RAC 400A Rechargeable Car Jump Starter for Batteries up to 1500cc - Orange/Red

Purchased this RAC NNHP082 Hilka Jump Starter to replace our Silverline Jump Starter & Air Compressor, which was good but the mains charger supplied kept developing a fault. Anyway, here is our experience & thoughts to date with this RAC unit. Product contents: 1x RAC NNHP082 Hilka Jump Starter unit. 1x Mains battery charger. 1x Optional cigarette lighter charger. 1x Manual. Likes: + It works, managed to jump start my car (2.0 GDI). + Compact & lightweight, it's extremely mobile. + Easy to place around the engine when using it. + Button to indicate via a red/green LED light, if there is enough charge in the jump starter battery. + When charging the unit at the mains, the red LED light comes to indicate it's charging & turns green to indicate when it's fully charged. + The leads are a decent length, as you place the unit very close to the battery. + Two 12v outlets for your own accessories such as a light. Dislikes: - Unless your don't like the color orange, there isn't a whole lot to dislike TBH. Perhaps a more straightforward light on the unit would be more useful. Note, make sure you keep the unit charged regularly as it does lose effectiveness over time. So if you plan a drive, charge the unit the night before so it's at full capability. In conclusion, the unit works as expected, love that it's so lightweight & the charging light indicator feature is a neat touch. If anything changes, you'll be the first to know. Highly recommended.
Read more

There are many reviews trashing this product, probably all for the same reason. If you read all the reviews, several say a similar thing - READ THE INSTRUCTIONS! I followed the instructions to the letter. My battery (Peugeot 107) wasn't so flat that central locking didn't operate, and I had dash lights. But turning the key didn't budge the starter at all, not even a flicker. I charged the unit for over 18 hours as per the user manual. I connected it to my battery, and left it connected for 15 minutes with everything switched off. I then turned on only the ignition, ensuring radio, lights, heated rear window, fan, etc were all switched off. It started at the first turn of the ignition key. It may be that some of these units are faulty on delivery. However, assuming the unit is fully functional, and assuming the instructions are read and followed, the unit should do "exactly what it says on the tin"! UPDATE: I reviewed this product soon after I bought it, after only one use. I'm retired and don't use the car very often. During this cold spell my battery has been flat 4 times due a combination of low mileage not recharging, and the very cold weather. Each time, I followed the INSTRUCTIONS, and each time it did the job perfectly. After four months, and four uses, I decided to give the booster another charge because, as stated in some of the reviews, the light display for level of power doesn't seem to work, but honestly, it showed no signs of needing charging even after 4 months and 4 uses on a completely flat car battery. Still backing this product, it's saved my bacon enough times now to have paid for itself a couple of times and still going strong.
Read more

Probabaly a one off but I received a damaged and unusuable item - the plastic handle on the negative clip was broken so wouldnt be able to safely connect to the battery. Also the way in which it was packaged (the tape on the box/the creased inner plastic/the cable tie on the power lead) makes it looks like a previously returned product so I dont trust to try and charge it even if I could find a way to safely connect it to the car.
Read more

Worked well when needed
Read more

It works ok .
Read more

Existing reviews post this as under -powered for many conventional petrol or diesel engined vehicles, that require a high power surge to turn a cold engine over. I own a hybrid powered vehicle that has a 2.5 litre petrol engine in addition to the electric motor. What most dealers don’t tell you is that theses types of vehicle have a separate “auxiliary” battery to power the system and accessories, such as the locking system, dashboard etc. if you tend to use the vehicle for short journeys - and let’s face it, who hasn’t during various lock-downs during the last 2years - it puts this small battery under abnormal strain. If this battery discharges (as happened to me) you cannot even get into the car! Nothing would work, so I had to gain access using the emergency key. I had to call out roadside assistance. It took the AA man 5 minutes to start the vehicle! All he had to do was attach his battery pack under the bonnet, which immediately enabled the main “system” to power up. Then the huge bank of batteries for the hybrid power took over and the engine started. Leaving the vehicle running for 1/2 hour re-charged the auxiliary battery, so all was well. My point is, that the auxiliary battery is quite small, so a small power pack is more than adequate. This model is quite compact and easily stored in the vehicle for any future emergencies. An absolute must have for any EV or hybrid! BTW the dealer who subsequently checked out the system for me to ensure there were no other underlying problems, recommended regularly trickle charging the auxiliary battery on a regular basis. You try gaining access to this small battery, which in my case is buried in an inaccessible space in the boot. I recommend fitting a trailing charging lead which can be more easily accessed in the boot area, so trickle charging is more easy and convenient!
Read more