Hello folks:
Still a great newsgroup; wonderful people here. Anyway, I wanted to ask if anyone has had any experience with a situation similar to my current one.
I have a '98 Maxima SE and I noticed that the cigarette lighter didn't work. No big deal, I don't smoke, but I do need the power source. So, I checked the fuse and sure enough, it was open. Okay, maybe the fuse finally gave up. No other bad fuses, no other electrical problems.
Jammed a new 15-amp fuse in, then pushed the button. Oops, a spark the instant the coil touches the bottom of the socket. Open fuse again. This leads me to believe that it's the lighter socket itself, either by not being properly grounded or by being otherwise defective internally, but I haven't been able to find another one to try yet. Haven't ripped this one open to look inside, either.
Anyone have any ideas or ways to test or otherwise investigate the socket? Any and all replies would be appreciated. Thank you.
Art.