Best car jump starter packs
Which portable power unit should you keep handy to get your car going or even pump up a tyre when you’re out and about?
It's always a good idea to be prepared for a breakdown by carrying one of the best car jump starter packs in the boot. The most common reasons for an emergency call-out are a dead battery or a flat tyre, and these could be easily fixed if you have the right piece of kit.
A jump pack inflator combines a 12V booster pack with a cordless tyre pump. Because they share the same battery, they are much cheaper than buying separate devices and they take up less space in your boot or glovebox, too.
The packs should be capable of starting a car multiple times, charging devices such as a smartphone via a USB socket and still manage to inflate tyres.
For this test we tried seven, across a wide range of prices. Which would get us back on the road with minimal fuss?
How we tested the best car jump starter packs
We charged the packs up to full and then timed how long they took to inflate a 16-inch tyre from 10psi to 30psi. We also checked the accuracy of the pressure display, and how easy it was to use the connectors.
For the jump pack functions, we tested if they could bring a van with a dodgy battery back to life three times in a row. We also gave points for extra functions such as lamps.
Reviews
See where we ranked the top car jump starter packs…
Draper Lithium Jump Starter and Tyre Inflator
- Price: around £95
- Battery size: 12,000mAh
- Contact: drapertools.com
- Rating: 5 stars
Used - available now
2014 Fiat
Panda 4x4
29,000 milesManualDiesel1.2L
Cash £6,990
2009 MERCEDES-BENZ
SPRINTER
91,000 milesManualDiesel2.1L
Cash £7,990
2018 Citroen
C3
75,672 milesManualPetrol1.2L
Cash £4,595
2017 Skoda
Fabia
81,099 milesAutomaticPetrol1.2L
Cash £6,295The Draper gets all the essentials right. It inflated our tyre in just over two minutes, making it the second fastest here. The pressure reading on the easy-to-read colour LCD display was spot on, too, and a 43cm-long hose meant it is easy to reach valves at the top of the wheel. Jump starting was no problem either, although the cables are on the short side at 17cm.
There is a built-in LED with three light modes, and the powerbank offers a USB-C and two USB-A ports. It’s reasonable value, too.
AstroAI MF16 6000A
- Price: around £70
- Battery size: 27,000mAh
- Contact: uk.astroai.com
- Rating: 4.5 stars
Although it doesn’t have the fastest pump or the most accurate gauge, the AstroAI offers a huge battery and some useful features at a decent price.
At 60cm, the hose is the longest here, and there is a carrying strap. On the downside, the jump leads are short and the buttons are slow to respond. It only has a single USB-A outlet too, which limits its use.
Halfords Advanced 5-in-1 Power Bank
- Price: around £117
- Battery size: 12,000mAh
- Contact: halfords.com
- Rating: 4.5 stars
Halfords’ contender is small and neat, but what really impressed was when it took our tyre from 10 to 30PSI in 1.47 minutes – and the gauge was accurate.
It can be awkward to use the hose, because it’s only 14cm long, but the jump cables are a more generous 22cm. At least the unit has USB-A and C ports, plus a plug-in female 12V socket.
ATEK
- Price: around £33
- Battery size: 8,000mAh
- Contact: amazon.co.uk
- Rating: 3.5 stars
A mere £33 buys the ATEK, which started our van without issue, took a reasonable three minutes to inflate and was just 0.6 PSI off the calibrated reading.
But there are signs of cost cutting, such as a short hose and a maximum pressure of 36PSI, so it won’t be able to inflate some space-saver tyres correctly. Also, the power in/out sockets are on the base of the unit, where they could be damaged.
NightSearcher VoltMax
- Price: around £140
- Battery size: 13,000mAh
- Contact: nightsearcher.co.uk
- Rating: 3.5 stars
The VoltMax has the most impressive illumination here, with floodlight and red emergency lamps built in. It also has a good- sized battery and an extension tube, which makes the hose a useful 45cm long.
It’s all stored in a bag with the instructions printed on the outside, which is much easier to read and find in an emergency. But it just looks too expensive.
Ring Ultrastart-Air
- Price: around £100
- Battery size: 12,000mAh
- Contact: ringautomotive.com
- Rating: 3 stars
We liked the Ring’s built-in hose, which stores securely in clips on the back of the unit, and a two- and-a-half minute pump time was impressive. The 35cm-long cables make it easier to jump, too.
But for an all-new product, there were surprises, such as a single USB-A outlet and a digital gauge that doesn’t read to decimal places for the PSI pressure. It also seemed to lose its charge quickly over a few days.
Sealey RoadStart 12V Jump Starter & Tyre Inflator
- Price: around £125
- Battery size: 12,000mAh
- Contact: sealey.co.uk
- Rating: 2.5 stars
While the Sealey didn’t do anything wrong, it didn’t offer anything that couldn’t be matched by a cheaper alternative. On the positive side it has a decent LED lamp with three modes, a 43cm-long hose and a clear display with an accurate pressure gauge. Plus there are two USB-A outlets if you need to top up devices.
But it took over three minutes to inflate the tyre and was the noisiest pump in the test. The cables are disappointingly short, too.
Verdict
- Draper Lithium Jump Starter and Tyre Inflator
- AstroAI MF16 6000A
- Halfords Advanced 5-in-1 Power Bank
The Draper Lithium Jump Starter and Tyre Inflator offers all the features we like and gave a strong starting and pumping performance at a respectable price. Second place goes to the AstroAI MF16, which has a huge battery, while finishing in third spot is Halfords’ Advanced 5-in-1 Power Bank.
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