cig lighter to power my head unit?

[phat_com]

hello,
i am installing my stereo in my vk and there was not cig lights in the car just the little plug thing. So i pulled that out and cut the black and brown wires off the plug and now i want to use these wires to power my head unit, Now my question is the the black wire and the brown wire negative and positive? or is the a red wire in the somewhere that i have missed and the brown wire is like ground or something?
could someone in the know help me out so i can have some doof doof in my car
cheers Pat

[phat_com]

bump cmon someone must know?

[Sir-Psycho-Sexy]

whats wrong with using a simple test light to figure it out?

[vsMick]

or an el-cheapo multimeter from dicksmith or jaycar. Guranteed to come in useful later on.

[phat_com]

don't know how to use a test light. have never used one before.

[Sir-Psycho-Sexy]

pretty simple

its just a transparent screw driver with a light in side, the screwdriver has a lead out the top with an aligator clip. You clip the aligator clip to your wire, the touch the screw driver to ground (the body of the car) scratch away some paint to make sure you get a contact with bare metal (obviously some where not visible when the car is back together).

If the light turns on then there is current flowing from that wire to ground, therefore it is a power wire. if the light doesn't come on then it will most likely be a ground wire. For the cigarette lighter's power supply, it should only turn on when the key is turned to accessories.

Thats my interpretation of it all anyway

[phat_com]

wow it is easy. Thanks a million.
Pat.

[SweetWagon]

pretty simple

its just a transparent screw driver with a light in side, the screwdriver has a lead out the top with an aligator clip. You clip the aligator clip to your wire, the touch the screw driver to ground (the body of the car) scratch away some paint to make sure you get a contact with bare metal (obviously some where not visible when the car is back together).

If the light turns on then there is current flowing from that wire to ground, therefore it is a power wire. if the light doesn't come on then it will most likely be a ground wire. For the cigarette lighter's power supply, it should only turn on when the key is turned to accessories.

Thats my interpretation of it all anyway

You got it right for the most part but, although it doesnt matter which direction the electricity flows through the test light, you should use the aligator clip end to clamp to a metallic surface on the car body and the probe side is usually pointed to allow you to probe the wire(s). If you think about it, it make more sense as you wouldnt be holding the probe on the earth in one hand whilst using a large, useless aligator clip to poke around with in the other hand. The light will still work on an earth wire, if the device is switched on as a current will be flowing through it to earth, you need a multimeter to find that out the difference between +ve and -ve.

[Sir-Psycho-Sexy]

You got it right for the most part but, although it doesnt matter which direction the electricity flows through the test light, you should use the aligator clip end to clamp to a metallic surface on the car body and the probe side is usually pointed to allow you to probe the wire(s). If you think about it, it make more sense as you wouldnt be holding the probe on the earth in one hand whilst using a large, useless aligator clip to poke around with in the other hand. The light will still work on an earth wire, if the device is switched on as a current will be flowing through it to earth, you need a multimeter to find that out the difference between +ve and -ve.

i am new too this so excuse my ignorance but...

if you have conected the aligator clip conected to a ground wire (unsuspectingly) then touch the screwdriver bit to the body of the car, there will be no current flowing from ground to ground (thus no light), right?

[SweetWagon]

i am new too this so excuse my ignorance but...

if you have conected the aligator clip conected to a ground wire (unsuspectingly) then touch the screwdriver bit to the body of the car, there will be no current flowing from ground to ground (thus no light), right?

no it will still light up, for example with the cigarette lighter, when it is engaged it will complete the circuit, the test light will be providing a earth for that circuit and therefore light up...... when the ciggy lighter is not engaged there will not be any power on the erath wire as the lighter is stopping the circuit to be completed.

[accentstencil]

If you are using a test lamp with a LED light then it only works one way (+ to + and - to -) therefore the alligator clip must go to ground and the probe to the wire you are testing.

[NOT.BT1]

pretty sure brown earth black positive i did the same thing to my head unit

[VTS5]

hello,
i am installing my stereo in my vk and there was not cig lights in the car just the little plug thing. So i pulled that out and cut the black and brown wires off the plug and now i want to use these wires to power my head unit, Now my question is the the black wire and the brown wire negative and positive? or is the a red wire in the somewhere that i have missed and the brown wire is like ground or something?
could someone in the know help me out so i can have some doof doof in my car
cheers Pat

Phewwww..You've asked one simple question,half a million trying to teach u something else,brown wire carries the current which in this case (+) and black is the (-) BUT it will only work when u turn the ignition to ON or ACCESORRIES.because thats when cigy lighter works.But i think u'll have problems if u install u'r unit this way because head units (most of'em anyway) has two (2) power cables a/red to power up the unit b/yellow to keep units memory alive (time,stations etc.) so u need constant power for the yellow one.Just run a cable from your cars battery,only then u can join the brown(cigy power :-) with the red one then again dont forget it will only work when your cars ignition is ON or ACCESORRIES position.Good luck

ps.i'm not trying to be a smartass but most people here love to beat-around the bush rather then giving out straight answers.

[VTS5]

no it will still light up, for example with the cigarette lighter, when it is engaged it will complete the circuit, the test light will be providing a earth for that circuit and therefore light up...... when the ciggy lighter is not engaged there will not be any power on the erath wire as the lighter is stopping the circuit to be completed.

Question : if you have conected the aligator clip conected to a ground wire (unsuspectingly) then touch the screwdriver bit to the body of the car, there will be no current flowing from ground to ground (thus no light), right?

Answer : no it will still light up. (With an answer like this ,Poor guy must be confused out of his brains)

What i like to know is..........HOW?

[SweetWagon]

Question : if you have conected the aligator clip conected to a ground wire (unsuspectingly) then touch the screwdriver bit to the body of the car, there will be no current flowing from ground to ground (thus no light), right?

Answer : no it will still light up. (With an answer like this ,Poor guy must be confused out of his brains)

What i like to know is..........HOW?

it would act as if it was wired in series

[accentstencil]

I have to agree with VT_Acclm, the test light won't light up under those conditions.

[VTS5]

it would act as if it was wired in series

You've got to be kiddin' me....Now,this is the problem here,like the smarties above,why do you need/have to write? It is obvious that you got NO idea about the subject.So next time just stay away PLEASE..This isnt a CHAT forum.Let people IN THE KNOW help others.Because,sometimes this forum is the only place where we can get REAL help..

[SweetWagon]

im just going by a past experience where my battery kept going flat, so using a test light, I put it between the neg terminal on the battery and neg terminal lead where it lit up so i pulled out all the fuses till i found the culprit. now doesnt this situation reflect the same conditions thats been descibed. ie current flow from gound to ground?

[phat_com]

Phewwww..You've asked one simple question,half a million trying to teach u something else,brown wire carries the current which in this case (+) and black is the (-) BUT it will only work when u turn the ignition to ON or ACCESORRIES.because thats when cigy lighter works.But i think u'll have problems if u install u'r unit this way because head units (most of'em anyway) has two (2) power cables a/red to power up the unit b/yellow to keep units memory alive (time,stations etc.) so u need constant power for the yellow one.Just run a cable from your cars battery,only then u can join the brown(cigy power :-) with the red one then again dont forget it will only work when your cars ignition is ON or ACCESORRIES position.Good luck

ps.i'm not trying to be a smartass but most people here love to beat-around the bush rather then giving out straight answers.

I don't listen to the radio and i have a clock on the dash and my fone so i don't nned a memory wire. I don't want to run a wire from the batt because i don't know where the hole is in the firewall.And if i have a short i don't want to blow the fuse in the back on the H/u because it'll be a pain in the arse to pull the h/u out and change it, And the cig light was pulled out anyway
thanks for your help, Pat

[phat_com]

oh and i got a new sub so i'll post pics of my H/u in and working and my new sub on tuesday prob and i'll make a My ride on the same day.