: I would like to use a cigarette lighter DC to
: AC inverter that uses 11-15VDC, in my 63'
: Valiant.
: Is this safe for the electrical system?

: I've never owned a 1963, but both my 1962 and
: my '64 have 16 gauge wire supplying the
: cigar lighter. I would expect 16 gauge wire
: to carry 15 Amps. In 1962, the lighter
: circuit is fused at 14 Amps, and in 1964
: they use a 20 Amp fuse for the same circuit.
: 20 Amp for a short period of time, say a
: couple minutes, is probably Ok, but if you
: load a 16 gauge wire with 20 Amps
: continuously, it will get hot and melt the
: insulation.
:
: If 15 Amps is safe, 15 x 12 = 180 watts.
:
: I doubt your inverter is more than 80%
: efficient, so 180 watts in equals 144 watts
: out. If you use the inverter to power
: anything bigger than 144 watts, you may have
: trouble. At best, 20 Amps into a 100%
: efficient inverter is 240 watts.
:
: Dave W.