Readers’ Pick: The Portable Battery Booster That’s Keeping Cars Running This Winter

Cold wind and bad weather aren’t enough to keep AutoGuide.com readers off the roads.

We took a look at the automotive items our readers were buying in January. On the Amazon list of bestselling car accessories was this portable battery booster by NOCO. Alex Reid featured the Genius Boost HD his holiday gift guide for classic car lovers, but it’s not just old cars with aging batteries that might need some extra motivation. Cold weather saps batteries.

Frigid temperatures like we saw at the top of the new year can even knock the capacity out of a new one. Coupled with the increased draw from starter motors in cold weather conditions, a reduced current can mean your car won’t turn over. Having your own jump starter in the glove box can save you a call to AAA.

The NOCO Genius Boost Plus provides 20 jumps on a single full charge. It’s small enough to stow just about anywhere, and the 1,000 peak amps and 7,000 joules in three seconds is enough to get your car, truck, RV or boat going again (it works on anything with gas engines up to six liters and diesel engines up to three liters — making it unnecessary for most to splurge on the heavy-duty HD model).

And the Genius Boost Plus does the thinking for you with spark-proof connections and reverse polarity protection that takes the guesswork out of getting a boost. The battery is rated for over 1,000 charge cycles and can hold its level steady for over a year. It also doubles as a power source for USB devices like your smartphone and tablet with USB out and micro-USB in ports. If that’s not enough, it’s also a 100 lumen LED flashlight with seven light modes, including a powerful wash light setting and SOS and emergency strobes. Its versatility makes it a useful tool for any car emergency kit.

The NOCO GB40 comes with its own storage bag, heavy-duty battery clamps, a 12-volt car charger and micro-USB cable. Pick one up before the next polar vortex hits.

NOCO GB40 Genius Boost Plus 1,000 Amp Ultra-Safe Lithium Jump Starter, $99.95, Amazon

Readers’ Picks is a new series where we take a look at the most popular items being bought by you on Amazon. Our first post took a look at the bestselling auto products of 2017. How do we get this data? Some of our stories contain affiliate links, which means that if you click on them and then make purchases within the Amazon environment we may earn commission. Through Amazon, we can also access reports of the bestselling items by category.

It’s worth noting that affiliate partnerships do not influence editorial, which operates independently of our sales and marketing departments. Prices are accurate at the time of publishing but keep in mind that deals may expire and costs are subject to change.

The WiseGuide team writes about things we think you’ll like, introducing you to great products, services and special deals. Prices are accurate at the time of publishing, we’ll update links whenever possible but please note that sales may end and costs are subject to change. Follow WiseGuide on Twitter @WiseGuide_.