'07 Fit - A couple weeks back I go to use my phone charger in the car and it's not working. I check the fuse box, and lo and behold, the fuse for the accessory slot just wasn't there (I've never seen something like that before)! I put a replacement fuse (15 mini ATM) and it worked for a solid 5 seconds before it stopped working again. The fuse is still in there though...any suggestions on what might be wrong or possible solutions?

 

You did not state if the replacement fuse is blown or not. If it is not blown, then the fuse contacts probably have lost tension due to over heating of the previous fuse. In that case you will have to figure out how to clean the contacts and to squeeze them to add some more tension.

 

So it had blown AND fallen (blown?) out. I did clean out the contacts, just a dry toothbrush and canned air was what I thought of, and that seemed to do the trick. Replaced it with another fuse and all has been working great since.

 

Whatever works for you is fine. The results are what counts. When I said cleaning I was thinking of something of something more aggressive to scrape, or sand, or polish the electrical contacts. It looks like in your case a simple soft brush did just fine. It now works and that is what counts.

If you were doing battery cable connections a more aggressive approach like a wire brush or sand paper would be in order.

 

Appreciate the heads-up. I checked the battery casing there is some build-up around the cable connections, so I'll get at it with that wire brush. Feels great when things are working the way they're supposed to.

 

If you are going to clean the battery posts, get one of these.

Everstart 986W Battery Post and Terminal Brush - Walmart.com

Also cover the posts with anti-oxidation grease prior to reassembly. One bottle of this will last life time.

Ideal NOALOX 4 oz. Anti-Oxidant Compound-30-026 - The Home Depot