Why Jumpstarters are now leaving people stranded

I hope this video helps save you from getting stuck - Get the Hulkman amzn.to/3USAHCX

Pro tip - make a label on how to engage boost mode and attach it onto the jumper. Trust me, when your stressed out with a dead battery stuck somewhere, you are not thinking clearly and may forget how to engage it.

I've had two battery jumpers for several years, both have a button labeled BOOST. The manual with each also tells you when to use the BOOST feature. Contrary to what some people seem to think, manuals are actually intended to be read.

It does a great job of telling you what to do on the back of the unit. I have had these type of jumpers for year, and they have always bailed me out.

The Project farm yt channel has done many thorough reviews of many of those jump starter kits and shows which ones can start a completely dead battery. Definitely an important feature to have in a jump starter.

Do note, when you use the boost/god/override modes you are bypassing all of the built in safety checks so if your polarity or cables are backwards then you are going to have a very bad day.

NOCO makes boost mode easy to do, it's usually the big red exclamation mark button which sometimes is also labeled "override" to make it even more clear.

One other "too smart for their own good" piece of knowledge is that my jump-starter will not feed starting power to the battery if your car isn't in accessories. With old keyed ignitions, this wasn't an issue as you have to roll through ACC before getting to ON or START. However, with push-button cars, you need to put the car into ACC (push the start button without holding the brake pedal) and then my device will show the lights stating it's ready to start. I found out that the jumper attachment has to see current flow before it will put full power to the jump clamps.

That was a GREAT explanation of something that many, if not most, people are unaware of when they first use their new jumpstarter. And that includes me! I bought my first one about 5 years ago and thought that it did not work on my 1995 BMW 540i. But then I read the directions. ;-)

It's like the instructions booklet is there for a reason...

I have the same jump starter, and if you turn it over, there's a label on the back explaining those error codes, and how to solve them. This SHOULD NOT be an issue if people take the time to explore their devices after purchase, but here we are.

This is definitely good for people that may have received one of these as a gift and never took the time to figure out how it works before they have an emergency and panic. Gotta make sure you look it over and make sure you completely understand how it works before the need for it arises!

Very informative video, straight to the point without unnecessary backstories or topics that pad out the time of the video. Sometimes after a few years in the extreme cold my battery temporarily gives out, I'll keep this video in my mind in the future.

FYI: The Gooloo Titan Series GP-4000 and it has a boost button. If I recall correctly it was recommended by Project Farm. I don't recall needing something like this so much when I was younger but in the last year or so I've had need for the Gooloo multiple times for myself and other people. It hasn't let me down yet. These things are worth the cost.

I got one from Walmart that has a boost button. It works really well, I've used it multiple times when my truck was completely drained. I've helped a stranger start their car as well.

I have that same dump pack for a couple years now. Works great. I’m a diesel mechanic and work on mostly Medium duty delivery trucks. Has t let me down yet.

That is absolutely great information! I can’t imagine how many of these jump starter’s off of Amazon have been returned because people don’t read the manual and just think it doesn’t work. Thank you so much!

Thank you for this video! Now I know why my jumpstarter was having problems last time I tried to start my totally dead car, and can fix it next time. I very rarely leave comments on videos (this may be one of my first), but your videos are super helpful. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

Great point on using the max load mode. My Noco needs 2 volts to work, otherwise it won’t send the charge. But my unit have an override mode as you described in the video. However, this could easily be missed when reading the manual. Thanks for highlighting this in the video. Both my wife and I carry a unit in our cars here in New England.

Great video, and very informative...but another often overlooked issue, is the fact that many people often forget to recharge their jump starter device, on a regular basis, especially soon after they have jumped another vehicle! I've used these devices for many years, and never had one fail me yet. Eventually, like most everything else, they will need to be replaced. Just learn to be methodical, such as charging yours the first week of every month, and every single time they are used. Harbor Freight has some quality units, as I've purchased them as gifts, as well as for myself. Upon purchasing, they will tell you about charging them monthly; if not, according to a manager, the warranty is void, if preventive maintenance is ignored. Thanks again, for the Stellar video! Greetings from N. Kentucky.