Traveling with a dead battery is risky because it could leave you stuck in an unfamiliar place without assistance. It may also increase your cost of buying a new battery. If you plan on taking a long trip by car, you should prepare for the possibility that your battery will expire by bringing along a jump starter. It could help you relax when you’re out in rural areas. So here I provide all information on using a jump starter for long road trips.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Jump Starter for Long Road Trips
1. Battery Capacity and Type
When planning a long road journey, the battery capacity of a jump starter is crucial. If your jump starter has a high-capacity battery, it will provide more jump-starts without recharging as often. For jump starts, you can choose between two different battery kinds.
2. Lead-Acid
Lead-acid batteries are heavier. However, they can charge with AC and DC chargers. If you can’t find an AC power supply, attach it to a car’s DC power.
3. Lithium-ion
Lithium-ion batteries charge your car faster than lead-acid. Their weight is also lighter than lead-acid. That’s why they easily fit in any vehicle.
4. Size and Portability
Portability & size are other crucial factors when choosing a jump starter for long road trips. There are three different sizes of jumper starters.
5. Pocket Jump Starters
Pocket jump starters are portable and easy to store in the car. It fits in your car easily. However, it doesn’t have enough power to start larger vehicles.
6. Medium Jump Starters
A medium jump starter is designed to jump-start cars, SUVs, and trucks. Vehicles can be jump-started numerous times from a single charge with its larger volume battery. However, it is bulkier and heavier than small jump starters.
7. Heavy-duty Jump Starters
Heavy-duty jump starters are designed for buses and construction equipment. It has the largest battery capacity so it can jump-start several cars simultaneously.
8. Features and Accessories
Jump starters come in different types of features and accessories. They are built-in lights, USB ports, charge indicators, and air compressors. When you go for a long trip, you can use your jump starter as a power bank to charge your mobile, laptop, etc., through USB cables. An air compressor is a rarer addition to car jump starts. This compression lets you add air to your car’s tires when stuck in the middle of the road.
Top3 Jump Starters for Long Road Trips
There are several high-quality jump starters on the market. Some of them are:
1. NOCO Boost Plus GB40
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The NOCO Boost Plus GB40 jump starter has a 1000-amp peak current, a USB port, and LED lighting. It’s durable and can jump-start seven-liter gas and five-liter diesel motors. However, it has a few additional power ports.
2. Engindot T8
For transparency, please note that some of the links on this website are Amazon Associate links. This means that I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links. The use of such links comes at no additional cost to you.
This jump starter has 800-amps, a USB port, and LED lighting. Customers like its quickness and durability. However, in comparison to other designs, it is just clumsy. The flashlight is poorly placed in this device.
3. Audewdirect Portable Jump-Starter
For transparency, please note that some of the links on this website are Amazon Associate links. This means that I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links. The use of such links comes at no additional cost to you.
The Audewdirect Portable Jump Starter is a compact device with a 1500A peak current and 18000mAh capacity that can jump-start 12V vehicles up to 80 times on a single charge. It also features a built-in LED flashlight and can be used as a power bank to charge mobile devices.
How to Use a Jump Starter on a Long Road Trip?
The steps for using a jump starter properly are as follows:
- First, place the cars next to each other and turn off one car.
- Join the positive end of one part of the red clip to the positive terminal of the flat battery. Then connect the positive end of the functioning battery to the other part of the red clips. Attach the paired black clip to the battery’s negative terminal. After that, join the paired black clamp to bolt on the engine block.
- Start the car, give it a few minutes to warm up, and then try to turn on the dead vehicle.
- After turning on the dead vehicle, now first disconnect the black jumper cables and then the red ones.
Safety and Precautions for using a jump starter
- Read the manuals first.
- Wear eye protection and gloves.
- Remove jewellery from your body.
- Turn off both vehicles.
Conclusion
If you’re going on a lengthy car journey, you must bring a good jump starter. Before purchasing, you should consider the jump starter’s battery capacity, mobility, features and extras. Using a jump starter correctly is crucial to protect yourself and others on the road.
As a mechanical engineer, it’s easy for David to explain the functionality of the tool. David test most of the tools before writing a review. its help him to learn something new and suggest the best product for you.