Oh… and Amazon has it for 24.99… for just one…
No reviews there… however, there is a similar item there by Wagan… the reviews about it’s limitations and such may be transferable to the Peak Performance version.
Cheap price for 2 of them…double @ Ace hardware for 1.
http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3172800&CAWELAID=222692473
These can probably be used for small cars, especially if you don’t mind waiting 5-10 minutes for the charge, but if you have a larger engine or want an actual ‘jumpstart’ then this isn’t for you. The ability to transfer power is limited by both the small carrying capacity of the cables and by the fuses in the cigarette lighter socket circuits. Think of it as refilling the tank on your toilet with a large shot glass in order to get a good flush. It’s going to take a while.
Ok, maybe you shouldn’t think about that, but it’s still an acceptable analogy. One more thing: if your battery is really and truly dead, this will not work at all, because it won’t overcome the resistance from the dead battery.
Learn. And buy some real cables.
I’m from a place where it is currently -5 deg. We use real devices here. Maybe in Florida these could work.
Since my cig lighter on DOA, I bought Peak’s battery pack on Black Friday instead. $30, $10 mail in rebate. Good deal. I can’t imagine this thing doing that good of a job anyway.
Caution: If the recipient’s vehicle has on-board computerized systems, the systems could be damaged if the vehicle is jump-started. Read the vehicle operator’s manual before attempting to jump-start the engine.
I agree with a previous poster… don’t all new cars have computerized systems?
My local news station did a report on these types of chargers and they showed that they simply do not work
Input current = 5 amps.
Typical car battery capacity = 40 amp-hours.
So time to full charge = 8 hours.
So after the claimed 5 minutes a dead battery will be 5/480, or about 1% charged.
That assumes perfect efficiency. In reality the losses will make it worse than this.
Get some real jumper cables instead.
That’s the thing… You’re not really jump starting your car so much as you’re trickle-charging it’s battery.
I’d second the suggestion to get a good set of cables though!
I was all set to jump on this, but I think it would be hard to convince a stranger to spend 5-20 minutes waiting for this to start my car. Plus with my social dysfunction, I would run out of things to talk about after 1 minute… dang…
Having noted the cons of this device, I’ll also note the cons of jumper cables: you have to know where your battery terminals are, have to be able to correctly attach the cables or risk destroying your car’s electrical system, and even if you get the connections right (remembering to make the last connection to a metal part of the engine compartment, not the negative terminal on the battery) there is a small but real risk of explosion from stray hydrogen. In short, this is for the non-mechanically inclined, especially those with smaller cars.
No thanks. Jumper cables work just fine. Besides, when being asked the question, I’d rather hear “hey, can you pop your Hood and give me a quick jump?” Rather then “hey, can you plug this into your car, sit around anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes, and wait till I can start my car?”
Fellow Wooters, please bow your heads in a moment of silence for our dearly departed brethern, Mr. Saturn and Mr. Pontiac. May your warranties run freely among the clouds and be honored at any local GM ( Government Managed ) Dealership )…
ya, have you never used a battery charger that works through the lighter? it usually gives u enough juice for a couple tries
These are inconvenient because they are designed to slowly charge the dead car’s battery through the relatively low-current cigarette lighter. Best case you’ll have to wait 10-30 min for the battery to charge up.
Worst case the dead car’s battery will be so far gone that it won’t take a charge. It will never get enough juice to start up.
A pair of direct jumper cables, on the other hand, provides enough current to start a car with a completely dead battery and allow the alternator to power everything. Of course once you turn the ignition off it won’t start again, but at least you can get home.
They take between 5 and 20 minutes depending on how dead your battery is.
5-20 minutes sounds about right to charge up for a start using 12V across a 15A/20A fuse. Whoever says this won’t work does not understand electronics. Unlike regular jumping, the goal is not to draw enough power to start the car, it’s to charge the dead battery – to transfer enough power in 5 minutes for a 3-second engagement of the starter.
That said, 5-20 minutes is a lot longer than reading the manual on how to connect jumper cables and then following the directions.
nobodies thinkn re-sell value… sells for 20 bucks each…
I can’t imagine needing two of these . . . I can’t imagine needing one of these.
You almost can, if the battery isnt dead AND cold, and you have several hours to spare.
Then, if the car doesnt start in a few seconds, that entire charge is gone.
Millions of people will still buy these, and probably never need to use them. You can get a new battery for the cost of a couple of sets. Even the worst car batteries (Sold at Wal Mart) are good for several years.