Just bought my first Volvo and was surprised when the cigarette lighter would not work for me as it did for the previous owner. The lighter itself would work but not the adapter for a phone charger. (Two weeks ago) I tested the adapters on another vehicle, they work perfectly. The fuse was intact and the radio was still working at the time so I pulled the front of the dash out and replaced the lighter completely. Everything was all hooked up and we tested it with the adapter before putting everything back. When we did, it was not working and the fuse blew. We replaced it but then nothing on the circuit seemed to be working. That fuse stayed intact until I noticed about three days ago that it had blown. My guess from reading these forums and elsewhere online is a short, maybe a bare wire? I’ve done work on older cars but mostly under the hood and less with the wiring side. Where would y’all suggest I start with tracking it down?

 

Does the fuse only blow when you use the phone adapter?

 

No, it must’ve blown when I was driving around in the days following. I never noticed the radio coming back on and I didn’t have anything plugged into the lighter.