Jump Leads? What Amp?

Zak Flaps

Hi. I drive a 2003 Toyota Yaris. 1 litre engine.
I need to get some jump leads. Would 200 Amp be the most suitable for me?

Also, was thinking of getting one of these jumpstarters from Halfords;

http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_183849_categoryId_212463_langId_-1?cm_vc=IOV4PDPZ1#dtab

are they much good?

Z.

colm_mcm

bear in mind that a new battery for a Yaris would be cheaper than that.

Unless you live miles away from any other cars, a set of jump leads would do the job.

Zak Flaps

colm_mcm wrote: »

bear in mind that a new battery for a Yaris would be cheaper than that.

Unless you live miles away from any other cars, a set of jump leads would do the job.

ok. But what amp would you recommend? I see they come in 200, 600 etc....
I know very little about cars.

746watts

200amp will do a yaris fine, 400amp for a 1.6-1.8 petrol, maybe a 2lt diesel ? and 600 amp for a 3 lt jeep.

Zak Flaps

746watts wrote: »

200amp will do a yaris fine, 400amp for a 1.6-1.8 petrol, maybe a 2lt diesel ? and 600 amp for a 3 lt jeep.

Cheers 746watts.
That's all I need to know.

Although I'm still thinking of getting one of those Dynamic Jumpstarters as I hate asking strangers to help jumpstart my car!!

robtri

Zak Flaps wrote: »

Cheers 746watts.
That's all I need to know.

Although I'm still thinking of getting one of those Dynamic Jumpstarters as I hate asking strangers to help jumpstart my car!!

by the sounds of that this happens reguarly????

if so.. i would be looking for the reason why the battery is dying so often... rather than spending the money on a new jumpstarter

Zak Flaps

robtri wrote: »

by the sounds of that this happens reguarly????

if so.. i would be looking for the reason why the battery is dying so often... rather than spending the money on a new jumpstarter

Cheers robtri, it has happened a few times in the last 6 months. I'd say the battery is on it's last legs. I'm not sure when the battery was changed last (if ever) but it's been at least 4 years. The recent cold weather didn't help. My journeys are mostly short which wouldn't help either.
Going to get the car serviced soon so maybe the mechanic can tell me the condition of the battery. Probably need a new one. But I thought one of those jumpstart kits would be handy. Maybe a new battery and jump leads are the way to go.

JHMEG

Those jump-starters are handy, but that Halfords one is very expensive for amateur use. Keep an eye out in Aldi - I got one for my father-in-law for €39 and it's a slightly better spec than the Halfords one (which I was given as a present, but from Maplin where it's slightly cheaper and sold under the Nikkai brand, but otherwise identical)

unkel

I bought mine (identical to that one) from Maplins for €38. It was on a half price special. I also have a Lidl one that I bought for about the same price, but the one in the OP is of much better build quality.

If I were the OP, I'd just buy a new battery. Your battery is gone. Once you have a brand new battery, there is no need to worry about jump starting, as you just won't need to do it. Unless you leave your lights on overnight or don't use your car for weeks / months on end or something obvious like that.

Fishtits

This is something I encounter a lot. short journeys leading to reduced battery life, and jump leads...

If you need a jump start as a result of short journeys, your battery's had it. Buy a new one and accept that due to the non normal short journey nature of your commute you may have to do this every two years or so.

Jump leads fall into two categories: pretend ones and real ones.

Pretend ones are available from your local motor factor, they'll have exaggerated current carrying capabilities and will be crimped and flimsy, they will be perfectly adequate for occasional use. Typically cost less than E50.

Real jump leads tend to be made to order, genuine current capability, very flexible, with cast clamps and all soldered joints, including clamp jumpers. Last a lifetime if you don't drive over them and cost several hundred Euro a pop. These are what the pro recovery guys tend to have.

OP, buy a battery.

Zak Flaps

thanks unkel and (ahem) fishtits!
Yes, I think a new battery is the way to go. Probably won't bother with the jumpstart kit as it seems like i won't really use it. Just a pair of basic jump leads to leave in the boot for emergencies!
Thanks guys.

cormie

Interesting to read that fishtits, I've been having trouble with different cables lately myself.

I have 5 different sets of jump cables and so far I've marked 2 as bad quality and the one set that keeps me ticking over is a Halfords set (I think this one http://www.halfords.ie/workshop-tools/garage-equipment/jump-leads/halfords-35mm-booster-cables) that I've had for years.

They are ALL branded as "heavy duty" some I got in Lidl/Aldi and others on amazon.

I remember seeing a website that compared a few of them and I think Halfords came out trumps. I'm trying to find it again as I need to get 2 new pairs to replace the ****ty ones and I just want to make sure the Halfords ones were the best.

So if the real ones are a few hundred euro and if the Halfords ones fall into the pretend category at €45, then what are the ****ty ones I have? Toy ones?

The Halfords ones have sorted me out whenever I've used them so I think I'd be happy enough with another 2 pairs of them, but if anyone has any others to recommend, please share. I'm not prepared to spend a few hundred though :eek:

bazz26

Thread is 6 years old and poster Fishtits has closed their account. :pac:

Fishtits :pac:

*giggles like a schoolgirl*

biko

Old thread lock.

Feel free to start a new one.