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Car ciggie lighter stuff
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
in General Chat
If you plug stuff into your car cigarette lighter (like chargers, itrips, straighteners etc) does it use more fuel?
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Car hair straighteners? That's the first time I've heard of them.
Plugging anything into your car's cigarette lighter does use more fuel. They cause the alternator to work harder to provide current that in turn causes the engine to work harder.
in case you're going out, straight from work, and you want to give your hair a quick once over with the straighteners in the car before you make your debut its a girl thing.. saying that iv had mine for a couple of years and used them once, they're not very hot...
However, it's unlikely to be noticeable. I've had heated seats, mirrors, windscreen and rear windows all in use extensively over the festive period, and haven't seen any change in economy compared to when I've not been using them(and I know my fuel computer is accurate, before anyone questions it).
Using something current-hungry without the engine running can take a noticeable amount of power from the battery in a short period of time. Leaving your engine running just to keep the power topped up will result in a very noticeable drop in economy.