The USB charger plugged into the jack formerly known as a “cigarette lighter” and now called a “power supply socket” in the car woke up dead, with a blank LED display previously showing the battery voltage / USB current / ambient temperature. Cracking the case revealed two small circuit boards:
You can see where this is going, right?
A closer look at the base of the side contacts:
The central tab goes through the PCB and should have been soldered on the other side, leaving the springy arms free to flex. Instead, only the arm over the topside pad had any solder; the other arm just got a solder blob atop the silkscreen over those traces.
I soldered the bottom tab, although I also resoldered the side pad. After all, the structural solder survived for quite a few years, so it might well outlive the car this time.
The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning 
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3 responses to “Car USB Charger: Structural Solder Failure”
What is the black component marked SALIP? Why does it look so unhealthy?
That’s the inductor in the step-down power supply, with a heat-shrink tubing cover. It may look crusty, but it’s definitely in better shape than the shattered inductor in the LED power supply!
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