the fuse box!, it's called something different. Joys of working on your own car haha.

 

So initially, I just had it plugged into the rear cig light. No hard wiring or anything, just wanted it to work. But since I swapped my interior, I never bothered to hook it back up. To be honest its FAR more quiet than I expected, to the point where I just leave it open. In hindsight, I wouldve opted for just a plain quality muffler rather than this one, had I known. With the 4” intake its a lot louder though, so Im probably going to hook it up again. Its also just kinda fun having a cutout and going from being more quiet than stock to a loud roar at the click of a remote.

Where did you get that switch? I really dig putting it in where the coin holder went, clean spot to have a switch there. Lmk, when I get around to it (not really a priority right now lol) i would like to copy your setup.

 

Yeah I had mine plugged in w the remote for years..... I ran the wire under the rear seat, and I put the control box in the top part of the center console, so the wires were pretty hidden at least. I then hung the remote from the rear view mirror.

What's the rest of your exhaust setup again?

I can't remember where I got the switch.... I do recall searching online hours and hours trying to find the right size and type though. Lmk if you decide to do it, and I'll dig around for you to find it.

It's interesting about the sound..... I have two maximas, both with the exact same headers / ypipe / 3" exhaust setup, and one car is louder than the other. My 3.0 5sp is louder than my 3.5 6sp. Never quite understood why. Btw, this is just at idle and regular driving. When I get on it, the 3.5 really roars.

Btw if you still have my number you can text me.

 

Install a relay for the butterfly valve