Who makes a good 12-volt compressor?

[robert6715]

I am looking for a good 12-volt air compressor, capable of doing 1-ton truck tires. I like to keep one in each vehicle "just in case".

I am tired of these flimsy throw-away things that claim 100 PSI but take 30 minutes to air up a car tire to 35 psi.

 

[assassin10000]

Viair. Lots of crawler guys use them.

 

[4xdog]

ARB makes a pretty good compressor, available in on-board and portable versions, in single and double cylinder. Not cheap, though. Putting one in every vehicle would be a serious committment.

I have the CPKM12 and it's done everything I've asked of it for over ten years.

Air Compressors for Off-Roading - Onboard & Portable

High-flow, onboard and portable air compressors built for overlanding and off-road. Fast inflation, rugged construction, and reliable performance on any trail.

arbusa.com

 

[Iron Beaver]

This one looks nice: https://sherpa4x4.com/collections/frontpage/products/sherpa-air-compressor-box-air

 

[jd_1138]

Definitely stay away from the HF junk ones, unless they added a better model. I had 2 of them, and both died within like 2 uses. I inherited a Taiwanese made Montgomery Ward one from my stepdad. It's been a beast for 7 years. Also I picked one up from a yard sale for a buck (different brand but also Taiwanese made and from the 1990s). Both work great -- not that they can do truck tires in a hurry. That one above looks like a beast.

Definitely get one for y'all's vehicle trunks. Good for tires and balls and blow up toys. I have rescued a few friends, relatives and co-workers with mine.

 

[joecon]

Home - 12-Voltair, 24-Voltair, Accessories

 

[jeepinerdeep]

I have a TJM. I would not specifically seek them out again if I had to replace it, but if I saw a deal, sure. It's nice quality.

Pretty big consensus around Viair.

Avoid anything with a cigarette lighter plug.

 

[darkzero]

I've got a Viair 400P-Auto, very happy with it. Use it for airing up 33" tires. They ain't cheap though (but cheaper than HD offroad/trail use models), you get what you pay for when it comes to these. I was lucky to get a good deal, bought it directly from Viair at an offroad show. Probably not something you'd buy to keep in every car for "just in case" situations.

400P RVS Portable Compressor

The VIAIR 400P-RVS Automatic 12-volt portable tire inflator kit is specifically designed for Class C and smaller RV’s. This 33% duty cycle compressor is the ONLY tire inflator on the market capable of airing up to 150 PSI. Comes with all the necessary accessories to reach all tires and inflate...

www.viaircorp.com

 

[darkzero]

More affordable models. 12V, video is 2 yrs old though. As mentioned above, anything that plugs into a cigarrette lighter is gonna be slow & disappointing.

Cordless models. Video is also 2 yrs old. M18 has since came out, not sure how much better it is than the M12 but it has to be. My buddy has the M12, pretty disappointing IMO, for car/truck tires anyway.

 

[Zewnten]

Mine is red and called tornado or hurricane, cost under $200 and fills up to 150 PSI no problem. Bought it from Pepboys website. Owned it for several years now and used it almost every weekend a few years back, filling truck, trailer or small equipment tires.

 

[superchargedv8]

Oasis brand pump….i might end up with one if my plan with electric cat pump doesnt work out.

 

[JSGAuto]

I have a Puma....they sell regular compressors to, so a decent sized company. I've had it 10 years, no issues.

Puma 12-Volt Compressors

Puma 12 Volt Compressor superstore. Huge selection of Puma 12 Volt Air Compressors. Buy Puma 12V Air Compressor Direct and save.

www.aircompressorsdirect.com

 

[jptbay]

x2 on Puma.

Hard to beat.

 

[Mirage]

I liked the Air Zenith I had on my old Xterra, good for 200 psi and some pretty good cfm.

 

[Swervyjoe]

Oasis brand pump….i might end up with one if my plan with electric cat pump doesnt work out.

Oasis is a York compressor with a 12v motor if I'm remembering right. I doubt that could be beat by anything else

 

[Old hand]

I realize this isn't 12volt but I just bought the new Milwaukee 18 volt for my business and so far it's a solid tool.

 

[isb cornbinder]

I have been using VIAIR 12 Volt since 1990. I bought another V-Air for my 1940 Ford project.

 

[ToolRoom]

T-Max are popular over here - used by a lot of the offroad guys - clip directly on the battery. A couple of sizes available.
I have the smaller one which still pumps up a car tyre very quickly indeed. The pumps are solid but the accessories and case are rubbish, so budget to replace the inflator with a good quality one.

 

[nbpt100]

Definitely stay away from the HF junk ones, unless they added a better model. I had 2 of them, and both died within like 2 uses. I inherited a Taiwanese made Montgomery Ward one from my stepdad. It's been a beast for 7 years. Also I picked one up from a yard sale for a buck (different brand but also Taiwanese made and from the 1990s). Both work great -- not that they can do truck tires in a hurry. That one above looks like a beast.

Definitely get one for y'all's vehicle trunks. Good for tires and balls and blow up toys. I have rescued a few friends, relatives and co-workers with mine.

For a car tire and smaller the HF 12v Pittsburgh one is a good value. I have two and they have always worked when I needed them and not too slow either. I would not call it junk. Maybe some others there are junk.

This is the one I have.

12V 100 PSI High Volume Air Inflator

Amazing deals on this 12V 100Psi High Volume Air Inflator at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

The OP needs one for a truck so it may be under sized in that case.

 

[Steve_P]

I have a friend with a Viair, and that's what I'd buy if it was a for emergency use- a few times a year. If it's something you're going to use weekly for 4X4, then I'd get something better like the ARB.
I have a cheap one that I bought off Amazon years ago, don't think the brand exists anymore, and it's been fine. But I only use it a few times a year.

 

[jd_1138]

For a car tire and smaller the HF 12v Pittsburgh one is a good value. I have two and they have always worked when I needed them and not too slow either. I would not call it junk. Maybe some others there are junk.

This is the one I have.

12V 100 PSI High Volume Air Inflator

Amazing deals on this 12V 100Psi High Volume Air Inflator at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

The OP needs one for a truck so it may be under sized in that case.

Yours looks well made. One I was talking about is the $9 all plastic yellow one. I've bought a few for friends for presents, and they don't last. Pure rubbish.

Something like a compressor, definitely don't go rock bottom on the price. Pay a **** price and you get a **** item.

 

[Qualitytools]

+1 on Viair.

VIAIR® Corporation – 12-Volt & 24-Volt Air Compressors and Tire Inflators | Your Vital Air Source

VIAIR® offers the most complete line of 12 volt and 24 volt DC air compressors, tire inflators & air accessories for both the on-and off-road markets available anywhere. VIAIR® compressors and components are used in the OEM segment, 4x4 & Sport Air Suspension and have become the industry...

www.viaircorp.com

 

[Vicks]

For regular usage where you depend on the compressor to get home safely - I highly recommend the ARB Twin Compressor CKMTA12.


It is quiet (can be mounted inside the cabin) and doesnt vibrate itself to death. Mine is mounted under the passenger seat and nobody even notices it while its running - added benefit of having cool, relatively dust free air at all times for the compressor. The Twin motors have a built in cooling fan, pressure cut off switch and on board relays. The supplied harness and switches are great quality. I bought the bare compressor model with harness and made the air lines with fitting i bought to suit my application. I use this frequently for desert drives where we deflate to around 1Bar (14.7psi) for driving in the sand. Then we drive for hours in remote areas and absolutely need the compressor to perform with out fail so that we can inflate tyres to get back home. Sometime in the sand dunes the tyres roll off the bead and while it is a minor inconvenience (we put the tyre back on within a few minutes) a working compressor that can seat the tyre back on the bead is absolutely a MUST HAVE. Help can be a few hours away and your life could be at risk walking in the desert looking for help if the compressor fails.

At first i bought a generic "high volume" compressor which was noisy and drew high amperage but flowed like ****. I ported the head on this one, upgraded the fittings and realized it was making a pig look pretty. Finally decided to go for a high quality kit and bought the ARB Twin kit. I built my own air line to inflate all 4 tyres at once and the ARB Twin does it from 1Bar to 2.3Bar (36psi ?) in about 4-5 mins while i stand there looking cool, not having to swap air lines from tyre to tyre... LoL

Edited: One piece of advise - if you start comparing compressors, you will invariably be looking at flow rates (CFM, GPH etc) AND Duty cycle. Make sure you compare flow rate under load (say "x"CFM at 30psi) and not the commonly mentioned flow rate at no load figures that most manufacturers like to "boast" about. IIRC The ARB Twin compressor flow something like 6CFM at 30psi while drawing 50odd Amps, AND it can do this at 100% duty cycle and that is probably the best in this class of compressors. No one else makes a 12V compressor targeted for automobile usage that beats it.

 

[GeoBruin]

For regular usage where you depend on the compressor to get home safely - I highly recommend the ARB Twin Compressor CKMTA12.


It is quiet (can be mounted inside the cabin) and doesnt vibrate itself to death. Mine is mounted under the passenger seat and nobody even notices it while its running - added benefit of having cool, relatively dust free air at all times for the compressor. The Twin motors have a built in cooling fan, pressure cut off switch and on board relays. The supplied harness and switches are great quality. I bought the bare compressor model with harness and made the air lines with fitting i bought to suit my application. I use this frequently for desert drives where we deflate to around 1Bar (14.7psi) for driving in the sand. Then we drive for hours in remote areas and absolutely need the compressor to perform with out fail so that we can inflate tyres to get back home. Sometime in the sand dunes the tyres roll off the bead and while it is a minor inconvenience (we put the tyre back on within a few minutes) a working compressor that can seat the tyre back on the bead is absolutely a MUST HAVE. Help can be a few hours away and your life could be at risk walking in the desert looking for help if the compressor fails.

At first i bought a generic "high volume" compressor which was noisy and drew high amperage but flowed like ****. I ported the head on this one, upgraded the fittings and realized it was making a pig look pretty. Finally decided to go for a high quality kit and bought the ARB Twin kit. I built my own air line to inflate all 4 tyres at once and the ARB Twin does it from 1Bar to 2.3Bar (36psi ?) in about 4-5 mins while i stand there looking cool, not having to swap air lines from tyre to tyre... LoL

One piece of advise - if you start comparing compressors, you will invariably be looking at flow rates (CFM, GPH etc). Make sure you compare flow rate under load (say "x"CFM at 30psi) and not the commonly mentioned flow rate at no load figures that most manufacturers like to "boast" about. IIRC The ARB Twin compressors flow something like 6CFM at 100psi while drawing 40A and that is probably the best in this class of compressors. No one else makes a 12V compressor targeted for automobile usage that beats it.

That looks like an awesome little compressor, but there's no way it's making 6cfm at 100psi.

 

[csp]

Puma, from an ARB owner.

 

[Vicks]

That looks like an awesome little compressor, but there's no way it's making 6cfm at 100psi.

You’re right, it’s not 100psi. It flows 6Cfm at 30psi and runs 100% duty cycle. I think I got some of those numbers mixed up, my bad. Will edit my post.

 

[bas157]

ARB are good but pricey! Viair are good. Just pay attention to duty cycle if you are looking to air up all 4. Some are 100% duty cycle, some are not.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

I have a Puma....they sell regular compressors to, so a decent sized company. I've had it 10 years, no issues.

Puma 12-Volt Compressors

Puma 12 Volt Compressor superstore. Huge selection of Puma 12 Volt Air Compressors. Buy Puma 12V Air Compressor Direct and save.

www.aircompressorsdirect.com

x2 on Puma.

Hard to beat.

x3 on the Puma. I've had mine for about 10yrs also. With that said, I'm mounting a Viair setup in my new truck with one of their "commercial grade" pumps. I haven't used it yet, but it looks really consumer grade when compared to the Puma. The only reason I went with the Viar is I need the higher PSI rating for commercial tires; the Puma is more high volume whereas this Viair is low volume high pressure.

 

[southalabama]

Dad had a Viair. Brother got it. I ended up buying a dewalt because it will operate on dewalt batteries too. Helpful on the land for wheelbarrows and mowers that aren’t in the garage and in an out building with no electricity.

 

[Vicks]

ARB are good but pricey! Viair are good. Just pay attention to duty cycle if you are looking to air up all 4. Some are 100% duty cycle, some are not.

I think most people get hung up about cfm and psi etc and leave out this vital piece of information while comparing 12v compressors. If you run your compressor for more than 2-3 minutes (like inflating 4 SUV tyres or inflating large tyres like on Heavy vehicles/agricultural vehicles) you absolutely should look for the "Duty cycle" which should be one of the most important deciding factors in your purchase. Its the low duty cycle products that are cheap and **** the bed first during extended usage.