I was introduced to NOCO by a friend who suggested I look at their new line of Boost products that are much smaller than other similar products on the market. These are products that I can easily fit in a sports car due to its small size, but it is powerful enough to start larger gas engines (6.0 liter) or small diesel engines (3.0 liter). When UPS dropped off the small box on my door step, I assumed it was a package for my daughter. It was not very heavy, but due to the GB40 labels on the outside, I opened it thinking that there was no way this was the battery.
From the first moment I opened the box I was excited because of the quality. The lithium ion battery pack is small and was packaged nice. Once I removed the battery the very stout battery clamps took my attention. The battery clamps are larger and heavier than the battery itself. The box contained the battery, battery clamps, a USB charger, 12 volt cigarette lighter adapter and a small bag to keep everything together.
I could not miss the yellow sticker telling me to charge the battery fully before use, but I wanted to grab a few pictures and see what other options the unit had. First, there are two LED lights located on the front of the unit where the battery clamps connect. They have five modes (100%, 50%, 10%, SOS, Blink and Strobe). The unit has a USB output so it can be used to charge or power anything with a USB cable. Each input and output has a nice rubber cover that securely fits in place to keep out dust and moisture. It is a pretty impressive unit that gives the feeling of quality. The unit was plugged into charge and I decided to sit down and share this with you.
Quick Specs
The NOCO GB40 is a 12 Volt Lithuim Ion battery pack with a Peak Amp Rating of 1,000A and an Actual Power Output of 7,000 joules 3s. This small unit is capable of starting a 6.0 liter gasoline engine and 3.0 liter diesel engine. The GB40 is designed for standard vehicle applications such as cars, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, ATVs, UTVs, lawn & garden, and more. It is powerful enough to start diesel engines and that is impressive. This unit is spark proof and reverse polarity protected, so it is safe for people who might not have a great understanding of cars and batteries.
Hi Roger! The best explanation is how we chose to rate our chargers. We rate our jump starters in Joules because it demonstrates power(W) given over time(sec), as vehicles require 1-3 seconds to start. (Our rating of joules3S is joules delivered over 3 seconds.) With Amps, you still need voltage and time to calculate joules. Cold cranking without time and voltage isn't a useful calculation in this case. A lot of other jumpers use a peak amp rating which only lasts a split second and doesn't actually show starting power.
Initial Thoughts
I am extremely excited to have this unit. I have not seen anything else on the market that has this type of build quality. I never look forward to a dead battery, but I want to test this unit out. The small size of this product is what draws me to it because it can easily be stored in most small cars. The spark proof and safety factors will allow me to put this unit in all of our vehicles without worry as to who tries to use it. That is important to me because everyone is not into mechanical workings but could use this in a pinch with little instruction.