Hardwiring issue.

[Fruffy91]

Hey there I've got myself in a right puddle am not too sure if it's from over thinking etc.

I want to hard wire some led footlights to my car (fiat abarth 595 series 3) I want to use the back of the 12v cigarette lighter but the issue is I don't want to damage any of the wires at all. I could use a piggyback fuse but the fuse location for the circuit is under the bonnet and it's extremely hard to route a wire from there without drilling etc. And I don't want to damage any of the existing wires incase i want to remove the mod for selling purposes etc. Which way would you guys go about this?

[GreenV8S]

You identified the cigar lighter socket as a possible source. How does the loom connect to that? If it's a simple spade connector, you might be able to insert a piggy back connector. For what it's worth, I don't see any problem splicing into an existing wire as long as you do it properly with a crimped and sealed join, and not one of those hideous insulation piercing connectors.

[Fruffy91]

I have figured out what to do am going to “piggyback” a fuse from the internal fuse box with one of those add a fuse connectors then run a extra female 12v power socket from that to plug my accessory into . Just another question, the fuse that I do piggyback will I be ok to piggyback a 5amp fuse?

[RobXjcoupe]

Fruffy91 said:

I have figured out what to do am going to “piggyback” a fuse from the internal fuse box with one of those add a fuse connectors then run a extra female 12v power socket from that to plug my accessory into . Just another question, the fuse that I do piggyback will I be ok to piggyback a 5amp fuse?

If the piggy back circuit is already fused the max current available is via the original circuit. Ideally you need a circuit rated at 10amp so as the piggy back circuit can safely pull 5 amps. But depending on the original circuit there may not be sufficient current to supply the additional piggy back circuit if that other circuit is being used at the same time.

[GreenV8S]

That sounds like a pretty nasty approach and a lot worse that splicing the extra circuit properly, but it can be made to work if you want to do it like that. Make sure the fuse you piggy back onto isn't doing anything important and make sure that the piggy back connectors can't come out and short on anything. Preferably tape or strap everything together so nothing can come loose.

There is no general answer to whether it is safe to add a piggy back 5A load to an arbitrary circuit. You would need to ensure the circuit you're adding was compatible with the original circuit (probably will be if both circuits are positive switched with a fuse upstream of the switch) and the original circuit has at least 5A spare capacity.

To reiterate - adding a piggy-back fuse is a pretty nasty approach IMO.

[Penelope Stopit]

There could be a spare main battery supply to be found at a spare terminal in the fusebox. If not....
Find the main battery supply to the fusebox and splice into it