Basically they are a high amp battery attached to two heavy duty jumper cables. The same principles apply as when you need to jump start your car, but the advantage is that you do not need another vehicle.

You can keep your jump starter plugged in at home to ensure that it stays fully charged, or in your trunk for emergencies.

Jump starters come in all shapes and sizes, but a general rule is the bigger your car, the bigger your jump starter needs to be. You don’t want to be stuck out in nasty weather with a jump starter that doesn’t have the juice to boost your car.

The power of each jump starter is measured in amps. This number will vary but for a V8 car you should be looking for at least 500 amps.

Some of the jump starters on the market come with built in lights. These are handy when you’re stuck with a dead battery at night and allow you to easily see what you’re doing as you hook up the power source (we also recommend always having a flashlight in your car).

We’ve come up with the Top 3 jump starters on the market for you to check out. By no means are these the ONLY good jump starters out there, but they are the most reliable and easy to use.

You can check out a full list of what Amazon.com has to offer here.

Clore Automotive JNC660 1700 Peak amp 12-Volt Jump Starter

• 1700 Peak Amps
• 425 Cranking Amps
• Clore PROFORMER battery technology
• 46″ #4 AWG welding cable leads
• Industrial-grade clamps
• Built-in charger
• Automatic charging
• Voltmeter provides charge status of onboard battery
• 12VDC outlet to power accessories
• 1 year limited warranty

Automatic charging eliminates the need to unplug or replug. Plus it ensures that you’ll never be stuck with an uncharged jump starter.

Cartips.com Rating: 9.8/10
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Jump-N-Carry JNC300XL 900 Peak Amp Ultraportable 12-Volt Jump Starter

• 900 Peak Amps
• 225 Cranking Amps
• 27″ #4 AWG welding cable leads
• Full-size clamps to penetrate battery corrosion
• LED battery status indicator
• High intensity work light
• Grip-Lock clamp storage
• DC outlet to power 12 Volt accessories
• Includes wall charger and Male-Male 12V extension cord
• 1 year limited warranty

A smaller profile and the built in light are a definite plus. Not as much juice as the JNC660 so it may not jump cars in more extreme situations. If you have a V8 vehicle I’d recommend the JNC660.

Cartips.com Rating: 9.6/10
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Schumacher XP400 Instant Portable Power Source

• On/Off switch activates the jump starting mode
• Built-in charger for automatic charging of internal battery
• Battery status LEDs tells when battery is charged or needs to be charged
• Sure-Grip clamps fit both top and side-mount batteries
• A maintenance-free, sealed lead acid battery allow for storage in any position

Low cost and small size make for a perfect jump starter for small cars. If you live in a cold location or have a medium to full sized car I would recommend something with more power. If you have a smaller 4 cylinder vehicle this is a perfect emergency solution.

Cartips.com Rating: 8.7/10
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Had an experience with a jump starter? Let us know in the comments below.

You can only perform these steps if you have a STANDARD transmission car or truck. You need a clutch otherwise this will not work.

Hopefully your car or truck is near a hill of some sort, or you have some really strong friends to help you out.

Here are the steps to jump start the car

Step 1: Point the car down the hill and turn the ignition key to the on position (if you’re not near a hill then just motivate your friends with promises of beer or something).

Step 2: Push your clutch in all the way and release your parking brake. Make sure the car is in 2nd gear. 2nd gear should give you a bit more oomph when you jump the car, but first will also work.

Step 3: Once you’ve reached about 5 miles an hour you need to let the clutch out quickly… if you have friends pushing the car let them know before you do this because the car will slow down suddenly.

Step 4: The car should turn over and start. Once you hear the engine fire, push the clutch back in so you don’t go flying down the hill.

Step 5: If the car didn’t start, try it all over again. If you’ve tried a few times and the car still won’t start there may be another problem.

It’s important to remember that you won’t have power brakes when the car is not running. This means that when you’re jump starting your car, if the car doesn’t start you will have to press quite hard on the brake to get the car to stop rolling down the hill.

Remember, jump starting your car like this can only be done on a standard transmission car or truck… automatics simply will not work because of their torque converter.

Other options if you do not have jumper cables

If you don’t have jumper cables and you can’t manage to get your car started by dropping your clutch you may be out of luck. You may want to invest in a “jump starter” which would allow you to jump your car without cables or the above method. Basically, a jump starter is a battery pack with a set of cables that you hook up to your car battery.

You can check out reviews and grab a deal over at amazon.com on jump starters here.

See also our article on How to Jump Start a car with jumper cables.