It's 10 degrees in N Alabama this morning and my daughter called at 4:30 AM and said her truck wouldn't start. She has a NOCO GB40 in both truck and car and tried them both on the Tundra. Neither would start it. They just cycled thru the lights and never lit the boost light. I drove over and started it right up with a Jump-N-Carry 660. We've used the NOCO's a few times before and they always worked fine, but never in weather this cold. I didn't realize the Lithium boosters had this cold weather limitation. Any others have this experience in cold weather?
Bad experience with NOCO GB-40 in cold weather
- Thread starter brazo
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White Shadow
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There's a guy on YouTube who does all kinds of cold weather testing on these portable lithium jump starters. For the most part, they don't seem to be worth much in really cold temps.
White Shadow
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Here's his cold weather test:
Buckgnarly
Well-known member
My compact was useless in -15F....I was surprised. So was my jump pack, though the pack did do a little better than the Li compact, it at least turned over. Took my wheeled charger to finally start my Jeep in those temps.
I don't think it is so much that something changes in the little lithium jumper but rather what is going on with the vehicle. The battery is so much deader and harder to charge. The oil is sludge. The pack is as strong as ever but what was enough in warm weather is not enough in 10 degree weather. The pack is facing a more difficult start, that is beyond it's capacity.
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Packard V8
Well-known member
Today's small engines with gear reduction starters, EFI and computer controls start so effortlessly, the tiny jump packs will work sometimes, in warmer weather.
Those of us old enough to remember big engines, carburetors, distributors and direct drive starters which in cold weather would draw enough current to cause a BIG jumper cable to smoke, will never trust the toy packs.
FWIW, I grew up in Alabama and didn't know squat about cold weather then. First time it got that cold, I did learn STP is nasty stuff, as a couple of cans in the crankcase of a worn engine solidifies in cold weather. The engine wouldn't turn over until the oil pan was warmed with a blowtorch.
Now, after forty years in the frozen Northwest, seeing very cold weather predicted, we are also likely to have put a 2-amp charger on the battery the night before. A warm, fully charged battery is a happy battery.
jack vines
Those of us old enough to remember big engines, carburetors, distributors and direct drive starters which in cold weather would draw enough current to cause a BIG jumper cable to smoke, will never trust the toy packs.
FWIW, I grew up in Alabama and didn't know squat about cold weather then. First time it got that cold, I did learn STP is nasty stuff, as a couple of cans in the crankcase of a worn engine solidifies in cold weather. The engine wouldn't turn over until the oil pan was warmed with a blowtorch.
Now, after forty years in the frozen Northwest, seeing very cold weather predicted, we are also likely to have put a 2-amp charger on the battery the night before. A warm, fully charged battery is a happy battery.
jack vines
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I have the GB150. It lives under the seat of my truck, parked outside. We had over a week of single digit temperatures. Wife went to go to work, her Camry was stone dead. Connected the GB150 and it fired right up. Back under the seat it went. Couple days later, my mother's Jeep battery died. Same thing. It was less than 10*F both times.
OP, you say the boost light never lit...did you try the manual override button? This usually happens when the battery is less than 2v.
OP, you say the boost light never lit...did you try the manual override button? This usually happens when the battery is less than 2v.
We did try both units in manual override, still didn't work. I brought one unit back home with me and plugged it in to charge. It wouldn't charge, the red error light came on. I then warmed in front of gas logs and tried again to charge. This time it started charging and showed a full charge within a few minutes.
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finn
Well-known member
Why would a truck need a jump start at 10 degrees?
Your daughters truck has problems if tr won’t start at such a relatively balmy temperature without a jump.
Is she running 40wt oil or something?
Your daughters truck has problems if tr won’t start at such a relatively balmy temperature without a jump.
Is she running 40wt oil or something?
lafester
Well-known member
That's good to hear. Hopefully my GB70 has similar results. I have tested it a few times when it was pretty cold and everything lit up just fine.
Obviously though, if it is cold enough to kill the car battery it is cold enough to affect the jump pack. Luckily all you have to do is warm it up and it should be good to go.
Also as noted, the GB40 has a pretty small reserve so if the car is hard to start you will only get a couple tries.
Temp was 10F, not what I would call balmy. I did replace her battery today, but the battery condition isn't what this post is about. When I bought her the GB40s, I tested them by jumping same truck, in override mode, with the battery disconnected. Passed test with no issues at all. I expect a jump box to start a vehicle within it's engine rating regardless of battery condition. I do not want her stranded.
The GB40 is stated as being able to start gas engines up to 6.0L, hers is a 4.7L Tundra. NOCO gives the operating temperature range of the unit as -30C to +50C (-22F to 122F). Last night was well within this operating range.
BDT/NWMN
Well-known member
10 above is what Many of Us Northerners only call chilly. That vehicle should have no problem starting at that temperature when in good condition.. Sounds like time to load test the battery,(done) even if new, check the oil, and pull some maintenance.
Sounds like You are putting way too much faith in those jumpie thingie dingies.
Hindsight may suggest trying them out before You actually need then.
Sounds like You are putting way too much faith in those jumpie thingie dingies.
Hindsight may suggest trying them out before You actually need then.
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Agreed. I replaced the battery today.
finn
Well-known member
Cars start every day in Minnesota and Canada at twenty below, without problems. 10 degrees is nothing.
Good call on a new battery.
Good call on a new battery.
mrjaw14
Well-known member
Thinking of getting a NOCO, this is troubling to hear. Agreed it should start a truck within its rating regardless of the battery condition. I wonder if storing the pack inside instead of the vehicle and taking it back inside during cold temps
ollie76
Well-known member
I`m sure sticking it in your coat for a few mins would get er going. Works for my lithium drills
I bought the NOCO GB40 becuase it seemed like one of the better ones out there. It's a piece of junk. When my battery died in my car (5.6l v8) I could not jump it. The pack was fully charged and and I didn't even hear starter crank over a bit, just a click from the solenoid. I tried a couple of times and nothing, look at the pack and it led is blinking indicating overheated. I waited till it went back to normal and tried again, this time in bypass mode and nothing. I had to call roadside assistance, they used the old fashioned lead acid jump pack and it started on the first attempt. This was not even in cold weather, it was 80 degrees at the time.
What a waste of money, I'm never buying a NOCO product again. I was going to get their charger but went with a CTEK instead.
What a waste of money, I'm never buying a NOCO product again. I was going to get their charger but went with a CTEK instead.
lafester
Well-known member
You are really pushing the limit of the gb40 with that size engine. Rather then calling it a piece of junk maybe try getting one better suited for your vehicle.
reader2580
Well-known member
Lithium batteries really lose power fast below 30 degrees. I left my iPhone laying out in the garage for about an hour at 30 degrees and it used up 70% of the power in that time. I usually get two days on 70% of battery.
neuralsnafu
Well-known member
I have the gb40 and I used it to start my k5 when it was 5 degrees out, had to use the over ride as the truck had been sitting for 3 weeks in what I consider cold (for Oklahoma at least).
Battery was so dead even the dome light wouldn't come on lol
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Battery was so dead even the dome light wouldn't come on lol
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tool_scrounge
Well-known member
This is the real solution. A warm battery is a much happier battery. Lithium Ion battery voltage and capacity drops off a lot with temperature (see attached graph). Also, you need to warm them up above freezing before charging them. Some battery packs and chargers have temperature sensors to keep you from charging a frozen battery and thus damaging them.
Attachments
it said it was for upto 6l gasoine so i figured it would be sufficient with my 5.6l. maybe I should have gotten the GB70 or GB150 instead.
Amen. I have a year old Napa battery in my car and it starts easily everyday in minus 10 weather. I leave the car outside.
As a follow-up test after yesterday's problem, I put the unit I brought back home with me in the chest freezer overnight (0F to 5F). This morning, I pulled it out of the freezer and attempted to crank my wife's Honda CRV with the battery disconnected. Unit was in override mode. It provided enough juice to power the inside bells and lights but the motor barely turned. I then put the unit under my coat against my stomach for maybe 2 minutes, then tried again. Motor turned more than before but still wouldn't crank. Waited about 30 seconds and tried again. It cranked. The CRV is a 2.4L four cylinder.
That's good to know. I might never thought of that. Having said that, it better be a true emergency for me to put something that cold against my stomach
MikeF2316
Well-known member
The battery in my car starts it, without help, in all conditions, or it's replaced. Once the cranking isn't as fast as normal, I check the charging system. If charging is good a new battery goes in. I refuse to play games with a battery on its last legs. That said, I've replaced my last 3 batteries at the 9 year mark! (3 different cars.)
Having used jump packs professionally for many years operating roadservice and tow trucks, no one would buy anything but jump n carry really. They never failed unless you didnt charge them ever, even if it was 10F outside.
Lelandwelds
Well-known member
Anyone rig some Maxwell Supercapacitors in parallel with a battery? They quickly **** up power from marginal sources and dump big amps all at once.
mbshop
Well-known member
There is so much involved in cold starting. Many times work arounds are used when there are underlying issues such as wiring and starters. Also the correct oils come into play, dino vs synthetics. So for many involved in cold weather always make sure these are in top shape. Even here in ca where I'm at with our warmer weather, we would see starting issues when it gets into the lower 30s and upper 20s. Most always because batteries or starters are just not up to snuff.
American Locomotive
Well-known member
All those compact jump boxes have tiny battery packs, and tiny 8 or 10 gauge wires. Yeah the lithium battery can deliver some serious short circuit current, but the rest of the system isn't up to it.
I'm going to be building my own lithium jump-pack with a bunch of LiFePO4 RC battery packs. It should be able to deliver an honest 400-500A continuous current without issue.
I'm going to be building my own lithium jump-pack with a bunch of LiFePO4 RC battery packs. It should be able to deliver an honest 400-500A continuous current without issue.
I still got my old harbor freight jump box and boy has it held up. Having 7 vehicles, it's hard to keep all my batteries charged up and she always has enough juice to crank em over. It even had enough juice to give my Cummins an extra boost to actually start the other day when my batteries finally took a ****, and it was 15 degrees
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