Portable jump starters have become all the rage in recent years. And like all beneficial tech devices, advancements are always on the horizon. In fact, there’s a brand-new jump box on the market called a supercapacitor.
Why are supercapacitors the best car jump starter in the world?
According to #savagescotty, they can charge up in just a few minutes using a dead battery, don’t run out of juice while they sit, and start your car on demand. Can it really get better than that?
Still not sold? The newfangled supercapacitors are also amazingly easy to use whenever your battery dies. Follow along here and see just how easy it is as mechanic Scotty Kilmer walks us through the steps.
Why Supercapacitors are so Great
Kilmer wants you to know that supercapacitors work like magic. Seriously, they do. They can take just a little bit of power from your bad battery and use it to jumpstart the car. The reason it can do this is due to how the supercapacitor works.
When batteries are too run down to start the car, they are not completely out of power. They just can’t release enough juice to turn the engine over fast enough that it’ll start.
Thankfully, that’s where the supercapacitor shines. It can take the residual power from the battery, and then release it in a huge burst that cranks the engine long enough for the starter to do its job.
Scotty explains that they are so incredible because they can store up to 100 times as much energy as a normal battery. They charge up in just a few minutes. And they go through the charging cycle hundreds of thousands of times before pooping out. That’s pretty spectacular stuff.
How to Use Supercapacitors to Jumpstart Your Car
Kilmer stuffed a known bad battery in his car to show off how well supercapacitors work. Before going through those steps, he pulled out the Midtronics tester and demonstrated that it was time to replace the battery.
Normally, that would mean it’s dead and done, too far gone to start the car. With a supercapacitor on hand, however, this battery will live again — for a little while longer, at least. Here’s how.
1. Hook up the Supercap to the Dead Battery
Take your supercapacitor unit and hook it up to the dead battery using the supplied clamps. As long as you’re holding the clamps away from metal surfaces, it doesn’t matter which one you hook up first.
Scotty goes for the negative first, then hooks up the positive.
With the cables hooked up, he checks the box to verify that the voltage light shines green. That means it’s hooked up just right. After that, he just pushes the “On” button.
2. Wait for the Supercapacitor to Fully Charge
At that point, the voltage light will go from solid green to flashing red to show it’s charging. You can also look at the screen to watch the voltage rise. As that happens, the flashing light will turn yellow, and then finally settle on green once again.
Once it’s fully green, it has enough power to start the car. The “Fault Start Mode” button will turn green at that point as well.
3. Turn the Key, Wait a Second, and Start the Car
With the box still hooked up to the battery, get in the car, put the key in the ignition, and turn the accessories on. Wait just another beat longer, and then turn the key a bit further to crank over the engine. Your car should fire right up, allowing you to continue on your way.
Before you head out, disconnect the supercap from your battery and put it in the trunk. You’ll want to have it on hand if you get stranded anywhere with another dead battery.
Diesel Engines Need not Apply
Since diesel engines have to heat up their glow plugs before they can start, the supercapacitor cannot give them quite enough juice to get the job done. Gasoline engines are good to go, however, since they can fire right up upon getting enough power.
If your supercapacitor jump box cannot start your car, then it’s time for a trip to the shop. Remember to bring your Vehicle History report to make everyone’s job much easier.
