BMW X5. Installation had to go rear, right near battery, which meant mounting on spare tire wheel well and then buying a new positive cable to stretch from the battery to the Priority Start. Perhaps on cars with battery in front, not such a big deal installing.
Priority Start as disconnect battery only once I know of and that when car sat for an entire week.
Certainly rugged.
Recommend if you can tackle an installation job that might mean drill, cable, etc.
First of all, this electric shut off device worked, but it was poorly designed. On the top of the unit is a metal contact to screw a battery post to. But when I used my fingers to tighten it the post kept turning. I tried to unscrew the battery post but it kept turning and it wouldn't come off.
I ended up using a large screw driver to lift the top metal contact up until I could pry it all the way up. Then I discovered the problem. Below the metal contact plate was a hex nut that wasn't attached to anything. It wasn't welded to the metal plate. It was merely glued down with what looked like epoxy. It is a horrible design and I'm sure everyone who buys this device will eventually fall victim to this serious design flaw, especially if they try to remove it.
I imagine it would have taken another few cents to weld the metal nut to the metal contact plate so the company choose saving a few cents over making the product competently.
I ended up leaving the metal contact pried at a 90° angle so I could tighten the battery post to it. I had to leave it in this position because I couldn't tighten the post without using a wrench to hold the hex nut.
I wrote the company and even sent them photos with ways to properly engineer this device but I never heard from them.
Since I was forced to pry their PriorityStart open I'm sure the company would use this as an excuse to void my warranty, which doesn't last long anyway. And speaking of 'warranties' the buyer has to pay for the return of the unit and THEN the company determines if the unit is bad and from the wording of their warranty information it leads me to believe they will use any reason to avoid honoring their warranty.
Obviously their product is poorly engineered when finger tightening a battery post to it will cause an epoxy-held hex nut to break free. The company obviously doesn't care if customers have to be subjected to what I had to endure. Per their warranty it's obvious they wouldn't replace a unit if the top metal plate had to be pried open just to remove their device from a car even though 100% of the problem was their fault.
Fortunately, their product does work and I can start my car but to have engineered it the way they did reveals a company that doesn't have a quality control department or doesn't care about what happens after a sale is made. After all, their warranty would discourage (intentionally?) almost anyone who tries to get a replacement or a refund.
Lastly, I'm a NASA engineer and no device at NASA would have been made as defective as this device is. I give it 2 stars because it does work but if it was designed properly I would have given it 5 stars. Btw: Any smart and ethical company would take my suggestions and redesign their product and reward a person like myself who told them how to redesign it. It would lead to more sales and more satisfied customers. You'd think a company would have that as their number one priority but sadly most companies don't give a damn about customer satisfaction and only care about making a quick buck. If this company redesigns their product using my suggestions and doesn't compensate me for it then it reveals their total lack of gratitude and appreciation. It also reveals what kind of people are manufacturing & selling this product.
Buy Priority Start 12-Volt-Pro-SP PriorityStart Automatic Battery Protector Now
i purchased this for installation on a 96 suburban. i use this vehicle as a member of the local volunteer fire department and police reserves. My hope was that this would allow me to run my emergency led lights and radio equipment on a scene without the need to leave the engine running. It works perfectly. With the fire radio on and receiving, led strobes front and rear and the headlights and hazard signals on the system shut the power down at 1hr 15min. a quick flip of the head light switch and the truck started up just fine. i was a bit concerned if it would work for this purpose but it has performed perfectly.
installation can be a little tricky if you have short or tight battery cables but there is nothing "hard" about the install. i was installed in testing in less than 15min.
this product is great. i will be adding one to my daily driver as well.
Read Best Reviews of Priority Start 12-Volt-Pro-SP PriorityStart Automatic Battery Protector Here
Update Sept 2012 - The Battery Protector protected my battery
Wife tried to open up car, no power, she opened trunk with key, that put current to the battery protector, that put battery back on line, opened car, car started, worked like a champ.
This car has a tendency to not shut off a relay, somewhere in car, the battery protector worked, money well spent.
------------------------------------------
Installed item on car, so far working as advertised.
Have not had a problem with a battery drain yet, so can not say that item has protected the battery yet.
However I am sure it will, this car likes to surprise me every now and again.
Battery on this car is in trunk, and space is limited, was able to make it fit, in my case the cable being a few inches longer would have helped, but it is OK.
Seems to be quality product.
Want Priority Start 12-Volt-Pro-SP PriorityStart Automatic Battery Protector Discount?
The ProMax works great. I have not had to jump start the car or charge the battery once. It was easy to install.
