Looking for a jump pack

Discussion in 'Gen 5 Prius Main Forum' started by HamiltonPrius, Jan 1, 2026 at 11:41 AM.

  1. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    My 22 Rav4 hybrid needs a jump ground on the passenger side so I simply include three feet of #10 stranded with one small alligator clip attached and store it in the Noco lithium jump start case.
     
    #21 rjparker, Jan 1, 2026 at 10:47 PM
    Last edited: Jan 1, 2026 at 11:12 PM
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  2. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

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    Anytime I hear somebody say"better safe than sorry" a picture of buffoon in the emergency room with a non-emergency complaint and no final diagnosis waving their finger making a stupid face
     
  3. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

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    So you’d spend the extra $60, just replace the battery? That’s the simple repair.

    I’ve the battery out, load tested it, it failed. It’s a decade old.
     
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  4. VelvetFoot

    VelvetFoot Active Member

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    Sparks?
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

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    It doesn’t help, that new, ultra compact jump packs come with cables about a foot long at most.

    Not connecting to neg post is widely advocated, and widely ignored.
     
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  6. VelvetFoot

    VelvetFoot Active Member

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    @HamiltonPrius , I bought a jump pack a little while ago, but never thought how I'd hook it up.
    Those leads really are short.
    There are some grounds in the vicinity of the "exclusive jump starting terminal".
    A couple seem to be on the inverter (?). Seem more robusto than the body grounds also in the area.
    Safe to use? Pic below:

    upload_2026-1-2_9-16-23.png
     
    #26 VelvetFoot, Jan 2, 2026 at 8:53 AM
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2026 at 9:16 AM
  7. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    I've lost track of all the people who have said I should get a new battery.
    Apparently, they ignored these facts:
    • The battery tested well within spec.
    • A new battery was installed.
    • The problem was obviously variable and unpredictable parasitic drain.
     
  8. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    "Better safe than sorry" is usually uttered by those who are ignorant of the actual risks, or are too lazy to find out.
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    and sometimes the risks are undefinable
     
  10. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

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    You're always "right", and when that falls through, throw up an ink cloud of "whatevers" and "to each their owns"? Anyway, load test of the battery showed it about half the rated CCA, and tester deemed it "fail". And it's over 10 years old.

    But you know better. And I should know better than to lock horns with you.
     
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  11. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Yeah, I generally glom onto one of the bolts holding the inverter case together. As the 12-volt system ground originates there, I don't look too hard for a better ground somewhere else.
     
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  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

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    The engine is grounded too, if handy. On our 3rd gen I use this EGR stud:

    pic to come

    I learned about it the day we bought it. It had apparently been languishing in the back of a storage/display shed dealership for about 15 months. Dealership had it running "to warm it up for you" when we arrived for a test drive. Afterwards when signing papers, we went out to the car to check the odo, and that "warming up" had not quite revived the knackered battery.

    That's Open Road Port Moody. After paying a yacht payment for dealer prep, I also found the spare (remember those?) at 40 psi, and sundry other "oversights".
     

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    #32 Mendel Leisk, Jan 2, 2026 at 2:45 PM
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2026 at 7:10 PM
  13. Paul Gregory

    Paul Gregory Senior Member

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    Mendel, this wasn't about you.
    I was sharing my own experience.
     
  14. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

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    I use my old fashioned battery load tester so much that I had to rebond the internal wires to the resistor leads. I used some copper lugs and cripmping tool $30 tool at HF
     
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  15. HamiltonPrius

    HamiltonPrius Member

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  16. rjparker

    rjparker Tu Humilde Sirviente

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    To be frank, that unit is not lithium which is superior for occasional usage and months long standby. Instead it has a sealed lead acid (sla) battery the size of some alarm systems.

    IMG_0142.jpeg
     
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  17. BiomedO1

    BiomedO1 Senior Member

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    It's good enough for our Prius; but probably not enough for a V6 or larger engine, or diesel. I didn't take a close look at that unit, but I'm pretty sure there's a battery test button and 120VAC rechargeable. Just need to hit the battery test button before tossing it in the trunk for a road trip. I'm pretty sure that battery is replaceable for around $40 - whereas those mini-lithium ones are disposable. Hopefully, you don't drop that unit too often - other than that, they're pretty bullet proof.
     
  18. Tande

    Tande Active Member

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    Take your pick .... Temu
     
  19. PriusV17

    PriusV17 Active Member

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    I'm using Lokithor because it's the only good one I know that is using LiFePO4 battery chemistry. I've used it a few times to jump completely drained batteries and used it from storage and not fully charged. I'm paranoid about leaving lithium ion batteries in a hot car that can go over 100F easily on a daily basis. These chemistries don't catch fire and can be drained to 0 without harm to the battery and last over 2000 cycles down to zero. This one at Amazon has a compressor and is $144 now at 40% off.

    LOKITHOR JA3000 Jump Starter with Air Compressor, 3000Amp 12V Lithium Iron Phosphate



    1.jpg

    This is my unit. It has been sitting around for years and still showing a full bar.
    2.png