As a Mom of 2 driving teens and another about to get her permit, these are great kits to keep in the trunks of their cars!

Makes me feel just a tiny bit better knowing they have SOME tools and cables should they break down. A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing...

better to have than have not....

I'd much much much rather pay five times as much for a decent kit than something that's pure junk and gives a perhaps false sense of security... something that might fail you when you need it most. pass

DorXtar wrote:These cables overheat if you try to use them for anything other than a simple one-off jump.

What else would you use them for? Do you plan to run your electric in your house during a power failure?

This tool kit is garbage. I had one. The tools broke from normal use. It is better than nothing though.

The jumper cables work fine, but they're a bit short. The need for thick jumper cables is a myth.

thingyt wrote:The socket wrenches are useless for any non-American car because they are inch-based.

still a socket, just learn to do some conversions, or simply test fit your sockets to their bolts before hand.

these all seem like rather un-rated tools, and I would suggest just doing a depot run and acquiring these things and various other items for a quality price. Then again i roll through my tools professionally. Something like this is by far better than nothing in the back of your car. I through similar kits in my family's cars just to keep them around.

Rabid7 wrote:How long are these cables?

Eight feet. Helps to read the copy.

Leslie14 wrote:As a Mom of 2 driving teens and another about to get her permit, these are great kits to keep in the trunks of their cars!

Makes me feel just a tiny bit better knowing they have SOME tools and cables should they break down. A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing...

At the VERY least, spring for better cables (after all, they're your kids!). These cables could do more harm than good as they could overheat and melt, especially if in the hands of inexperienced teens. You should not "feel just a tiny bit better" giving them these.

The only way gauge of these cables would be safe is by jamming them into the cigar lighters of the cars and waiting around an hour (obviously kidding).

I got one that came with my (slightly) used car. I Do like the kit. Very useful however the cables are a bit difficult to put back so the kit can close, takes a little careful working. You can't just wind and shove.

skanib wrote:You can't just wind and shove.

Yes, I bought this kit from Woot a couple years ago, and the first time I used the cables they started on fire.

jplamb wrote:I'd also advise against the cables.....nothing like getting stuck and then figuring out your 10 gauge cables are designed to start a golf cart or maybe an engine with a really low cranking draw. Stick with at least 8 gauge unless you have a truck.

This looks a lot like the kit I bought at the local store for $11. I overpaid.

im in for two.... or should i say four! i could use some jumpers

I like how 6 ring terminals are included (~21% of the 29 pieces in this kit).

Anyone who buys this kit would probably not know what to do with ring terminals..

and could be in danger of a serious shock or fire if they don't know how to properly crimp them..

and that's assuming they know how to do basic electrical trouble-shooting..

Along those same lines, to parents concerned about their kids not having jumper cables: it's the AMPs, not the volts that can seriously injure the unknowing!

If they don't know how to completely and safely jump a car, don't let them even try!

I know a lot of people have had negative things to say about this set, and I really do have to agree. I thought the cables could be reused as a grounding wire for a welding project. I cut into it and found that inside the massively thick plastic outer covering was a few strands of the thinnest wire I have seen in a long time. you would be lucky to be able to power your speakers with this stuff it is so thin and Sirius GPP. Utter garbage. Shame on anyone who accidentally wooted.

I almost bought this then I realized that I love having a Mercedes....free road side assistance for life...=D

I know this is a deals site, but what price would you pay NOT to be stuck in a parking lot with no way to jump your car, the primary reason to get this set is the cables, and they almost universally are being called crap.

Amazon has a lot of decent cables for maybe twice this offer (if you were to buy two).

Or if you are really into having everything in a nice little kit, you could get this one:

AAA 42 Piece Emergency Road Assistance Kit at Amazon

Not only does it have marginally better 8 gauge cables, it also comes with "19 pieces of first aid" AND a ziplock bag. That's serious value.

the entire kit is garbage. its something that isn't worthy of gifting to people you like.

ya, these are crappy tools, but ever try to jump a car with your bare hands? Price is right, throw them in the trunk and hope you never need them.

cheeser1 wrote:

woot!

The wires for my amp are bigger than those.

wait, the cables set on fire when you tried to use them? can i cancel a woot?

thingyt wrote:The socket wrenches are useless for any non-American car because they are inch-based.

Second this. Even though I drive an American-built Toyota Camry, the wrenches don't fit. And the jumper cables I bought at Target for $14 work far better than the ones included in this kit.

first hand experience my head was spinning harder when the screw driver broke and the shallow US imperial sockets refused to work on anything. . . weak hazardous. . .should be illegal to produce this stuff. . .its a gimmick

Prime Suspect wrote:10 gauge is fine. It's the 8 foot length that might be an issue. Remember, one of these cars is likely immobile, and there may be limited space for the jumping car to park. 12 or 15 feet would be much better.

Well, you can get an extra 5 feet if you hold one end in one hand and touch the battery with the other! And if you put your foot on the snow-covered bumper....should take care of everything at once!

^^X^^

Never buy cheap tools. Just... don't.

Unless you like things failing in an emergency, because, you know, exciting.

And please blow $40 on one of those battery jumpers, don't depend on being stuck in the middle of nowhere with another perfectly good car handy.

All you nay-sayers are right! These aren't Craftsmen© tools. But if you need Craftsman© in your emergency toolbox, then save your money for a new car purchase.

Otherwise these are perfect for a newer car or to throw into the trunk of someone you love's car so they can limp to someplace safe faster than the auto club can get there.

If your daughter/wife has their ASE certification they're going to be carrying their own tools anyway.

Batman4oz wrote:Well, you can get an extra 5 feet if you hold one end in one hand and touch the battery with the other! And if you put your foot on the snow-covered bumper....should take care of everything at once!

^^X^^

See, I'm thinking that's why you have a 2-pack here.

8 foot + 8 foot insulated with vinyl tape = 16 electrifying feet of jumper cable. Or you can leave out the vinyl tape and it's a 16 foot jumper cable with a convenient night-light/emergency flasher!

NavyDallas wrote:See, I'm thinking that's why you have a 2-pack here.

8 foot + 8 foot insulated with vinyl tape = 16 electrifying feet of jumper cable. Or you can leave out the vinyl tape and it's a 16 foot jumper cable with a convenient night-light/emergency flasher!

Or you could use the tape to spell SOS on the cases, and then Wave them in the air, to flag down a passing motorist who may have some Real tools?!

dovy6 wrote:just for the record, 10 guage booster cables are close to useless. Maybe if you connected both cables at once?

These cheap cables can be had for like $4.99 and "light duty" only. They only pass like 200 amps

That's a problem when your starter can draw MUCH more power than that. Some batteries can pump well over 700 "cold cranking amps". Some truck batteries can do over 1000 CCA. If you try to draw that much current through this wire you'll MELT it.

I personally wouldn't use anything less than a 6-gauge. And you really need 20-ft length if you can't park side by side or nose to nose.

I used to have some 4-gauge 75-ft cables around, but those are for my buses.

sandbar67 wrote:Will it help with this?

This has happened to me before.

No Kidding, i was not even close to the ocean. oklahoma ice storm - Bush gave me a chain saw and a generator on that one.

froze my full sized 4x4 right to the ground. there is no tool kit to help with this. LOL
what you need is a paint remover heat gun and a nice ball pin hammer and the Patience of Jobe.

hockeyham wrote:I bought one of these off woot a year or so ago. The kit in general with the gloves, screwdrivers, and sockets are good to have. but I would *HIGHLY* recommend getting better jumper cables. They may be good for one, maybe two jumps, but that's it.

I jumped a co-worker's car after his battery died on him and using these cables, they MELTED. I smelled burning plastic/nylon and grabbed the cables and yanked them. The alligator clips were still on the batteries and wires were burnt through the cover. Glad I didn't burn myself or get shot with 500 CCAs.

Do yourself a favor and invest in decent jumper cables.

Completely agree. Tried to use these cables to jump a friend's car and it failed pretty hard. Get better jumper cables. Although I think it was an SUV.

This kit is something you should put in your car beside the kit you want to use for yourself.

what i mean by that is you can be the great person that possibly saved the day for some stranger.

what you do it ask if you can help - then when they say do you have any tools? you hand them this kit and drive away.

time saver.

if they have some money they might even slip you a 20.00 for it.

at any rate - you get to drive away guilt free and your tools in your trunk.

Another chime in on these jumper cables.

I had terrible luck with them... The gauge is simply high... the they don't pump through enough current to be useful (at least to me) I was jumping a car and it took 20+ min to do any good. I wound up spending about $15 on a decent pair of 8gauge jumpers so I can actually jump a car!

Beware! The jumper cables are horrible in this kit. I bought this same kit in 2008 on Woot, but the cables failed to jump start my little Matrix last year. The cables house a very weak wire, unable to handle the current flowing from a car battery. It could have been a lemon I don't know. But if you do buy it, I suggest testing your cables before your rely on them.

kschang wrote:These cheap cables can be had for like $4.99 and "light duty" only. They only pass like 200 amps

That's a problem when your starter can draw MUCH more power than that. Some batteries can pump well over 700 "cold cranking amps". Some truck batteries can do over 1000 CCA. If you try to draw that much current through this wire you'll MELT it.

I personally wouldn't use anything less than a 6-gauge. And you really need 20-ft length if you can't park side by side or nose to nose.

I used to have some 4-gauge 75-ft cables around, but those are for my buses.

The only thing batteries pump is voltage. Amperage is drawn by whatever the battery is powering.

10ga wire will NOT handle 200 amps. It's only rated at max 100A and a lot less when you take voltage drop into account. 10ga is only rated for a 30A circuit in house wiring. A starter drawing 150A plus the ignition system will cause in excess of a 20% voltage drop. These cables will not start a car with a dead battery. If the battery can take a charge, the best the cables will do is allow the battery to get some semblance of a charge while you're standing there freezing your behind off.

To the lady who bought these for her kids, you should have absolutely no confidence that these will get them out of trouble. Do yourself a favor and get some 10-15 foot 2 or 4 gauge cables from whoever has them and a decent small metric tool kit from Sears. Nobody uses SAE fasteners in cars anymore.

10 Gauge Booster Cables?? Do you realize how small 10 gauge is? The factory wire from your alternator to the battery is twice that big! You couldn't run a 200W sub amp with that. Useless.

The sockets are American sizes but modern American cars use metric sizes.

Go to your car right now. Open the hood. Take a look. Be honest: do you see *anything* under there that you would know how to fix if it broke? Even assuming by some miracle that you have the replacement part?

Unless you belong to the generation that could rig an emergency fan belt from a pair of stockings, the only "road side emergency kit" will ever use contains a thermal blanket, some water and energy bars while you wait for the tow truck.

To the poster threatening to buy one for his 16 year old niece: you'd be doing her a bigger favor buying her a decent pair of jumper cables and a AAA membership.

Junk!!!!! DO NOT BUY!!!!! Jumper cables don't work!!!!!