Cigarette Lighter

[FutureBoy]

Do Tesla vehicles come with a cigarette lighter? Or just the 12v cigarette lighter outlet? Had me wondering. Seems like an outdated feature.

I was thinking about needing a reliable way to start a campfire with the CT. All that electricity there should be something wicked cool that would be good for starting a campfire with electricity. Hopefully, something that would even work with damp wood.

Then I came across this:

 

[MEDICALJMP]

We were talking about the anachronism of cigarette lighters and cars yesterday at work. No, they do not have them. There are only USB ports. Much better.

 

[jerhenderson]

Cigarette lighters? I would hope something so antiquated wouldn't be added.

 

[TirNaOg]

Nope, let that crap out!
USB ports and WIFI router for the starlink hookup

 

[ajdelange]

No, they do not have cigarette lighters but the do have the connectors that the cigarette lighters used to plug into. This is still pretty much the stanard 12 V DC connector in the automotive world. Many appliances that are intended to be used in cars such as tire inflators, hot pots, kettles and refrigerators come with a plug that fits this connector.

 

[SpaceYooper]

I think some of you are missing the point. The OP wants an onboard option for starting a campfire. The old car cig lighters were useful for this. I'd also like a standard feature that can be removed from the truck that is capable of lighting a fire, or M80s!

 

[Newton]

Cant u just pull/buy a cigarette lighter from an older car? https://www.amazon.com/Cigarette-Li...s=cigarette+lighter+car&qid=1603945279&sr=8-3

 

[Crissa]

The question then is, do Tesla have accessory power?

My Zero does. But not all have barrel outlets. I suppose you could install one.

The Cybertruck will have 120v/240v so that's an option, too. You could just use a heat gun.

-Crissa

 

[FutureBoy]

So I guess that my original post was actually 2 questions.

1. Do Tesla’s have the 12 volt outlets available? From the comments above it seems like yes, they do.

2. I’m looking for a good way to start a campfire using electricity. Any ideas? This question is less satisfactorily answered.

Basically, one could of course bring a normal gas lighter along. Or use a propane burner. But in both cases you are using fossil fuels. I am thinking it would be cool to have a lighter of some kind that was fully electric, could be charged from the CT, was extremely reliable, could light a fire in damp materials, and could be removed from the truck (so not tethered by an electrical chord).

The old school lighters in cars were very convenient, but are horrible for starting a fire in anything but a cigarette. From what I remember, they were using electricity to generate heat and then using the heat to light the cigarette. But the heat would dissipate quickly so lighting anything outside the truck would be extremely difficult without an extension chord. And lighting anything even slightly damp would be nigh impossible.

If anyone has some cool ideas I’d love to hear them.

 

[Crissa]

Well, you just need good tinder, which is why it worked on cigarettes.

How about this? https://powerpractical.com/products/sparkr-wick-electric-lighter

-Crissa

 

[Gvardaman]

You can get a plasma lighter that charges from a USB port.

 

[jerhenderson]

So I guess that my original post was actually 2 questions.

1. Do Tesla’s have the 12 volt outlets available? From the comments above it seems like yes, they do.

2. I’m looking for a good way to start a campfire using electricity. Any ideas? This question is less satisfactorily answered.

Basically, one could of course bring a normal gas lighter along. Or use a propane burner. But in both cases you are using fossil fuels. I am thinking it would be cool to have a lighter of some kind that was fully electric, could be charged from the CT, was extremely reliable, could light a fire in damp materials, and could be removed from the truck (so not tethered by an electrical chord).

The old school lighters in cars were very convenient, but are horrible for starting a fire in anything but a cigarette. From what I remember, they were using electricity to generate heat and then using the heat to light the cigarette. But the heat would dissipate quickly so lighting anything outside the truck would be extremely difficult without an extension chord. And lighting anything even slightly damp would be nigh impossible.

If anyone has some cool ideas I’d love to hear them.

Keep a box of matches in the glove box.

 

[MEDICALJMP]

Reginald, you are way over thinking this subject. Let’s review the facts.

1) you want to start a fire, but you don’t want to use fossil fuels presumably to reduce your carbon foot print
2) campfires are not using fossil fuels (oil, gas, etc.), but the fuel they do use is wood. Wood is all carbon and when burned produces more CO2 emissions than a natural gas or propane fire, especially from your basic butane lighter used to light said fire.

For crying out loud, use a match or lighter to start your fire.

End of subject.

 

[ajdelange]

I too laughed when I saw the concern over a butane lighter's "carbon footprint". While it is not really germain to the question at hand I feel I should point out that wood is a combination of lignin and cellulose. The former is a complex carbohydrate polymer that binds the cellulose. It is about 64% carbon (by weight) with the rest being hydrogen and oxygen. The later is a simple linear polymer of glucose which is 60% carbon by weight. Butane, by comparison, is 83% carbon by weight and methane is 75%.

All these ultimately came from photosynthesis: the addition of light energy to carbon dioxide and water. Any of them, when burned, will reverse that process and thus, roughly speaking, for the same amount of energy produced will release the about the same amount of CO2.

 

[FutureBoy]

Reginald, you are way over thinking this subject.

For crying out loud, use a match or lighter to start you fire.

End of subject.

LOL

Technically I’m not disagreeing with you. But the stated reason I’m looking for an electric lighter is because “it would be cool”.

Much like some like the sound of a V8, or others who really want an HUD, I just like the idea of everything running off electricity. Not a requirement. I just have a lot of time to kill till my CT arrives and during that time I’m finding cool ways to accessorize. Purely personal preference.

And there were some good suggestions provided already. So I now have some candidate devices that I’m evaluating. Thanks to all who contributed.