I tested Ryobi’s 18V cordless car battery jump starter, and it ultimately worked out!
I drove for a couple of hours on Saturday, parked the car at night, and all was well. I went to go for a drive on Sunday, and nothing worked.
The car, a couple of years-old GMC SUV, flashed a bunch of error messages, and… nothing. It didn’t even try to start the engine.
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The wipers slowly turned towards the center, the keyless starter wasn’t working, something from the center console was clicking. The electrical system went haywire.
It seemed that the battery (AC Delco Gold) was dead after 33 months.
I busted out my Ryobi 18V jump starter test sample. I popped in a mostly-charged 4Ah battery and gave it a go. Ryobi to the rescue!, or so I had hoped. But that’s not what happened.
First, you connect the cables in the order it tells you. I attached red to positive and black to the ground post. Later, when I tried it again, I attached the ground terminal directly to the battery.
Then you press and hold the power button.
Press the prime button, and when it gives the OK via a solid green light and audible signal, start the engine.
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Well, the engine didn’t start. I tried this a couple of times with no luck.
My wife’s 4-cylinder sedan provided a bit more juice to the electrical system, but ultimately nothing worked.
I tried the Ryobi again, and… still nothing.
I busted out my OBD2 code reader. (See also: I Bought a Bluetooth and App-Based Auto OBD2 Code Reader).
I didn’t give me any notable trouble codes, and before the connection failed I read the battery measurement at around 6V. Yep, that’ll cause all kinds of weird bad behaviors.
The car continued to lose power and the OBD2 sensor stopped connecting.
I whipped out a Fluke multimeter – my Fluke 87V test sample is still going strong – and measured the same. 6V.
It seems that the battery completely failed, and the Ryobi jump starter couldn’t do anything to help.
Ryobi says the P7101 jump starter can jump up to a 6L V8 engine, and so it shouldn’t have had trouble with my V6. Its 800 cold cranking amps and 1600 peak amps should have been enough.
When looking up the specs, I found a Q&A on Home Depot’s product page. With a completely dead battery, try the override mode.
The user manual, which I couldn’t find online on Home Depot or Ryobi websites, says that the override mode should be used if the battery is at less than 0.8V.
The override instructions are clear.
Press and hold the PRIME button for three seconds.
Once primed, the START ENGINE LED will turn solid green.
Start the vehicle.
But it didn’t work.
I finally figured it out. Turn it on. Press the prime button, and then hold down the prime button to engage the override mode.
Overall, the Ryobi jump starter was very easy to use, even in the heat of a “why won’t the car start?!” moment. The instructions should elaborate about how to activate the override mode, but in hindsight this doesn’t seem like a big deal.
I ran the priming sequence, this time engaging the override mode. The first time, the car dash turned on. The second, the car engine tried to turn over for a split second. The third time, the engine turned over and I was good to go.
I’m not sure why the Ryobi jump starter didn’t work the first couple of times, and why the override mode did work, but I’m not complaining.
There’s a QR code on the tool itself, which leads to a visual troubleshooting guide, and there’s also a link to an instructional YouTube video on the same page. There, they also repeat the instructions “hold down the override button.”
The repeat in the video that the override mode is only needed in rare occasions or when the voltage is under 0.8V. I guess this was one such rare occasion.
On the tool itself, it also does say hold to override, it just don’t make it clear that you do this during priming. Now I know – and you do too.
The user manual has info about what different audible beeping indicators means.
The kit came with a 2Ah battery and charger, which I set aside.
The cables are maybe a little on the short side, but they were manageable. I prefer to connect the ground clamp to the grounding lug, rather than the negative terminal of the battery, but it can reach either one, depending on where you rest the charger.
Back in late 2021, by battery died and I was able to jump it with my wife’s car.
This time, the Ryobi charger in standard mode and my wife’s car both failed to start the engine. The override mode did work, although it took a revisit to the user manual for me to figure it out. That’s at least partially on me.
All that said, Ryobi’s charger saved the day. Well, not yesterday – my plans were ruined – but they saved me some headaches today.
The bare tool is $179, and the kit with a 2Ah battery and charger is $199.
Thank you to Ryobi for the review sample!
Wayne R.
Presuming another vehicle is available as a jump source, how do these things improve over plain old jumper cables?
Stuart
After the jump starter failed initially, I brought out my jumper cables and tried that too.
I jumped my car with my wife’s before – it worked when my battery failed in 2021 – but it did NOT work now.
Another SUV or a truck with similarly sized or higher-powered battery might have done the job, but that option wasn’t easily available to me.
Reflector
If your car is in the garage already then you don’t have to immediately jump if the lead acid battery isn’t 100% dead. Letting it sit connected and letting the OK car’s alternator and battery for a few minutes (3-10) effectively equalize charge would have made it so it’d have a chance to crank over. Unless the battery absolutely bleeds charge like crazy or has zero capacity to hold any then the small amount of charge in it will reduce the draw over the cables or otherwise allow for a crank over.
I’ve had experiences with vehicles that had near-flat and flat batteries whereby hooking them up to a slow charger for a few hours was sufficient to get them to allow for the car to crank itself over (granted, sedans and not with large displacement engines) and then charge the battery with the alternator. Sufficient enough to get to the auto store to buy a replacement battery, drive back home and get it replaced.
Stuart
I tried at 4-5 mins and then at 10 mins before giving up.
MM
In my experience it is impossible to make blanket statements comparing jump packs to jumper cables: it really depends on the specifics. Cheap jumper cables are an exercise in frustration. Even if you have a big truck battery to jump off of the combination of crappy clamps and thin gauge wire limits the power you can get. Good jumper cables made from thick cable that does not skimp on the copper content and with good strong clamps are very effective. I haven’t used any jump packs that use tool batteries but I have used a few dedicated ones with their own built-in batteries. They ranged from nearly useless to surprisingly effective. A co-worker has a Noco Boost X which will start a 1 ton truck engine (gas or diesel) easily and repeatedly. It also will easily start engines in heavy equipment.
A W
As the receiving vehicle, it doesn’t make much difference other than the ability to do it yourself without having to get another vehicle into the correct position.
The battery on my wife’s car started slowly going bad, and having a NOCO on hand was particularly useful getting it started both inside of the garage and in a parking lot.
On the giving end however, I’d far rather give someone a jump with a $79 tool I can pick up at Advance or AutoZone rather than risk the diodes on my alternator if someone crosses the cables or tries to start too soon. I can’t prove correlation, but I’ve needed to swap at least two alternators after jumping another vehicle.
David Z
Not needing another vehicle is the main benefit. Part of it is not needing to get the second person/vehicle, especially strangers in places of variable security.. Part is not having to deal with two cars/engines/”the process,” as this can be intimidating to people. Finally, it is the physical ease and safety of not needing to get the second car positioned.
I think knowing you have this during longer trips is comforting. You do different things when traveling. Flipping the inside light on to find a snack. Turning on a light in a storage area. Leaving something in to charge. Etc. Left on, you can find yourself with a weakened charge.
George
Heard dat. You can buy many other jump starters a whole lot cheaper without having to have a charger and batteries. This item is so overpriced it is ridiculous.
Steven B
$180 is way overpriced compared to a much more convenient and tiny dedicated jumper that’s 1/2 the price.
How do they compare to jumper cables? My NOCO box is tiny and far faster than hooking up to a 2nd automobile. I can also use it as a USB power station if I need to (although realistically that’ll never happen). I also like that boosters have flashlights built in.
Basically, my NOCO box takes up 1/3 the space of a cheap set of jumper cables, can jump my car like 10x before I need to recharge it and I don’t need to wait for a a 2nd vehicle.
JoeH
I have had great luck with my NoCo box as well. Super easy to use. I have jumped my cars twice and random people’s cars about half a dozen times in parking lots. I love the look on their face when they see the little NoCo and think I don’t have a clue what I’m doing until Vrooooom !
Alexk
I also love the look on the faces. They can’t believe something that small can start a car or truck
Matt
If you ever take one apart, it is surprising how tiny the actually li-ion battery in it is. Just a small pouch cell perhaps 1/4 the volume of the charger itself.
SamH
It’s because they use lithium polymer battery packs not lithium ion.
Stuart
I’ll take a look at Noco.
I tend to be a bit paranoid about rechargeable battery products.
I get pitched so many reviews from no-name companies, but it takes a lot for me to trust a new brand.
With this, baring something going wrong, it should still work in 5 or 10 years as long as I have a working Ryobi battery.
Ant
Bought one a few months back, had some other Ryobi stuff, threw it in the back of my truck, took a road trip, and battery died, hooked up the jump starter and a minute later I was on the road. No need for another vehicle and was able to do it solo planning on getting a couple more for my kids vehicles. At first I thought the price was a little high for what I thought was a gimmick tool but it was well worth the money
MattW.
I have a noco 99 dollar prime day deal from 5 years ago jumped a 6.7 power stroke 8l cat engine and a 8.1 vortex. This was only rated at 6.6l? Next challenge is a Detroit diesel?
Mitherial
NOCO seems to have become the dominant brand for auto battery chargers and jump-starters, and I highly recommend them. The features (e.g. dedicated AGM mode) on my NOCO chargers is far above my old Battery Tender trickle chargers, and the build quality makes the Battery Tenders feel like cheap crap.
I also bought one of the larger Noco “X” series jump starters (which I can charge using my laptop’s USB-C port), which serve as a great backup charger for your cell-phone etc. in emergency situations.
Mitherial
As others have said, you do need to recharge them two or three times a year, but that’s true of most battery platforms.
Bonnie
I’ve got a Noco as well, and have had it for 3-ish years. It’s been invaluable while fixing up my wife’s old 5.9L Cummins turbodiesel which had a bunch of electrical problems. Also just super handy for jumping other things like our riding lawnmower that would have been a pain to get a car next to.
David Z
I can second the Noco. I got one for me and one for my father-in-law.
I chose it because the 2 previous times I need a jump, the tow trucks were using Noco’s.
Cullen
I’ve had 2 of these, but not the NOCO brand. The batteries tend to die and then you’re stranded without the jumper when you most need it.
With the Ryobi jumper I could use the battery I already keep in the car for the tire inflator.
mikedt
Amazon Prime Days coming up. I’m sure jump starter battery packs will be in the mix.
Alexk
I bought a lithium jump starter from HD for $100. Can’t remember the brand, but not NOCO, even though I would have bought the NOCO if they had it. It is so small, it can fit in a Fanny/bug out pack to go from car to car. A friend gave me an Honda Odyssey with a V6 that mostly sits. It’s a free backup. Old but works fine. The battery was shot, but I didn’t bother replacing it for a long time. Just connect the little jump starter and it would turn over. Having the jumper also came in useful helping other people start their car without risking damage to my vehicle by using cables.
This Ryobi sounds great….for around $50- maybe a bit more. I don’t see it being worth a hundred let alone almost two hundred. I like the idea of it, because I always keep a Ryobi 4ah with tire inflator and flashlight in my truck and it would be ready anytime. Good idea and product, but too expensive.
Jay
I have an old beater S10 pickup that gets used for dirty jobs about once a year. I eventually gave up on trying to keep a working battery in it and replaced the battery with one of these: https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/723-BMOD0058E016C02 (you can get them for less than half that price from other brands now a days)
That was about 5 years ago now and it still fires up like a screaming banshee every time I go to start it. Once I threw one of those $10 Harbor Freight dashboard solar battery maintainers on it, I haven’t even needed to charge it before use.
fred
I suppose that some “dead” car batteries have just been discharged too deeply to work. Leaving the lights on overnight in my 1955 Chevy Bel Air (my first ride) would certainly accomplish that task. My current cars seem to durn the lights off automatically after some delay when the car is turned off. But computers and such are now a parasitic drain, so a car left idle for weeks (like at a vacation home) will certainly end with a dead battery. I’ve always thought that dead batteries may come in different varieties. Some may result from having battery plates decaying in such a way as to pile up debris resulting in a short from one cell to another. It may be one of those sorts of dead batteries (with an internal short) that are particularly hard to jump. Taking it out of the “equation” by disconnecting its ground cable might help if such is the case. I’m told that long-life lead acid batteries sometimes use plates that are encased in pouch-like separators (glass mats that actually hold the sulfuric acid electrolyte).
PK
Almost 200 bucks is way too high.
Ocracoke Island
Price a tow truck with jumper cables if you can not find a stranger to offer you a jump.
Two of those calls, you paid for it.
Be out in nowhere Alaska fishing, Nevada can it get any hotter, hiking, vehicle will not start, boat 5 miles out, engine will not start, you might feel different?
scott
I have grandpa’s jumper cables, they are a beast. He used to do heavy steel construction and they are 30 ft long 4/0 welding wire. Copper wire is like strands of hair. They are a beast to use, like almost 50lb but they will carry current like nobodies business.
Farkleberry
I have not heard of jump starter that uses tool batteries, but it’s a great idea.
I know Makita (and probably others) has an adapter to use batteries as a USB power source, and there are all sorts of DIY and aftermarket solutions as well. I briefly thought about this for phone charging with the truck off, but realized dedicated USB power supplies are so cheap and ubiquitous, why bother?
I found myself borrowing a neighbor’s bulky traditional lead acid jump starter to jump a finicky mower and squirrely vehicles/batteries, instead of uncoiling extension cords and hooking up an A/C charger/starter.
Finally I looked into modern equivalents. I settled on a jump starter rated for maybe 8 liters. It has a nice wide and bright LED, a decent tire pump, and USB in/out charging. It will absolutely jump a dead (like 2V or less) V8 battery instantly and not even show a decrease in its charge. Charging a cell phone from dead will drain a surprising amount, like maybe half.
I liked all the capabilities of this unit, but didn’t want to throw it away when the batteries go south in a few years. I found a LiFePo model that will hopefully last a bit longer and perhaps be a little safer too.
I know people rebuild their lead acid jump starters. Hopefully I won’t have to break this thing apart anytime soon for a DIY repower.
Farkleberry
This unit is about the size and weight of a large hardback novel, but has a goofy rigid handle that makes it a bit thicker. It was a $130 on sale and is on sale $140 direct from manufacturer now. It’s Lokithor JA3000, supposed to jump 9.0L gas or 7.0L diesel. They have similar units that use Li-Ion instead of LiFePo and/or have less power for cheaper.
This is a very handy tool.
David Brock
Bought 2 Lokithor’s from A-zon, returned both as they were dead on arrival, second 2 have held up for the last 6 months though. Not sure they are in it for the long haul.
John
Project Farm did a great test of car jump kits. Bought one for about $100. Jumping a car uses only 1-2% of the stored charge. It has worked great. Can also be used to charge phones and tablets on trips.
Nathan
Interesting. I keep saying I’m going to get that DeWalt inflator 20v device to keep in the car but again gotta also keep a fully charged battery or 2. Same with something like the noco device. You have to check it occasionally.
So I’d put it as an item like a 3moth work card. Stick tires with gage check fluids check battery device…….
Nathan
Also lot of new cars it’s not that your battery is dead it’s that your car’s computer thinks your battery is too low to use. This is why some people have issues. The connection to the car sensors to the new power source don’t show up as effective computer still prevents start. Oh and maybe your oil is low or ?. So the battery jumpers help with so e of that.
Ron
Thanks for this article. Great reminder. I’ve been meaning to get one of these for quite a while now. They’re as useless as a fire extinguisher……until you need one.
I already have some Ryobi tools and batteries but I agree with others that the price is way too high. If the price was about $75 maybe I’d bite. I just looked up the NOCO GB40 and seems to be a very reputable model. About a 100 bucks. I’ll wait until Prime days to see if it drops. I already have a couple chargers made by NOCO so I already trust the brand. Sorry……if the Ryobi model doubled as a tire inflator, flood light….speaker….fan…..pocket fisherman……or anything, maybe I would have considered it.
Scotty.
NOCO seems to be a reliable brand. I’ve got 2 of the GB40 model and they have worked great when needed.
I did notice one of them lost a significant amount of charge when left in our car during freezing winter temps. Brought it inside to warm up and recharge; good as new now. I don’t leave in car during winter now.
A W
I’ve also had good luck with NOCO. Push the button, start the car.
I was a little surprised at this sentence: “Overall, the Ryobi jump starter was very easy to use, even in the heat of a “why won’t the car start?!” moment.” In context, it seemed rather complicated.
Saulac
I have 3 Nocos. One for each vehicle. The convenience of the compact size of the dedicated jump starters alone justifies the price. What steered me to Noco in the beginning was their cable leads. They are just normal cables. No mysterious little box on the cables like other brand. Then what made me buy more was the capability and how long they can hold a charge.
Mike S
I used to have a Jump n Carry 300XLby Clore. It had a replaceable AGM battery. It worked great for many years, started many vehicles that failed to be jumped. When its battery died, i replaced it but also picked up the Weego li ion units – smaller, and even more effective. I liked the Weego offering better than the Noco, and it outperformed the JNC in real life a couple of times, so I put one in all of my vehicles.
Alexk
There is a Dewalt version of this that is $159 and comes with a 5ah battery and charger. I wonder why Ryobi priced theirs so high? It doesn’t fit with my understanding of the brand. The string trimmer, fans, lights etc. that I have are much less expensive than the red or yellow equivalent. If the price was much closer, I’d go with a pro tool platform.
Al
The DXAE20VBBK listed at HD for $159 does not seem to be a jump start box. It’s a slow charge over several hours, and only works with a low battery (not dead). I like the idea of using the same battery as my tools. But, where I am in southern California, 30-45 minutes will get you a free AAA Prius with a jump box and a new battery for sale. Waiting hours to charge just doesn’t make good sense. 45-60 minutes will get you a tow on a roll-back.
I had a small $60 lithium battery that easily jumped a 1.5L 4-cyl, 3.0L V6, and a 5.6L V8. The 4 & 6 cylinder had dead batteries…less than 6 volts. The V8 was at 10 volts, and started on the first try.
I think that DeWalt slow charger is a waste of plastic for me as a city dweller. But, if I was rural, I’d have a portable solar panel to trickle charge during the day. Or a second vehicle. Or a jump box that took less than a minute to work. YMMV.
Stuart
The Dewalt are made by Baccus under license.
Kevin
I have a DeWalt DXAEPS14, which uses a lead acid battery and has a jump starter, compressor and inverter on it. I have used it to jump a few other vehicles (fortunately I haven’t had to use it on my own). It is a handy thing to have, and know it is there if I do have issues. I currently have it rigged up in my trunk so whenever my car is running it charges the battery, that way I know it is charged when I need it.
I have always been an little suspicious of the LiPO jump starters, as I have seen a few fail, but they were cheap ones. I am sure that something like the Noco ones are more reliable. Given their size compared to the lead acid one I have, they would also be a lot more convenient.
David
I had hoped that this would be a compelling bit of kit to put into my car when it came out. I’ve used and have gifted a variety of other brands (DBPower, Gooloo, AstroAI) that are smaller, cheaper, and that work as USB battery banks too. I liked the idea of just swapping some 4ah batteries in every season for my compressor and jump starter, but at this price I think I’ll be sticking with the small dedicated units.
Rcward
My experience with Ryobi is that it’s junk. Sorry, I would not buy anything Ryobi.
Stuart
Care to elaborate?
I’ve had mixed experiences with Ryobi products, but for the most part they’re pretty good.
Frank D
I like the idea and concept; but if you can’t make it work without googling and jumping through several hoops … it sounds like a fail to me. Why nit hsve those instructions on the device?!
And for the cost, I have a way cheaper Stanley jump starter with built in battery that started a V8 pickup. ( probably will refuse to do anything next time after I typed this ). So : pass.
Jason. W
on a somewhat related note: I recently emergency bought the Ryobi 18V inverter to use in a pinch when the power went out.
https://www.ryobitools.com/products/details/46396032423
I ran it off the car battery in order to keep my fridge running when the power was out for almost 12 hours. It worked well and did what I needed it to do. I was considering getting the smaller version for camping, so it was a worthwhile purchase.
OcracokeIsland
This thing is convenient.
No more trying to get to a vehicle in a driveway, or parked on the street, trying to jump from behind.
It uses standard Ryobi batteries.
Even the bigger Amp hour battery works; just the battery lid will not close.
These batteries can’t start the car.
What it does is to charge 5 very large capacitors over 15-20 seconds, the capacitors provide the huge amps needed.
The short leads are to keep down resistant wire lost.
If the battery is too low, my guess is it can’t figure out the battery is connected, so you need the override to get it going.
This is probably a safety feature? It does not sense a battery because of a flat battery, so user input is required.
We jumped the same car 4 times, a very flat battery, and the device battery didn’t move off 4 bars.
Going through the connect the leads, turning on, charging the capacitors, starting, and then reversing the order also helps to down a spark because you turn off the device before disconnecting it.
Being able to use a standard replaceable battery used in other tools is a huge plus.