Smoking cigarette lighter plug.

If the car is still under warranty. Take it to the dealer right away. If it's out of warranty, take it to the dealer anyway. Fire is nothing to mess with.

 

I do. You said the cam was plugged into the both and then both had issues. Simple logic says suspect the dash cam first.

 

@jerrymildred's kind suggestion to have a dealer—or an independent shop, if warranty coverage isn’t a factor—look at the car right away is a good one. If that’s not possible, you might consider temporarily pulling the P/OUTLET NO.2 fuse, as described in my previous posting. The rear power outlet is the only load on that fuse, so removing it wouldn’t cause any other problems.

 

Thanks. Forgive my "Oh my gosh!" initial response. Pulling the fuse really would be the first thing to do. And then get it checked by someone who really knows what they are doing. Fire in a car isn't quite as close to certain death as in a spacecraft, but it's still really really bad.

It does seem like the dash cam pulled too much current, but the fuse should have blown. Perhaps someone had alreay replaced it and put in a bigger one? I'd check the fuse rating against the chart on the fuse box lid.

 

Speaking of it, I remember we had it plugged in once (rear seat 12V) and a smoke smell came out of it (done by my back seat passenger) and we thought it might have been a bad 12V USB plug so we threw it away and never went back to test. I think I should have the dealer to check it out at my next service.

 

I agree that the plug/camera is suspect and not the actual socket. I would think the camera power cable or plug has an internal short, as I just can't see the camera itself drawing any significant power. Perhaps the smoke came from the plug and not the socket?

A cigarette lighter circuit is designed for a relatively high current. Those elements get red hot. I think it's more likely that a low current is smoking something in the camera's cord/plug.

 

So it is likely that the "cigarette to usb" adapter is the source of the problem?

More 'Made in China' adventures?