Jump starters

[TDot]

Has anyone used one of these?
http://www.amazon.com/PowerAll-PBJS1200 ... mp+starter
Even though they have extremely high ratings, I just can't seem to believe this will jump my car or equal getting a jump from another car. I will more believe a couple of my fellow nico members than 400+ positive reviews lol. I will probably end up using it 1-3 times a year at most when I accidentally drain my battery generally while doing work on it smh. Is it worth it?
...it would definitely beat carrying jumpers in the trunk.

[Rogue One]

Good reviews on NewEgg http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 005W-00001 and Crutchfield http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Fp5Y7Jdk9A ... 000-R.html

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRdIDCWFunI[/youtube]

[The00Dustin]

I can't blame you for finding it hard to believe. I have an M45 and wouldn't even give the 12Ah model a chance. 16Ah is a lot for running electronics, and given the apparent size, I'm guessing that's LiOn (I just looked at the picture and laughed like you, fortunately noticing the capacity options). I'm not sure how quickly a LiOn battery can discharge, but if it can discharge fast enough, it makes sense that it could let you crank once or twice. You'd definitely want to recharge it after every use considering the hundreds of CCA it takes to crank a starter, though, and I'd be afraid to leave my jumper cables at home if I was keeping that for use on the road. Without having the right numbers, say our batteries are 320 CCA and you crank for 3 seconds. Well, assuming CCA are drawn to the max to start our cars 16Ah * 60 (seconds) = 960As (I made AmpSeconds up, yay). So that 3 seconds of cranking would completely deplete the 16Ah jump starter. I'm not sure what our batteries are actually rated at on CCA, and I'm not sure how many CCA our cars actually draw, so that's why I said one or two times. It's also always possible for our cars to fire up quicker than that, so it could even last a few times with that math (IE change it to one second). Regardless, having that device and a dead battery would make me a lot more nervous than driving my M45 around with the fuel level needle below E. (ETA: at least I wouldn't have to be that nervous for long before I found out if I was lucky or not)

Also, while I don't know how well it relates, I had a dead battery in the winter the year before last in my 2006 M45, and I tried to use my wife's (then fiancé's) 2009 Mazda 5 to jump start. Key word tried. I started her Mazda 5, which apparently had a weak battery, but started fine, moved it next to my M45, hooked up the jumper cables, and when I hit the start button on the M45, the Mazda died. IOW, a small car's alternator couldn't even jump my car (ETA: or even keep its own car running while trying). The Mazda wouldn't start immediately thereafter, but did fire up on its own after a few minutes. I had to have someone bring a full size van from work to jump the M45. Maybe the M35 doesn't take as much power to start, but even if I was going to give that jumper pack a chance on an M35, I'd still stick with the 16Ah. That's just my personal opinion.

[svard75]

I'm with Dustin on that device ROFLMAO. Have you ever drained your battery and have to jump start it? It won't start after just 2-3 cranks it takes a bit more. Throw some aspirin pills into the battery for a one time use charge http://www.mensfitness.com/life/9-amazi ... in/slide/8

[TDot]

The other thing that has me nervous is enough people have stated there jumper went dead after a few months, plus there's only a six month warranty on them. I have to read deeper in the reviews to see how long the ones who rated it very high owned them. Yeah, I'll look at the 16000 version.

[Double E]

Dustin, That Mazda dying was possibly from the process you used.

Cars today are smart enough to see a low power situation and signal to the alternator to put it into the battery with a high amp or low amp amount. The process I would have used is to first crank the Mazda, then connect it to the M45. Turn off the Mazda, then re-fire the Mazda. The Mazda would "see" the low power and add more amperage current from the alt to the battery (and subsequently the M45). Finally, a little increased RPM in the Mazda probably would have given the Mazda the ability to feed a higher amp to the battery and keep all things running.

As you did it, the Mazda never "noticed" the M45 was connected because once the Mazda started, it only fed it a trickle current at best. Once the big draw hit the Mazda from the M45 trying to start, it immediately drew away power to the Ignition of the Mazda.

Of course, cable gauge plays a role in this too. Heavier cable is always better. Never carry less than 4GA cable if you want to be able to count on it working.

[Double E]

Also....from the description:
Portable compact design that will easily fit in your pocket, backpack, or glove box for convenience

Product Dimensions 11.2 x 9.5 x 2.8 inches

What the hell kind of clothes is someone wearing for that size pocket?

[svard75]

...Finally, a little increased RPM in the Mazda probably would have given the Mazda the ability to feed a higher amp to the battery and keep all things running....

This. At idle there isn't much current traveling through the system and given the Mazda's battery was already low ... "...Maximum output is typically achieved at speeds above 2,500 RPM" http://www.aa1car.com/library/charging_checks.htm

[Rogue One]

Also....from the description:
Portable compact design that will easily fit in your pocket, backpack, or glove box for convenience

Product Dimensions 11.2 x 9.5 x 2.8 inches

What the hell kind of clothes is someone wearing for that size pocket?

Parachute Pants

[moedawg140]

Has anyone used one of these?
http://www.amazon.com/PowerAll-PBJS1200 ... mp+starter
Even though they have extremely high ratings, I just can't seem to believe this will jump my car or equal getting a jump from another car. I will more believe a couple of my fellow nico members than 400+ positive reviews lol. I will probably end up using it 1-3 times a year at most when I accidentally drain my battery generally while doing work on it smh. Is it worth it?
...it would definitely beat carrying jumpers in the trunk.

Throwing in my 2 cents:

I use the Clore JNC300XL 'Jump-N-Carry' 900 Peak Amp Ultraportable 12-Volt Jump Starter with Light, shown here: http://www.amazon.com/Clore-JNC300XL-Ju ... 793&sr=1-2 for about 2 years now without any issues. Since I purchased it, I haven't had to use it on my own car, but I have used it a total of about 12 times and started up various vehicles like an Infiniti EX to a huge V8 Jeep. Clore also makes an Energy Compliant version as well, which can be chosen via the same link I posted above. You can use it to charge smartphones/devices as well via 12V socket. The JNC is very small, and takes a small footprint in the trunk (I leave it in the JNC box, which is fastened to the trunk's mat/carpet by automotive velcro on the bottom of the box).

I connect the JNC jumper clamps to the person's vehicle battery terminals, leave it connected for about a minute (the JNC does not have an on or off switch as it is always 'live'), then the person is able to start their vehicle! I make sure to take the JNC home and charge it (I just charge it overnight) every 3-4 months so the battery will always be charged in the event that I jump a person's vehicle. After every jump, I recharge it as well.

[The00Dustin]

The other thing that has me nervous is enough people have stated there jumper went dead after a few months, plus there's only a six month warranty on them. I have to read deeper in the reviews to see how long the ones who rated it very high owned them. Yeah, I'll look at the 16000 version.

It is possible to make a good LION batter, but it is also possible to make a cheap one. That would make me very nervous based solely on experience. When dealing with laptops, the batteries usually last three years, longer with Apple, presumably shorter with generic/whitebox brands. I had a Dell battery for a desktop replacement that drew a lot of power (had an Intel Centrino D, nVidia Quadro, and 17 inch screen), and the battery went bad after a few years, so I bought a refurb from one of those places that wants your core and claims to use newer smaller better cells to make the battery better than factory. Well, I actually use the laptop, and what I found was that battery would die within a few heavy charge cycles. I got it replaced four times in six months before finally contacting the BBB because the company didn't want to refund my money. OTOH, it is possible that this company uses a good LION provider and the short term failures are outliers. On that note, I have seen non-LION jump kits used daily in the real world on big vehicles (like an old Land Rover someone drives at work), and that makes me think maybe the car doesn't draw anywhere near peak, so if it's a good high-output battery, maybe it could handle it and last. I also find that hard to believe considering the fact that fast-discharge 12V dry-cell batteries always swell up in UPS systems that run a heavy load. You're talking about a 7AH being drained in 10+ minutes, and they can't handle it. If LION batteries could do this, I would expect to see a lot more LION UPS systems.

Dustin, That Mazda dying was possibly from the process you used.

Cars today are smart enough to see a low power situation and signal to the alternator to put it into the battery with a high amp or low amp amount. The process I would have used is to first crank the Mazda, then connect it to the M45. Turn off the Mazda, then re-fire the Mazda. The Mazda would "see" the low power and add more amperage current from the alt to the battery (and subsequently the M45). Finally, a little increased RPM in the Mazda probably would have given the Mazda the ability to feed a higher amp to the battery and keep all things running.

As you did it, the Mazda never "noticed" the M45 was connected because once the Mazda started, it only fed it a trickle current at best. Once the big draw hit the Mazda from the M45 trying to start, it immediately drew away power to the Ignition of the Mazda.

Of course, cable gauge plays a role in this too. Heavier cable is always better. Never carry less than 4GA cable if you want to be able to count on it working.

Thanks for the input, I knew output capabilities were higher at a higher RPM, but I've never heard of cars doing what you describe (though it doesn't surprise me, I just learned on a really old car [old enough it had a generator light even though it came factory with an alternator]). The jumper cables are not cheapies. I don't remember the gauge, but they aren't light or thin, and they certainly worked fine when connected to the full-size van and in several other scenarios with other cars.