jumper cables or jump starter?
 

Realized I have no idea where my jumper cables from 1997 ended up so wondering if I should replace the jumper cables or get a jump starter? If a jump starter, do you have one you recommend?

fun facts:
1) I have AAA
2) female driver here, hence #1, but wouldn't hurt to have something.


Saw this pro tip of storing them above the spare and I liked it since I always have something in the trunk: http://moderntoil.com/?p=905

I have carried cables for 40 years. When I was poor and broke I used them all the time. I don't think they have been out of the trunk for actual use in the last 20 years though. For the very very, very, very, rare occasions you may need them with a new(ish) car they are all you need. Easier to store than a jump pack and don't require any maintenance at all.

I like jump packs. If you are somewhere and you kill your battery, then you can start your car yourself.
Jumper cables rely on the kindness of someone else. (hopefully they are not totally weird!)

My good friend has one, and she loves it! It is lithium, so holds a charge for years too!

https://www.harborfreight.com/lithiu...UaArVpEALw_wcB

weirdos are usually my biggest problem.

Oh, for me, I just pack a set of jumper cables. For my daughter, I would recommend a jump pack.

:iono:


humfrz

A lot of the jump packs also have the ability to charge up your devices too which is also an added function. Though you can't beat your kid with the jump pack like you can jumper cables. Hopefully someone at least got that reference :)

I think that's true for most of us …. :sigh:


humfrz

I have this. it has saved me a few times.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Then a pack it is!
I sometimes forget that the Canadian and American situations are different. I pull over to the side of the road or a parking lot, open my hood and within about 2 minutes would have nice normal people stop to ask if I need a boost. I have had people stop and ask when I was putting windshield washer fluid in at a store.

Huh, that is kinda cool. Not sure I'd trust HF stuff not to blow up at some point, but looks useful.

Yeah I got a jump pack and I love it. You can also charge your phone on it! (Not that I ever do but just in case)

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I hear you. Harbor freight stuff can be hit or miss.


I suggested it because:
My coworker Starr has one. After it "saved" her, she suggested it to everyone in our office. The reviews online are also positive.

I worked for AAA and always advised that people keep a jumper pack in their car, charge it every couple months using the wall plug to be sure it's fresh. I save people every winter at work because I have a battery pack in my car. When they're fiddling with cables, I hook my jump pack on and let them start.

Just be advised, the jumper pack is just like cables in that it doesn't deliver a charge to the battery, it will still be dead, so let the alternator charge the battery for at least a hal;f hour after you get going.

I've been in a couple situations where jump packs don't work and I've had to resort to using cables as a backup. So I carry both; particularly since the cables fit so nearly in the spare tire well.

Why not both? Jump starters are small enough now that it's not like you're going to run out of room.

I bought a jump starter from Amazon from one of their daily deals and put it in my car back when the garbage stock Painasonic battery started shitting itself. Despite having a high number of positive reviews, the jump starter also shit itself the first time I tried to use it. The display went crazy with the LCD flickering in a circular pattern.

The lesson there is that jumper cables are mature technology that are almost foolproof. At some point I'll probably get another jump starter, but only as a convenience knowing that I have the cables if the new technology fails.

When I bought my car, the dealer threw an "emergency kit" in the back seat that includes a lightweight set of cables in a flat, circular bag. When the seat is folded down (which is always), that bag fits right into the hollow made by the seat cushions. Out of sight, but I still have the peace of mind of knowing it will be there when I need it and will actually work.

In addition, you may wish to put your battery on a slow charger to bring it back up to full charge.


humfrz

I got stuck at a national park once (high altitude around 9,000 ft, car couldn't start normally) and nobody was around to help me and I had no cell service (lol), so having a jumper pack was ESSENTIAL.

But I would just stash both options just in case.

It probably depends a lot on your driving habits and where you drive. If you are in rural area with little traffic a booster pack is probably a good idea.

I've got a battery charger at home with a high amp jump start feature.

I've used it more than I've needed booster cables.

I’ve carried cables for 30 years and never had to use them. I have jumped 3 other cars though. Lol

I carry both just to be safe in my daily. In the FRS, none because, weight reduction!

-Sam

classic, hahaha.

Thanks everyone! I ended up getting both and also cancelling AAA. Geico seems to have the same roadside assistance coverage for 9.99/6months and that saves me some money to boot!

I've carried jumper cables in my car for, like, 15 years, and in that time I think I've jumped my own car once, but jumped other random strangers' cars at least 2 or 3 dozen times, lol. Including a school bus once... that had been rewired so that the positive terminal on its battery was a black cable, and the negative terminal was red. That was a... sparky... experience, lol.

Be careful trying to jump a pre 1950 Packard, Nash, Hudson or Studebaker.

:eyebulge:


humfrz

I can jump your car.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e05789903d.gif

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Are you hot?

The weirdos ain't care.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

I was trying to start a good troll but you killed it with your facts.

Why is it that when I make a comment like that, to what appears to be a female member, a bunch of people jump to her defense and start in on me - :iono:

:drool:


humfrz

Didn't the short bus make it to school soon enough for you to attend English classes in grade school?

:iono:

:lol:

humfrz

Because you do it in a super creepy way.

Ahhhhh ……. really?


humfrz

I don't like the jump packs, they may give you a false sense of security. My first one died after being left in the car during a particularly cold week. My next one had issues and the company gave me a refund. Being an item that will store in your vehicle will see temperature below zero to over 150.

The newer ones are getting pretty small it may be able to keep in your purse to avoid temperature extremes? Personally i just keep cables as I live in the city.

...and you're a dude.

I thought Hum hacked you for a second there
Edit: didn’t read far enough and see it was already covered.

I should've learned by now but I keep taking it off the rack and trying it on.

this is my exact experience with the NiCAD/NIMH style jump starters. lithium is a different game, and why i didn't chime in earlier. lithium isn't crazy about cold, but it'll hold the charge longer, and have less issues. just gotta remember to check it to maintain the charge.

or better, use the glove box power port to charge it. that port is only powered on with the car, so it'll charge whenever you take the car out!