Battery dies the moment I use cigarette lighter, need some help.
 

I have a stock 1991 Acura Integra GS 5spd w/320,000 miles on it.

I have been having some issues blowing a one specific fuse. Its the 15A Radio, clock and cigarette lighter unit fuse. I suspect a short and I think it has something to do with the lighter unit. Sometimes the lighter unit will work to power my phone and sometimes at random, it won't.

A few days ago, while my car was running, as I was plugging my charger into the unit, the whole car died instantly. I tried starting up again but the car wouldn't start.

I charged up the battery and it started and ran fine but the next day the battery was completely dead all over again. I suspect a bad lighter unit but could the cord assembly that hooks up to the lighter unit be shorted? I tried looking for that part "39628-sh2-307" but acura has it as discontinued. I will begin the scavenger hunt at pick n pull but I just want to make sure I am focusing on the right stuff.

Thanks in advance!

Re: Battery dies the moment I use cigarette lighter, need some help.
 

You have another issue, a batt. does on die instantly,"as I was plugging my charger into the unit, the whole car died instantly. I tried starting up again but the car wouldn't start".

Now the car can "die instantly" but a batt. can not.

Question..
When you tried to restart the car, after it died when you plugged in the charger, what happened exactly, did the motor crank over and just not fire, [start] or did it not even crank, did you get a "click", did the cluster light up when you turned on the ign.?

I suspect a main grounding problem, I would redo the main grounds to elliminate them as a possible problem, it can't hurt to do them anyway on a 20 year old car.

Don't just "check" the grounds, redo them, disconnect/clean/reconnect, [cable clamp, batt. post, batt. to chassis ground and chassis to engine ground] the chassis ground is under the batt. 94

Re: Battery dies the moment I use cigarette lighter, need some help.
 

After I hooked the charger up to recharge the battery, it took a few moments before it would have enough juice to start over.

Now to clean the ground's, do I just get a battery terminal cleaner and go one by one with the grounds?

(Electricity isn't my bright spot, lol)

Thanks again!

Re: Battery dies the moment I use cigarette lighter, need some help.
 

Batt. terminal cleaner, wire brush, sand paper, it make no diff., disconnect the ground point, clean the contact surfaces, [EG; batt. post and inside of batt. cable clamp are contact surfaces].

As I mentioned you will have to remove the batt. to access the chassis ground.

The batt, to chassis/chassis to engine ground on a G2 is a single cable...
Attachment 296959
...with the terminal in the center connected under the batt. as the chassis ground. 94