Portable Jump Starters?

FormerHangie

FormerHangie

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FormerHangie
My daughter has to leave her car at the airport for a week, and I'd like to get her one of those small jump start boxes to put in her car. Does anyone have any experience with these?
 
I have a full size Silverado that died once...found a dude in a truck and asked for a jump.

He says "Got one better for ya" and pull out one of those handheld jump packs...thought to myself "yeah, right, not gonna happen...this thing is DEAD"

Fires right up like nothing was wrong...I ordered one off Amazon on the spot.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074XFLJS5/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I now have three and on one camping trip with travel trailer that also had a bad battery I used it to jump my truck 5 times on one charge. They will hold a charge for 3 months easy.

I now use it to jump others more than needing myself...and everyone has the same reaction..."Where can I get that?"
 
I have one in each car.

Before I got it, I was selling a car for scrap and the battery was at 2v. I could not get it to start with my 8 cyl old dodge van hooked up and another fully charged battery on a separate set of cables even after trying for 30 minutes.

Out hops the tow truck driver to hauls away the car and he pulls out his tiny jump pack and the thing turns over and starts in one crank.
 
 
I was going to say, my experience with all of those has been bad, but apparently some people have good suggestions.

My recommendation would be a battery and a good set of jumper cables. A good set of jumper cables are always useful no matter what, and a spare battery will do what you need most of the time.

With that said, a car (especially a modern one) should NOT have any concerns whatsoever of sitting for a week.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
I was going to say, my experience with all of those has been bad, but apparently some people have good suggestions.
Click to expand...

There is absolutely some junk on the market and not all lithium jump packs are created equal. Even Costco had some for a while that were crap for example...which is why first hand recommendations or diligent research is necessary to make a good buy.

I wish I got a commission on all that have purchased the one I linked above that have seen and/or used mine.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
I was going to say, my experience with all of those has been bad, but apparently some people have good suggestions.

My recommendation would be a battery and a good set of jumper cables. A good set of jumper cables are always useful no matter what, and a spare battery will do what you need most of the time.

With that said, a car (especially a modern one) should NOT have any concerns whatsoever of sitting for a week.
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The battery in her car is a little over a year old, so I don't foresee any problems, but I'd like for her to have a backup. If you wind up sending your daughter to school 700 miles away you'll understand.
 
Do these things need to be on charge at all times -or periodically, or can you leave them in the back seat for 2 years til you need it?
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Do these things need to be on charge at all times -or periodically, or can you leave them in the back seat for 2 years til you need it?
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Nothing is gonna hold a charge for 2 years...but the good ones will hold a charge for at least three months and do not need to stay on charge.

I plug mine in whenever I use it to be sure it is 100% when I need it next and that has been months in between no problem.
 
A couple of years ago I lost track of one of my Jump Packs. In spring I found it on my riding lawnmower, which was stored all winter outdoors under a tarp. That battery had been dead in fall and the jump pack started it. It easily started it again in spring without ever going back inside. Pretty cool. I believe the EarthX version will hold a charge easily for over a year. If you doubt how good they are? You haven't tried one. Its that simple.
 
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I've got a Noco GB-40 that has started everything from my motorcycle to my semi tractor. Love it. I've had it two years and no problems. I've gone 6 months without using it and it was ready to go when I needed it.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Do these things need to be on charge at all times -or periodically, or can you leave them in the back seat for 2 years til you need it?
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They’re lithium ion or lifepo so they don’t have a high self discharge but all batteries have self discharge.

The video shows that most of them overheat before the battery inside is even drained 20% so even slightly discharged they’ll do a few attempts after they cool off a while.
 
Eh, the portable jump pack is something that sounds good in theory, but rarely does it ever come in handy. Most people forget to charge them anyway, so if they did need it, it would be worthless. Lots of junk out there, too. I’d rather just have a battery charger with jump start assist to keep around the house. Much more versatile and reliable.

Get some quality heavy-gauge jumper cables to keep in the vehicles.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Get some quality heavy-gauge jumper cables to keep in the vehicles.
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I always have a set but I’m very leery of jumping anything newer these days. The manufacturers make silly claims like “the vehicle has “sensitive” electronics” which is just a cop out for “we built it really cheap and didn’t put proper protection circuitry in it” anymore, to offer jumps to anyone not willing to say they’re okay with it.

People become very unhappy if you jump their fragile thing with your 19 year old car and it blows their $1000 to replace touch screen that is needed to set the heater temperature.

One plus of the packs. You can hand the thing to the car owner and say “I have this, it may not be suitable for your vehicle. It works on mine. You hook it up and it’s your responsibility to know your own vehicle. If I see smoke I’m leaving and you get to keep it.” lol.

I had to show an honest to goodness engineer where the battery was on his new-to-him Jeep Grand Cherokee (under the passenger floor) and tell him it couldn’t accept a standard jump start, if you could even get the cables to it.

Told him to read up on it in his owners manual when I saw he bought one. He thanked me after he dug into the manual and figured out how to get to it and all, that weekend.

Generally it’s getting to be where unless the person is clearly intelligent or they’re in real danger, I’ll help them find a nice tow truck company to blow up their electronics. LOL.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Eh, the portable jump pack is something that sounds good in theory, but rarely does it ever come in handy. Most people forget to charge them anyway, so if they did need it, it would be worthless. Lots of junk out there, too. I’d rather just have a battery charger with jump start assist to keep around the house. Much more versatile and reliable.

Get some quality heavy-gauge jumper cables to keep in the vehicles.
Click to expand...

That's good for you, this is for my daughter. I really want her to have something that will make sure the polarity is correct. I'm also not too stoked about her having to ask people for help. If this gets her going, great, otherwise she has to call for roadside assistance and sit in the cold for an hour.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Do these things need to be on charge at all times -or periodically, or can you leave them in the back seat for 2 years til you need it?
Click to expand...

Last week I had to jump start a car that belonged to my son's friend's mom. She left the lights on on her Accord and it drained the battery. i keep a lithium jump starter in my wife's car and it hadn't been charged in 2+ years and was showing 2 (of 4) bars for power. I was pleasantly surprised it still provided enough power to start the car. When fully charged, this will provide several jump starts and can still recharge cell phones, etc.

Well worth having in my opinion.

Note that this same lithium jump starter was used on my previous 4 cylinder diesel and, with a full charge, just barely started that vehicle. It works well for gasoline engines, but the high amp draw to turn a starter on a high compression diesel may be too much for it.
 
FormerHangie said:
That's good for you, this is for my daughter. I really want her to have something that will make sure the polarity is correct. I'm also not too stoked about her having to ask people for help. If this gets her going, great, otherwise she has to call for roadside assistance and sit in the cold for an hour.
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I get that, but it's not rocket science if you show her how to use a set of jumper cables. It's also not likely to be used if the battery isn't 5+ years old. It's like keeping a tire plug kit in her car. Could it come in handy? Maybe. But is it really worth carrying around all the time in the event it's needed? If she can't understand red = +, black = -, I'd give up on the jump pack, too. As far as asking people for help, I guess I have more faith in people than some (I also have a daughter, though not of driving age yet).
 
FormerHangie said:
The battery in her car is a little over a year old, so I don't foresee any problems, but I'd like for her to have a backup. If you wind up sending your daughter to school 700 miles away you'll understand.
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An attractive college girl should have no trouble getting someone to jump her.

Uh, I mean jump her car, of course.
 
To the comment about charging cell phones? Jump Packs aren’t good for that at all. Took mine on a 2 week hunt in the middle of nowhere and it barely charged my phone 1-1/2 times. It’ll start a dead vehicle a half dozen times easily. Don’t count on one for your iPhone or sat phone.
 
Coincidentally... or maybe fatalistically... or ordained....?

This morning I went to start my wife's vehicle to return it to the shop to have them re-examine a recent repair that didn't hold.. nothing major. I almost never drive it, and hadn't since we picked it up from the shop last week. The mechanic had left the lights in the "on" position when handing the car off to her, and she NEVER touches or looks at the light switch.. she just leaves it on "auto" and lets the car turn off the lights. Well... yup. TOTALLY dead battery this morning, on a high compression 5.0L V8... so dead we couldn't unlock the car w/ the fob, NO dashlights at all, and we couldn't even turn the newfangled electric-sensing key. The 1000A pack I have didn't work... nor did jumping the car from my little 2.0L sports car... and our other big 4.7L V8 vehicle wouldn't start either because it had sat for quite a while (and I've been sort of nursing it's old, possibly original 2005 battery along for a while anyway). The jump pack got THAT one started, but still couldn't get the 5.0L jumped to the 4.7 revved to 3K. Then.... it dawned on me... and here's the reason I'm writing..

A lot of the litium packs have a safety voltage sense of some kind built in.. they need to see SOME voltage when connected, and then once they've confirmed that, they need to see a draw prior to starting the vehicle. Turn the key to "Accessory" and/or turn on your lights.. something to start the draw for a few seconds.. before turning the key to turn over the car. I did THAT, and the 5.0L spun like I had just installed a brand new battery and the car started rigth up.

I experienced the same personal stupidity last time I needed the pack about a year ago. Guess they write those manuals for a reason. For those having trouble or bad experiences with them.. check and make sure you're allowing them go through their failsafes correctly first.
 
I have three of the Antigravity brand lithium packs. I have had very good luck with all three.

For the "underseat" or other weirdly placed car batteries, there is usually a positive stud, under a red plastic cover, somewhere in the engine compartment.
 
SoonerAviator said:
I get that, but it's not rocket science if you show her how to use a set of jumper cables. It's also not likely to be used if the battery isn't 5+ years old. It's like keeping a tire plug kit in her car. Could it come in handy? Maybe. But is it really worth carrying around all the time in the event it's needed? If she can't understand red = +, black = -, I'd give up on the jump pack, too. As far as asking people for help, I guess I have more faith in people than some (I also have a daughter, though not of driving age yet).
Click to expand...

Back when my sister was a freshman at Northwestern, she tried jump starting her car and reversed polarity while doing so, fortunately with no injuries. This from a girl with some mechanical aptitude and a 136 IQ. Just yesterday, one of my coworkers told me about having made the same mistake a few years ago, blowing three fuses on his wife's car. He's someone who does a lot of his own maintenance and repairs, but he still slipped up. My older daughter is not at all mechanically inclined, and she would be feeling stressed just by the car not starting, it would be quite easy for her to make a mistake.

Also, we're not seeing five year battery life any more. Both my wife's and older daughter's cars needed batteries around the three year mark, and my wife's car needed a second one around year six. The only battery that has lasted for five years was the one in my Fusion Energi, which isn't used to start the engine, just to run accessories.

Half Fast said:
An attractive college girl should have no trouble getting someone to jump her.

Uh, I mean jump her car, of course.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of.
 
Stewartb said:
To the comment about charging cell phones? Jump Packs aren’t good for that at all. Took mine on a 2 week hunt in the middle of nowhere and it barely charged my phone 1-1/2 times. It’ll start a dead vehicle a half dozen times easily. Don’t count on one for your iPhone or sat phone.
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Again depends on the unit. I was working out at a friend's place who lost power (and also bought the jumper I linked)...the Bolt Power kept two phones and a wireless internet MyFi charged and running for two days straight.
 
heh - my youngest daughter used to drive an old beater that required a jump start every now and then. She got pretty good at it, to the point that when she moved out on her own, she took my cables with her (different car). The time my own battery died I found out I didn't have cables anymore. The other thing that's helpful to have is a small 12V air compressor for topping off or airing up tires. That compressor is very useful for apartment life where you don't have a garage for a larger compressor.

She's a high school teacher now, and is the go-to person for students when their cars are stranded. There's apparently a "thing" where kids will let the air out of other kid's tires.
 
Salty said:
This thing will start my mooney and my 6 cylinder tacoma with ease. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015TKUPIC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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The one I mentioned here paired with the yellow adapter for the plane plugged into the external power receptive started my mooney up as good as a real battery after more than a year since charging it without even opening the battery compartment.

I bought the next size up and keep it in the mooney as it has more features, but is also pricier.
 
What is the difference between a portable jump starter and a battery charger?

I ask, because my plane is tied down outdoors, without a nearby electric plug, so I’m unable to use my plug-in battery charger. My plane’s 12 volt Odyssey PC680 battery has always been strong enough to start the engine immediately. But sometimes its voltage gets low enough that the plane’s electronics overtax its rectifier/regulator, so that the battery continues to lose voltage even after the engine is started.

I’m wondering whether a jump starter would charge the battery if I left the jumper turned “on” for several minutes without trying to start the engine during that time.
 
You can get a AAA membership for less than the cost of any of these things, and probably for useful.
Jon
 
4CornerFlyer said:
You can get a AAA membership for less than the cost of any of these things, and probably for useful.
Jon
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The seven mile towing version. No extraction or winching, and they drop you at the shop of their choice only. Not the same as their memberships used to be. That’s their $80 plan.

To get to 100 miles of towing and they still drop you at their shop of choice is $141, well above these jump starters.

To get 200 miles and finally the choice of your own shop, $169 if paid annually $181 monthly. (Nice interest rate!)

They throw in other things like home lockout which are easily avoided by most people with common sense, and every state’s AAA is allowed to run with different rates, so... as they say, your mileage may literally... vary.

Most auto insurers will do all of it for the base rate of AAA but... there’s a catch. In states where it’s allowed they’ll report it to the insurance databases as a claim on your coverage — meaning other insurers won’t touch you or offer you only high rates, if you decide to shop.

Those AAA rates are without an RV. RVs are not covered. Add an RV, they jump to rates they won’t even publish online. And their plans now only cover one person. Add 2/3s more to the above if you want a spouse or kids covered when you aren’t in their car.

So yeah, at least here, not even close to the price of a jump box. And it repeats, annually.

That said I have friends who drive a lot of restored and old cars that break down a LOT and they find the top plan to be economical but all say there’s limits on number of tows a year in the fine print now, too.

Definitely not the AAA of old. There’s better deals. The best deals has gone back to cash inside most metro areas. $100 in an owner/operator’s pocket and whether he reports his earnings to IRS or not, is his problem.

Green talks. No AAA forms for them to fill out. No waiting to get paid. No losses to credit cards or bounced checks, if any still even take checks... And they’ll happily stop at an ATM for you. They have your car and you’re not going anywhere. LOL.
 
4CornerFlyer said:
You can get a AAA membership for less than the cost of any of these things, and probably for useful.
Jon
Click to expand...

While I agree AAA is a no brainer must have, the last call for service took 1 hour to arrive for another breakdown issue.

The story above where a guy used his jump pack and I ordered one on Amazon on the spot, I had called AAA and it was gonna be 90 min...so I walked across the street to Harbor Fright, bought jumper cables then asked the dude for help.

Both of those were in populated areas.

My jumper pack has saved me and allowed me to save others in mere seconds vs fumbling with cables, moving cars in to position, reving the engine to charge or waiting gawd know how long for a tow truck.

I jumped a guy just last week at a gas station and was done before the the pump even stopped filling up my truck.

WORTH EVERY PENNY in my book.
 
We have one, I like it for the peace of mind especially out on the boat in summer, and snowmobiles in winter. This summer we had been drifting for a few hours, but had on the stereo, fridge, etc in the boat, and ran the batteries down too low to start. The jumper battery had the outboard fired up in seconds.
 
My daughter was home for Christmas break for three weeks, and went back Saturday. She went to her car yesterday, and it fired right up. I'm impressed, it had sat for 26 days.
 
4CornerFlyer said:
You can get a AAA membership for less than the cost of any of these things, and probably for useful.
Jon
Click to expand...

I've had a AAA membership for decades. My last two experiences with them were awful.... was stranded for over three hours before anyone showed up after a call a few years ago, and the most recent time I broke down and called in, they were going to call me back as soon as they reached a driver and let me know when they could get there. During that time, I called a mechanic friend who lived a few miles away. He met me at the side of the road, with his help we found the power steering line that had ruptured and sprayed fluid all over the place, spliced it, topped up the fluid, and got the car driveable. We were done about 90 minutes after I had initially called AAA. I called them back, thanked them for nothing, and cancelled the tow request.

Don't get me wrong... a long wait is still way better than sleeping in your car out in the middle of nowhere in the middle of a severe winter if that's the only option, so AAA has a purpose even if their service isn't what it used to be. However, if you can solve a problem w/ a jumppack, that's a MUCH better solution than AAA. The best solution, obviously, is to have both. Either one will pay for itself the first time you use it.
 
MuseChaser said:
I've had a AAA membership for decades.
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After my recent tire change I looked into it for me.

Being that AAA sets rates differently everywhere I was curious about CO.

They’re completely off the rails for what you may receive here now. Especially if you need longer tows... their higher packages.

And of course with the new-ish Subaru I looked into who they use and it’s a big company that’s cheaper with poor service and even worse reviews ha.

Pretty much just looks simpler to call a tow when needed and poop some cash for as often as it happens.

No real value in the memberships unless you’re covering RV towing. That... can be worth it.

AAA CO is above $200/yr for two people. My last tow a few years ago was “Want $100 in cash?” LOL.
 
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