Those mini jump start thingies...

[daemon]

Winco said:

Can you get a device that when you have a flat battery, you plug it into your cigarette lighter socket and leave it for 10 minutes. Remove then start the car?

I'd be impressed if you can - surely putting that much charge into a totally flat battery that it can start a car from cold after 10 mins couldnt really be a good thing for the battery (even if it were technically possible)?

[Winco]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-Starter-Emergency-B...

[daemon]

Winco said:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-Starter-Emergency-B...

Thats not what you asked for though is it?

That one you leave in when you start the car?

[Hoofy]

Hard to make out the instructions to be fair!!

If you were to jumpstart the car through the ciggie lighter, isn't that going to fry the ciggie lighter wires?

[daemon]

Hoofy said:

Hard to make out the instructions to be fair!!

If you were to jumpstart the car through the ciggie lighter, isn't that going to fry the ciggie lighter wires?

Yes, its a jump starter, not an ultra fast battery charger as originally requested.

[TooMany2cvs]

Winco said:

Can you get a device that when you have a flat battery, you plug it into your cigarette lighter socket and leave it for 10 minutes. Remove then start the car?

Ciggy sockets are fused at 10A. Basic physics says no.

[MajorMantra]

Thread update! (I'm nothing if not diligent...)

Bought one of these at the start of the month:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00YDZR40W/ref...



I charged it when I got it and stuck it in the family car. Yesterday after a little bit of cranking it started my Eunos which has been sitting for a month with a flat battery. Nothing melted or caught fire so I'm calling that a win.

Of course, I don't know how long it'll last...

[TonyRPH]

Squirrelofwoe said:

judas said:

Squirrelofwoe said:

judas said:

Got one of these the other day after our big old Clarke lead/acid unit failed to even try to turn over the Chim's engine.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00Y9RLHM

Just hope it works as well as the reviews claim.

Link isn't working?

I'm currently looking at these kind of things for use on my own Chim so I'm very interested to hear if you have found something that does the job!

Try this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00Y9RLHMA/ref...

Claims it will start up to a 6.7L engine - so a piddling little 4L V8 should present no problem

This was the other one I was looking at, same manufacturer, mentioned earlier in this thread successfully starting an Audi 4.2 V8.

So are you going to try yours out and report back?

I had to jumpstart my Chim for the first time at the weekend- unfortunately due to my drive layout (and the Chim battery location) I had to push it some distance to get it at an angle where I could get my other car close enough... My new girlfriend's willingness to assist with said pushing of the TVR does bode well for the future though!

In the Youtube tests video that was linked to earlier - this looks to be the same as one of the devices that failed (tested under the Bolt Power brand name).

As the chap who performed the tests pointed out - these things can be quite dangerous if not used and stored correctly, as the batteries contain a lot of energy.

I'm not sure I'd keep one in my car.

[Mr2Mike]

daemon said:

Yes, its a jump starter, not an ultra fast battery charger as originally requested.

The device in Wino's Amazon link is not a jump starter, it couldn't possibly jump start an engine via the cable supplied and the cig lighter wiring. It's a charger that supposedly can put enough charge into a car dead battery to allow the engine to be started. You can't plug it in and start the car immediately, you'd have to wait quite a while for enough charge to be transferred before attempting a start.

[anonymous-user]

Bought one of these

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01CFJO88S/ref=pdp_new...

It starts a 6 litre Jaguar V12 with a totally dead battery with zero fuss. Highly recommended.

[EazyDuz]

TonyRPH said:

I'm not sure I'd keep one in my car.

Then where would you keep it?

[anonymous-user]

One thing to remember keeping in the car is sub zero temp will kill the battery not like acid batteries which work at sub zero temps.

[TonyRPH]

EazyDuz said:

TonyRPH said:

I'm not sure I'd keep one in my car.

Then where would you keep it?

I wouldn't have one.

I'd either rely on help from someone or get a conventional lead acid booster pack.

[anonymous-user]

TonyRPH said:

EazyDuz said:

TonyRPH said:

I'm not sure I'd keep one in my car.

Then where would you keep it?

I wouldn't have one.

I'd either rely on help from someone or get a conventional lead acid booster pack.

May I ask why? I also have a conventional lead acid booster pack and it has absolutely no advantages that I can see.

[TonyRPH]

dme123 said:

May I ask why? I also have a conventional lead acid booster pack and it has absolutely no advantages that I can see.

Most (if not all?) of those compact jump starter packs are based around Lithium Ion batteries - which is fine if the batteries in question are manufactured to a high standard with the correct safety features.

But I suspect that few (if any) of those batteries are 100% safe.

In the long video review linked to earlier, one of the packs actually began to swell under a high load.

Also, (these cheap) Lithium Ion batteries could potentially become unstable when exposed to the high temperatures which are likely to be encountered on in a vehicle on a hot day.

I have no evidence to back this up before anyone asks.

[Mr2Mike]

TonyRPH said:

Most (if not all?) of those compact jump starter packs are based around Lithium Ion batteries - which is fine if the batteries in question are manufactured to a high standard with the correct safety features.

But I suspect that few (if any) of those batteries are 100% safe.

In the long video review linked to earlier, one of the packs actually began to swell under a high load.

Also, (these cheap) Lithium Ion batteries could potentially become unstable when exposed to the high temperatures which are likely to be encountered on in a vehicle on a hot day.

I have no evidence to back this up before anyone asks.

It depends on the chemistry used since "Lithium Ion" covers a whole range of different battery chemistries. Lithium Iron Phosphate is very safe, and used for lightweight starter batteries on motorcycles and competition cars etc. Lithium Cobalt Oxide is the one that gets exciting when abused.

[Cerberaherts]

We have a couple of the Sealey units in the workshop. As long as there is at least 4 volts in the battery they start the big engined stuff we work on. They will start a v12 vanquish or an old DB6 fairly easily.

[SlimJim16v]

The Spruce goose said:

One thing to remember keeping in the car is sub zero temp will kill the battery not like acid batteries which work at sub zero temps.

That's zinc, alkaline or, I think, NiMh batteries, not Lithium.
Also, lead acid may work at low temps, but output is reduced.

Edited by SlimJim16v on Thursday 29th December 17:56

[ZiggyNiva]

I have one of these :https://www.amazon.co.uk/Compact-13600mAh-Portable-Battery-Starter/dp/B01N8SW9N3/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483034362&sr=8-1&keywords=Bolt+Power+D28+13600mAh+Emergency+Auto+Jump
and it has been great so far

[carl_w]

TonyRPH said:

Also, (these cheap) Lithium Ion batteries could potentially become unstable when exposed to the high temperatures which are likely to be encountered on in a vehicle on a hot day.

I have no evidence to back this up before anyone asks.

Do you leave your phone behind when going out in your car on a hot day? I guess those race car drivers using Lithium batteries like some of the ones here http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/motorsport/batteries are all in trouble too.