One of the most common automotive inconveniences is a dead car battery. Whether it's old, handled the cold weather poorly, or you just left your lights on, it happens to everyone. But there might be an easier answer to solving this problem: a super capacitor jump starter.

SCJSs are similar to portable jump-starting batteries. They hold an electrical charge that can be expended to help jump start your car. There is one major difference, however: they don’t use batteries.

Jump-start batteries hold their own electrical charge, which is pulled from when helping jump a car. SCJSs, however, use your current vehicle’s battery charge to do the trick. We know what you’re thinking. “How can they use my current car battery if it doesn't have enough charge to start?” It’s because the super capacitor has a greater transference of electricity.

Often times, a dead battery still has power in it, just not enough to start the car. Starting an engine uses a rather large spike of electricity. It's when your battery cant meet that spike that is fails to start. That’s why your radio, dash lights, and so on still light up when you have a dead battery.

What makes the super capacitor jump starters unique is that they soak up whatever remaining charge is left in that battery. And because they are capable of releasing that energy quickly, they are able to handle the energy spike needed to start the car.

This is a tremendously clever device. There’s no need to charge it ahead of time, or to check on its charge frequently. It will be ready to go whenever you need it.

The price on these bad boys isn’t bad either. We’re seeing them go for between $100 and $200 depending on the level of pow you need. While that’s a touch more than your average battery or plug-in jump starter, it’s certainly reasonable for an emergency automotive item.

We aren’t sponsored by anyone, so we’re not going to recommend specific brands or products. We just recommend getting one in general.