To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!

Battery Jump Box - NOCO is a no-go

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
NOCO only works 50% of the time, and by that I mean: I have two GB70 units and after one year, one can be recharged, the other simply won't recharge. Time to look at another brand? Only need for vehicle breakdowns, so in frequent use.
 
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!

wreckdiver1321

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 12, 2021
Messages
1,039
Location
Billings, MT
I've got the GB90 and it's never failed me, so I'd bet you have a warranty issue. NOCO is a good outfit, they should take care of it.
 

mrvm

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2014
Messages
3,854
Location
PA
Have you checked your battery cables from top to bottom? Corrosion might be within the cables themselves and not visible. But if a standard jump starts the vehicle it could be the jump pak
 

Attachments

  • 1A25F672-6A97-4260-9736-2F0EB28EC8BC.jpeg
    1A25F672-6A97-4260-9736-2F0EB28EC8BC.jpeg
    206.3 KB · Views: 50

mrvm

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2014
Messages
3,854
Location
PA
Anyone tried Costco jump pack? Ease of return is great.
I have one in the wife and daughter’s car for emergencies. They’re not the most powerful units but worked in a pinch when someone leaves the lights on while shopping etc. There are more powerful ones out there but so far the unit has retained its charge.
 

theoldwizard1

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 22, 2011
Messages
43,258
Location
SE MI
This is an issue !

There are SO MANY different brands of small, lightweight jump packs on the market it is hard to say which if any a good. IMHO, lol for one used by professional mechanics. Good features to have : USB charging port, flashlight, 12V outlet. I actually saw one that recharges via a USB-C port. Recharge immediately after use.
 
OP
J

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
Have you checked your battery cables from top to bottom? Corrosion might be within the cables themselves and not visible. But if a standard jump starts the vehicle it could be the jump pak
Fortunately, never need it to jump a battery. Just trying to recharge the darn thing. Plus, we now have 2 older vehicles on the road, so it's only a matter of time before "dad's road service" gets a call. I mean, my newest driver told me, "I don't have to check the oil. The teacher told us the light will come on if it needs oil?" I don't know who's failed more, the teacher or me :confused: But fear not friends of GJ, she'll be changing her oil if I have anything to say about it!
 

qqzj

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 28, 2017
Messages
3,747
I have one in the wife and daughter’s car for emergencies. They’re not the most powerful units but worked in a pinch when someone leaves the lights on while shopping etc. There are more powerful ones out there but so far the unit has retained its charge.
For me, powerful is not very important. I have 4 and 6 cylinder cars. Easy to jump. The key is long life and safety. Won't explode under CA sun. I have never needed one in the past three years. So longevity without usage is also important
 
OP
J

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
Not a great response from NOCO. The warranty expires after 1 year. However, they offered me a 25% off coupon AND the unit is on sale. It's one sale at NOCO and on Amazon, so it's $199, minus the 25%. That makes it $10 less than the price I paid in 2019.

So, $149 for a unit that one out two have been defective for me? Not sure that's the route I want to take. That said, are these units rebranded for various companies, or is there a version other than NOCO that's worth looking into? I know one of the tool review guys reviewed these on Youtube, just haven't found it yet

EDIT: Project Farm. That was it. Off I go...
 

u3b3rg33k

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 18, 2017
Messages
4,049
Not a great response from NOCO. The warranty expires after 1 year. However, they offered me a 25% off coupon AND the unit is on sale. It's one sale at NOCO and on Amazon, so it's $199, minus the 25%. That makes it $10 less than the price I paid in 2019.

So, $149 for a unit that one out two have been defective for me? Not sure that's the route I want to take. That said, are these units rebranded for various companies, or is there a version other than NOCO that's worth looking into? I know one of the tool review guys reviewed these on Youtube, just haven't found it yet

EDIT: Project Farm. That was it. Off I go...
if you look at what's a in a jump pack, it's "just" a high C discharge Li-ion and some wires. not much to it. they are good for helping out a "dead" battery (cluster lights up but goes click), but not a stone dead battery (no key activity).

I might take their deal if you can flip it for profit after the holidays, even if you don't want it.

I've met nothing that jumps like a pair of 00 welding cables with big copper clamps on the ends. 4ga you still need to let the "dead" battery recover first.
 

MarvinBerry

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 21, 2018
Messages
817
Location
Enchantment under the sea - NJ
Is there a way to test these things without a dead car battery?

Have a jump pack... not a noco but not a hazard freight special either that I've been dicking around with last couple days.

Lives in mom berrys car & she asked me to check/test it. Has usb charging for phones or whatever. Pull it from her car shows about 75% charge... Cool. Tried to charge my tablet and it died quickly.

At least once or twice a year I try to pull the jump packs, run em down & recharge before going back in the vehicles.
 

u3b3rg33k

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 18, 2017
Messages
4,049
Is there a way to test these things without a dead car battery?

Have a jump pack... not a noco but not a hazard freight special either that I've been dicking around with last couple days.

Lives in mom berrys car & she asked me to check/test it. Has usb charging for phones or whatever. Pull it from her car shows about 75% charge... Cool. Tried to charge my tablet and it died quickly.

At least once or twice a year I try to pull the jump packs, run em down & recharge before going back in the vehicles.
it's a 12V battery inside. hook it up to a 12V lightbulb. remember, it's a small battery. enough juice to assist a too-dead-to-start SLA battery once, maybe twice, before recharging.
 

visionguru

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 2, 2017
Messages
1,233
Location
Chicago
NOCO only works 50% of the time, and by that I mean: I have two GB70 units and after one year, one can be recharged, the other simply won't recharge. Time to look at another brand? Only need for vehicle breakdowns, so in frequent use.
Li-Ion battery is not maintenance free. If you let the voltage drop too low, the charger simply refuses to charge it for fear of overheating and causing fire. It's the same with the batteries of your phone, computer, and power tools. I would charge the battery at least every 3 months. Brands may not be as relevant as not letting the voltage drop too low.
 

Odd-job

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 13, 2017
Messages
2,300
Location
SF Bay Area
All of these dead Lithium Ion jump pack threads makes me want to either get another JNC 770r or try one of those super capacitor jump packs. Have saved a lot of people with my JNC including wife, parents, myself, random dudes, but no damsels in distress yet :)
 
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!

Ign

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 7, 2006
Messages
12,769
Location
Butte Peak ND
Sometimes the Audew goes on sale on their website. I gave up on Amazon, seems impossible to get them there anymore. 'Tis the right time of year for sales.....
 

Showkey

"MEMBER EMERITUS"
Joined
Aug 9, 2014
Messages
8,638
Location
Wausau WI
All of these dead Lithium Ion jump pack threads makes me want to either get another JNC 770r or try one of those super capacitor jump packs. Have saved a lot of people with my JNC including wife, parents, myself, random dudes, but no damsels in distress yet :)
The lithium packs suffer from the off shore copy counterfeit problem. So be careful where and what you buy.

The AGM or wet cell jump packs fail just as often, with huge weight and size disadvantages.
The wet cell batteries are relatively low cost to service. This one has $40.

B412D183-F405-4DDF-82DA-53A316CC612F.jpeg

The SUPER Capacitor might not be ready for prime time ???????
 
OP
J

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
Sometimes the Audew goes on sale on their website. I gave up on Amazon, seems impossible to get them there anymore. 'Tis the right time of year for sales.....
Yep. I grabbed a few off their website last night. I’ll be sure to charge them more often.
 

Mallen

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 11, 2021
Messages
649
Can't say, but the directions on some say charge every 3 months, which I obviously didn't do
The thing about lithium ion batteries is you can't let them go completely dead. The problem may not be a quality issue with the box, it may just be the nature of lithium ion batteries.

The problem is, if a lithium ion cell goes completely dead, it can reverse polarity. At that point if you charge it, it can catch fire or explode. To prevent that, all lithium ion packs have an internal protection circuit. If the charge drops below a certain level it disables the pack. That's why you can sometimes revive a pack if you have access to the cells. You connect it to a power supply and charge it for a few minutes. You need to do it someplace where it won't hurt anything if it explodes or catches fire. Preferably outdoors because if it burns it creates a massive amount of toxic smoke. Once the cell takes a bit of charge your good.
 

carmantl

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 19, 2015
Messages
237
I have the Schumacher supercap and it has worked well, really beats having to remember to charge lion packs or having them swell up. If the battery is dead flat the supercap won't work.
 

FMB4

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 19, 2017
Messages
2,926
Well maintained vehicle batteries that are under 5 years of age should never need a jump.
 
OP
J

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
None that can't recognize how old their battery is.
Never left their lights on, or drained a good battery by accident? Mine haven't yet either, but **** happens. Heck, my boss sat on a conference call last week at the turnpike plaza, with the car off. Probably had his PC and something else running, because when the call was over, his car wouldn't start. He used a battery pack to start it. Could be the batter was old as well perhaps. The week before, one of my team had an alternator go bad on him, but 2 weeks prior, it was the battery and he jumped started that. Yes, the alternator was obviously bad then. Not sure if he missed that, or if he had a mechanic do it. Either way, at least he had a way to jump it the first go around.

IDK. I own and carry more than a few things I'll likely never need, like insurance, safes, fire extinguishers, etc. One more can't hurt I guess, please it does work to provide power to phones and other items. Seems handy for $59.
 

MarvinBerry

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 21, 2018
Messages
817
Location
Enchantment under the sea - NJ
How often does anyone zoink a battery because of things like headlights anymore? Probably most cars made in the last decade have auto on/off lights tied to ignition?

Last time I nuked a battery was several years ago. Was house & dog sitting... parked the old XJ at night when I got there & left the dome on. Was on for days while I drove their car haha whoops!!

Knock wood I've been carrying a jump pack for about 3 years? Never used it.

Fwiw moms pack is still doing odd things. Yesterday showed full charge... took it off AC & shows 50% juice? It's not dead... like dead dead so hopefully I cancharge & discharge a few times and get it back? Maybe?

Just wish I could discharge to something other then tablets & phones...
 

Odd-job

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 13, 2017
Messages
2,300
Location
SF Bay Area
The lithium packs suffer from the off shore copy counterfeit problem. So be careful where and what you buy.

The AGM or wet cell jump packs fail just as often, with huge weight and size disadvantages.
The wet cell batteries are relatively low cost to service. This one has $40.

B412D183-F405-4DDF-82DA-53A316CC612F.jpeg

The SUPER Capacitor might not be ready for prime time ???????

Am a bit skeptical of the super capacitors until there is more usage. Not sure if I want to be experimenting with one on a dead car in parking garage late at night trying to get home. Have two cars with v8's which tends to be the line which separates the good stuff from the bad. Waiting for more feedback from my fellow GJ members.

Definitely possible to kill any battery. Live in Norcal with a moderate climate that is easier on batteries. Bigger and heavier aside, I think SLA's and AGMs are slightly better at getting terminally discharged vs lithium ion. At least I have been able to revive dead batteries with a dumb charger and one of those smart ones with a desulfator.
 

Steve_P

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 15, 2010
Messages
5,186
I have the Noco GB40 and the comparable Audew. Both will start a 2.7L Tacoma with the vehicle and jump pack at 30F, and the truck's battery disconnected. They will barely do it, but they will do it. And they will do it 3-4 times (the most I've tried) one after another and then recharge in about an hour. It's amazing that something so small can start a vehicle's engine.
 
OP
J

joseywales

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 23, 2017
Messages
1,307
Location
Southeastern, PA
It is neat and the Audew is a pretty tight package. On the older side, we have an 04' CRV, 10' Edge. I doubt the 04' has auto light shutoff, but it might.

I'm actually going to toss an Audew in my travel pack for my Shadow 750. I worry most about that battery dying on the road, even though it's on a tender.
 

mushia

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 21, 2017
Messages
68
Location
US
Lokithor JA301 is now on Black Friday Sale, which is 【2000A Car Jump Starter】+【150 PSI Air Inflator】+【300 Lumens Flashlight】+【Power Bank】4 in 1 Device.
 

AJHD

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 4, 2020
Messages
3,046
Location
AZ
Well maintained vehicle batteries that are under 5 years of age should never need a jump.

Maybe in your utopia fantasy, but in reality that's not the case. Here in Arizona you're lucky if they last 3 years.

Last month the battery in my aunt's Escape died, literally the next morning the battery in my Altima died. Earlier in the year I also replaced the battery in my cousins Mustang... One day the battery is fine, the next day it's dead. **** happens.
 

Bad Habit

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 19, 2014
Messages
2,013
Location
Chumstick WA
If it can, it will. Doesn't take much to drain a battery. Wife's Tiguan would kill the battery if you sat listening to the radio for more than a few minutes, like at a cell phone lot at the airport.
 

mrvm

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2014
Messages
3,854
Location
PA
If it can, it will. Doesn't take much to drain a battery. Wife's Tiguan would kill the battery if you sat listening to the radio for more than a few minutes, like at a cell phone lot at the airport.
I inadvertently drained the battery for a no-start situation because the dumb Subie "auto" head lights remained on with the key in acc. listening to tunes while the LOML shopped. But the Costco lithium jump pak saved the day ;)
 

kelpaso1

MEMBER EMERITUS
Joined
Sep 28, 2009
Messages
3,962
Location
New Brunswick
I have the Noco GB40 and the comparable Audew. Both will start a 2.7L Tacoma with the vehicle and jump pack at 30F, and the truck's battery disconnected. They will barely do it, but they will do it. And they will do it 3-4 times (the most I've tried) one after another and then recharge in about an hour. It's amazing that something so small can start a vehicle's engine.
A lot of small M/C/ATV batteries have 400 CCA which will start most cars/trucks. I would buy a decent small battery and a couple cables/clamps than buy those all in one jump packs. Most people have a small batt charger to charge them up. Most of those "jump packs" use the cheapest batteries they can get away with to last the 1 or 2 year warranty.
 

ace10

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 17, 2017
Messages
1,490
Location
Rural NoVA
All of these dead Lithium Ion jump pack threads makes me want to either get another JNC 770r or try one of those super capacitor jump packs. Have saved a lot of people with my JNC including wife, parents, myself, random dudes, but no damsels in distress yet :)

When my neighbor's Deere 4720's battery failed, I went over there with my JNC 660, and it couldn't get it to turn over. Warm late summer day. That Deere has a 2.4l 60hp diesel.

Went back to my place and grabbed the NOCO GB70, and she started right up. Twice actually, since he inadvertently shut it down before moving it to the barn.

Both of my jump packs are kept topped up. Stored inside.

I was very surprised.

Fun fact. Neighbor's battery was the original OE DEKA from 2007. Fun fact #2, My 2008 Deere 5625's battery just crapped out a couple of weeks ago. It too was original. Deka manufactured in August of 2007
 
To avoid these ads, REGISTER NOW!
Top Bottom