USB cable to plug in phone in rental car in France

USB cables do not vary internationally. They are "Universal". More important, is it USB-A or USB-C or Apple Lightening?

Sam, google tells me its an Apple Lightning USB cable. Who knew? Not me. It's what I use to charge my iPhone and iPad. At home, I plug it into a wall charger, which I plug into the outlet.

I have an adapter for use in the hotels in France, which will plug into the wall. But for a car it doesn't usually involve a plug, hence my question/confusion about usb cables.

The lightening cable has either a USB-C connector on one end, which is oblong connector, or a standard (old) USB connector which is rectangular. These are the connectors that plug into the power source. The USB-C connector is standard in new cars, and your rental car likely to be a new model. So if your cord is of the older type, buy a new cord with a USB-C plug on one end. Amazon will have them, or Best Buy or Walmart. You can bring both along just in case.

Sam, thank you for taking the time to explain this to me in such detail. I'm trying to figure out the old (I think that's what I use) vs new versions as to what they look like. When I google it, I'm more confused, but did find some other cables that might be usb-c, so need to do a deep dive on this tomorrow. Thank you so much!

Like this. In the past year, I have had cars that need this and cars that still had the regular usb end. So now I bring both. Note that these I have linked are not Apple products, if that is important to you - I just did a quick search. But I do like the long cord for more flexibility.

https://www.amazon.com/Lightning-Certified-iPhone-Charger-Charging/dp/B0BX5H1HWJ/ref=sr_1_3?adgrpid=85283413647&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.BQIXQegaReTBKxWgcbsr1kPpKglB4UNhZzbvRQxBW8bhwj_yWz85sxPAn2NkD2VgzkoJhDdfcYe1cfoKQ0m_4_uuqSqnIrHcXCzuvpC-XHxUMX-go7J12zoldN-b-zUe6mh4VUnwlmDPv8Hs2hDvk99i3uYsVuRJJjkQMUS2V3-QGLXqFx_oqEOIFLXh3zCyE8MnNMnYDLHwyvJI9v6zStBhV0fqn0lDFZiA0Qbh9us.eq4rvlGU9eXvRd4WLiOc-rsd97m7WS_8x_JFGBSYEhA&dib_tag=se&hvadid=673584721588&hvdev=t&hvlocphy=9298294&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=12649823965289958132&hvtargid=kwd-599869245267&hydadcr=11699_13473601&keywords=iphone+charger+usb+c+to+lightning&qid=1711262150&sr=8-3

Thanks Texas Travelmom, I think I may have just found a USB-C cable, which probably got tossed aside since I don't have a wall plug for it.

I’m in Italy and have a rental car manufactured by Seat. There are two USB-C outlets but no USB-B (old style) connection. Fortunately I had a cigarette lighter (aka power point) adapter with me to charge my phone in the car. I also had a fully charged power bank as a backup.

The EU standard is USB-C. In the last two years I’ve had rentals with only USB-2 or USB-C. ports. I had one rental that had a combination of the two. I take both cables with me.

Buy a cigarette lighter adapter, fast charger with USB ports. All autos have cigarette lighter. This is what we use. Use your same cables as at home. You can get a pair of them on Amazon for less than $10.

The port you'll use in the car will be female USB-A or female USB-C. Some cars have both.

No cars have USB-B. Those are the plugs in printers and scanners. Don't clutter your luggage with USB-B cables.

All autos have cigarette lighter

I wouldn't count on it. Most new cars don't have them.

Which Iphone and ipad models do you have?

Look at each end of your charging cord. Are they both the same? If not, there will be three possible ends:

1) A flat piece that looks like it has a few lines on it. (This is a lightning plug.)

2) One that has a small open oval connector (USB-C)

3) One that has a larger rectangle end with about half open and the other half looks like there is something inside. (USB-A).

If you tell us which ones you have, we can tell you how to make it work in a vehicle.

I have now found and confirmed two cords!

1. Lightning plug with USB-A cable on other end
2. Lightning plug with USB-C plug on other end

I can buy a cigarette lighter charger as suggested, but for those that say don't count on it, what's the other option? In newer cars, can you usually plug in a cord just directly in to the power source in the car?

I'm not planning on hauling a heavy power bank back up. I'm out of room.

This has all gotten me thinking...I just went out to my 12 year old very reliable European car to see what I do at home. It has an old USB-A cigarette charger that I plug into.

jphbucks, I hear you on the USB-B. I get it!

Everyone's information has been very thoughtful and helpful. Thanks!

The system that allows the car to be connected to your phone is called CarPlay.

Most modern cars (except low-end or very basic versions) are now equipped with this Carplay system.

The socket on the car is always USB type regardless of your brand of phone. Just search for "Carplay Cable for Iphone" and you will find cables of all kinds of styles and lengths.

Note that there may be several USB sockets on the car, only one works with the Carplay system, the others are more dedicated to electric charging

I can buy a cigarette lighter charger as suggested, but for those that say don't count on it, what's the other option? In newer cars, can you usually plug in a cord just directly in to the power source in the car?

I rent a lot of cars. I looked at the one I have now. It has two plug receptacles--one USB-A and one USB-C. Both will charge my phone.

There is no "cigarette lighter."

All you need to do is plug your phone via one of your two cables into one of the USB type receptacles found in the car. That's it. No need for cigarette lighter plugs, no need to udnerstand Carplay or Apple Play. Just plug your phone into one of the USB ports and it will charge.

Carplay is to play the music on your phone through the car speakers. This has nothing to do with charging your phone.

Your 12 year old car, while reliable, has nothing to do with modern cars. Rental cars are rarely more than 2-3 years old. Yours will have USB receptables.

Thanks all!

Yes Frank II, I know my 12 year old car has nothing to do with any current rental. I was just making the comment, that I really didn't remember what I'm actually plugging my own phone into in my car at home, so all this conversation and talk about cigarette lighters and old vs new usb cables got me curious, and made me look. And it surprised me to read that cigarette lighters would still be a thing, as I recalled that was how things worked in the early days of phone charging. But, I think I have all bases covered now with all suggested options for cables!

I don't think I'll worry about carplay and music, as I think paying attention to the road in a foreign country with minimal distraction will be more than enough!

Carplay is actually more than just music. It should mimic what is on your phone through the car's infotainment system. This could include using GPS maps. (I have Android so I'm not sure of everything Carplay includes.)

We just rented a car in Bordeaux, and have rented several cars in Europe in the last few years. I've found both USB A and USB C, and sometimes the receptacle for a car charger. As already mentioned, the newest models use a USB C connection to connect your android or iphone to the car system, usually allowing you to use google maps on your phone and displayed on the larger screen of the car.

One piece of advice, don't pay for gps if it's offered as an option, as long as you have a smartphone. You can always use your own phone for directions (which will be easier to understand) and if you're lucky you'll be able to display it on the car's screen. Also, many cars now come with GPS built in so I'm not sure why they still try to sell it as an upgrade on the rental, because it's already there.

Thanks sanomh, I was wondering how that works about paying for gps when you already have it built in to the car.

Ok we just returned and ended up with an upgraded new BMW. We are so glad we didn’t heed the advice and forgo a GPS, because it was far more reliable than google maps. And once we figured out how to change the language to English, we really were in a good way. Anyway GPS was built into the car. The very new car required a USB- A. Yes A not C. Throughout our trip we’ve needed A and C and a European plug adapter. Oddly in a very very nice 4 star hotel in Brugge that had recently been remodeled, and rooms were not small, had only one outlet and no place to charge a phone except with the adapter using the one outlet.

Never really figured out CarPlay and my husband said he uses it at home.