[Closed] Lithium Starter Pack or Jump Leads?

Dunno about wisdom or anything but I have a 5m long set of heavy duty jump leads in my car. Just in case.

Never used them to start my own car but have used them a few times to start other peoples.

On a modern car with delicate electrics - definitely the booster starter

Never used them to start my own car but have used them a few times to start other peoples.

Big part of this decision - I've had a total stranger go to significant inconvenience to provide me with a start and now I'm quite keen to be in a position to return the favour in the future.

Get both. We use the Lithium starter pack to charge phones when camping. Hopefully that would make us less likely to flatten the car, also keeps it used so it stays charged. Not used it anger to start the car though. I still like to have a set of jump leads (partly as I've owned classics on and off since I've been driving)

I have one of the small lithium jump starters (Roypow J12, about £50). Had to use it recently after leaving things on and flattening the car battery while I was in in a rather expensive 'pay for as long as you stay' car park. I was up and running in less than a couple of mins.

They have to be topped up/charged regularly (I do it every 6 months or so) and if you just forget them in the boot then you may find that they won't get you out of trouble.

Mine is USB rechargeable (most are I think) so can be charged through the car's 12v socket via a USB adapter or USB port if you have one. So for me it was a case of jump start the car, plug in the starter pack to charge it, jand go for a drive to recharge everything.

If you are a belt and braces type then you will probably want to also carry a set of jump leads.

The lithium ion ones are good but generally you're not supposed to leave them 100% charged all the time. If you can use it regularly to top up phones etc then that's probably better than leaving in the glovebox for months on end.

I have an old-style one (like this but blue) that can just sit there for a couple of years and still get a car started when needed.

On a modern car with delicate electrics – definitely the booster starter

I've begun to find people are terrified of letting you jump from their car - because its 'got electrics'. So a set of jump leads become moot if nobody is prepared to be that Good Samaritan.

I've also found the lithium starter packs spontaneously completely brick - won't provide or take a charge and because they're a just-in-case thing you're not really aware of their functionality until you need them. If you've got a starting issue other than a low battery you don't get many tries either.

So its not an either/or really you can be let down with either.

The lithium ion ones are good but generally you’re not supposed to leave them 100% charged all the time. If you can use it regularly to top up phones etc then that’s probably better than leaving in the glovebox for months on end.

I have to say- given my incredulity of their ability to start a car (a diesel one too that needs a fair kick)the two I've got make shite phone chargers and rattle through their charge really quickly. So used in that way they're quite a bulky low capacity battery - well one does, the other is dead.

I have to say- given my incredulity of their ability to start a car (a diesel one too that needs a fair kick)the two I’ve got make shite phone chargers and rattle through their charge really quickly. So used in that way they’re quite a bulky low capacity battery – well one does, the other is dead.

Yeah, and situations where I might run my battery down [1] map almost 1:1 with situations where I might want an extra USB charger so the times I want the USB charger most I wouldn't use it.

I'm quite liking Simon G's combined jump starter compressor. I don't have a compressor, so a dual purpose tool that lives in the garage and doesn't travel around with me plus a decent pair of leads might be the answer.

Obvs breakdown cover is the ultimate backstop but I'm reluctant to hang around waiting for something that can be fixed in seconds.

[1] Car parked at a campsite for a week with low use and lots of opportunity for kids to hit a switch; away sailing leaving the car parked up for a week.

Oh god, don't buy one for the compressor - it's far better at making noise than it is at getting air into things.

Oh god, don’t buy one for the compressor – it’s far better at making noise than it is at getting air into things.

THANKS! 😀

On a side note - does anyone know of an actual good quality portable 12v + mains compressor (if it included a jump start battery pack that would be a bonus)? Amazon just seems to be littered with cheap options, I'd rather pay £200 for a solidly built one that I can rely on than £40 for a Chinese plastic one that's as likely to blow itself apart as blow up a tyre.

Jump leads are fairly useless if there's no one around to give you you a jump!

Get the battery pack.

Jump leads are fairly useless if there’s no one around to give you you a jump!

Get the battery pack.

By the same token, battery packs are fairly useless unless they're charged.

Unless you're in the middle of nowhere there is pretty much always another car somewhere.

Get both.

I’m quite liking Simon G’s combined jump starter compressor. I don’t have a compressor, so a dual purpose tool that lives in the garage and doesn’t travel around with me plus a decent pair of leads might be the answer.

It will be crap.... If you want a compressor to leave at home then just buy a proper compressor off eBay.

The lithium ion ones are good but generally you’re not supposed to leave them 100% charged all the time.

Same as batteries for bike lights. Many get knackered because they're not conditioned right for storage over the summer. Need to be around two thirds charge and top up every couple months but still store at two thirds, not 100%. Though when you come to start a car with one of these, will it need full capacity?

I don't get the 'modern electrics' thing? Hardly any electrics run straight off the battery, they run off the alternator. And electricity from one battery is electricity from another, in another car but connected in parallel, isn't it?

I've got a SLA jump starter, just lives in the boot of the car plugged into the cigarette lighter to keep it topped up until needed.

I don’t get the ‘modern electrics’ thing? Hardly any electrics run straight off the battery, they run off the alternator. And electricity from one battery is electricity from another, in another car but connected in parallel, isn’t it?

Some cars charge the battery at quite a bit more than the standard 12v to speed it up and run things like heated seats, windscreen etc. They then drop to the more normal ~14V when the engine is warmed up unless one of the heating gadgets is running.

I don't understand why a battery would be any safer than a set of jump leads, also why do manufacturers put specific jump points on their cars if it is that perilous to the delicate electrics?

"why do manufacturers put specific jump points on their cars if it is that perilous to the delicate electrics?"

This.

The rest is just rumours spread through Internet forums.

Some cars charge the battery at quite a bit more than the standard 12v to speed it up and run things like heated seats, windscreen etc. They then drop to the more normal ~14V when the engine is warmed up unless one of the heating gadgets is running.

But the point of jump leads is not to charge the battery, it's to get charge to the starter motor, which will still run off 12V. Once the engine's fired, the alternator takes over for all charging duties, at whatever clever voltage the car decides.