TowerTop High-Speed Tyre Inflator review

• Price: from £35.69  
• Rating: 3 stars  
• Contact: amazon.co.uk

If you want to save yourself the bother and cost of using a garage air line to top up your tyres, it makes sense to invest in your own pump. For occasional use and if you just need to add a few psi, a foot pump will be sufficient. But if you have a big tyre or need to completely reinflate one from flat, then you will want a bit of electric assistance.

This latest new pump from a brand called TowerTop looks conventional, but claims to have technology that helps it inflate more quickly. Inside the plastic case it has copper components, a metal cylinder and a cooling system, which is said to enable continuous operation for more than 30 minutes. This allows it to inflate up to 10 car tyres and pump up to 100psi – essential for the space-saver spares found in many cars. 

The three-metre cable is just about long enough to stretch from a 12V dashboard socket to the wheels on most cars, and the pump is quieter than many rivals.Inflating a standard 185/65 R15 tyre from 0 to 35psi takes two minutes and 45 seconds, which may seem a long time, but is quicker than many pumps of this type. The LCD display shows the current pressure and the preset target level, and an automatic shutoff is supposed to halt inflation.

However, our test pump baffled us by stopping at an indicated 40psi when set to halt at 38psi. We then checked with a calibrated gauge and the tyre was actually at 42psi. Although it looks reasonable value for money, we’d expect a better level of accuracy at this price.

Now discover the best tool bags on the market to store your tools in…