A (new to me) car will follow me home tomorrow, I hope Thing is it uses 2 batteries with one dedicated to starting duties. I need a jump pack to keep with the thing to get it going in that event.
Since I was retrenched end Jan 24, no worries got a new contract, will be working from home till end of contract, so very little driving. I do have dual C-Tek trickle chargers, but do not know the state or age of those batteries. Normal up front, AGM me thinks in the back.
Any experience wit those jum packs? Brand, reliability or what to look for from your experience?
you referirng to the lithium jump starter type packs like this?
I have a Romoss branded one. Have used it twice in anger and both times it worked as advertised. It swings a petrol 5L V8 no problem. Donāt know if it will start an old school Diesel on a cold winter morning (not doubting if it will - donāt know if it will).
The pack is a couple of years old now and lives in the back of the vehicle and so far has been recharged twice I think. Has not yet caught fire while vehicle is parked in full sun in 40Ā°C+ temps.
When looking into this originally many of the cheaper packs apparently had suspect capacitors for the boost function. So, safest bet might be buying something with plenty user reviews.
The Romoss one seems no longer available. The Gizzu branded one on takealot seems to have many and positive reviews.
If wanting to up the budget then can possibly add Noco to the Hulkman list.
EDIT: @Sarel.Wagner The 5L V8 jump start was 2 weeks ago. The battery was not just flat it was FUBAR (after AC mains charger and the battery disconnected from ALL load) the voltage dropped to something like 11V in the minute or so after connecting to the car and the resultant drain from the vehicle ECUās etc waking up). I couldnāt be bothered to replace with alarm batteries or check which specific cell was dead - the battery was more than 6 years old)
I bought one from Takealot not too long ago. It is branded a āJump JMP12ā, and this seems to be the latest incarnation of the device. Iāve started two smaller petrol cars with it without any problems at all. It also packs a flashlight, and some USB connections for using it as a giant backup for your devices.
Price-wise it is definitely on the lower end, but itās not quite the cheapest (you can get some of these for as little as R700!).
I bought it because the RAV4s battery failed shortly after I bought it in 2019, and as we were coming up to 4 years of age, I knew it was going to leave me stranded soon (Iām still waiting though), so I figured it is time to start carrying some kind of backup device. They are affordable enough by now.
We also carried it in the i3 for a bit, because EVs go really bonkers when their 12V battery dies, and they cannot activate the HV battery and start the DC/DC converter if the 12V battery is dead. So it remains a very good bit of kit to keep around!
Whatās quite nice is the combined air compressor and battery jumper ones. Decent 2 in 1 device and better for you to look after your own tire pressures. Petrol station compressors were last calibrated when TV was still black and white.
In the last 2 months, I have been contacted out of the blue, via SMS/WhatsApp, by companies wanting to pay me to give reviews on everything en nog wat.
My advice is to check that the thing works: Disconnect your battery and replace it with a 7Ah alarm battery. Then see if your jump start pack can start your carā¦
I have had two of these types of devices. The first one was bought cheaply enough from Adendorf. It worked fine out of the box. The drawback was that it lost charge over time, so when you really need it you would discover that it was flat. It worked fine once charged again though. So it is now a backup.
Based on a very positive review from a trusted friend I bought a Noco GB40. This is expensive. But it maintains its charge just fine, so when you need it, it works.
I have been rescued twice by one of these Nocos. Once down in Cape Town where I left a rental Toyās light on for the whole day(cant believe that all new cars dont turn their lights off automatically). Another time out in the sticks when the kids inflated 10 truck tubes for tubing and forgot to run the motor while doing it. The battery was on its last legs anyway.
The Nocos are kinda like the blue of inverters, not cheap, but delivery is good. I want one in each automatic car now.
Thing is it uses 2 batteries with one dedicated to starting duties. I need a jump pack to keep with the thing to get it going in that event.