Gillaway 001B 3000A Car Jump Starter Battery Pack (up to 9.0L Gas and 7.0L Diesel Engine), 12V Car Battery Charger, Jump Box with USB 3.0 Power Bank

Why I keep a Gillaway 001B in my trunk

A compact jump starter lives in every one of my vehicles, but not all packs are equal. After a few weeks with the Gillaway 001B jump starter, I’m convinced it earns its space in the trunk. It’s simple, potent, and—most importantly—reliable when the battery is truly flat. It’s not overloaded with gimmicks; it focuses on doing the core job quickly and safely, while doubling as a practical power bank and emergency light.

Design and build

The Gillaway 001B is about the size of a paperback novel and light enough to stash in a glovebox or door pocket. The housing has a slightly rubberized finish that gives decent grip without feeling cheap. It ships in a rigid, zippered case with cutouts for the unit, clamps, and a short charging cable. The case is more useful than it sounds—it keeps the clamps from chewing up anything else in your trunk and makes the whole kit easy to grab when you’re dealing with a dead battery on a shoulder or in a dark parking lot.

The clamps are better than average in this price tier: strong spring tension, wide jaws, and decent bite on both top‑post and side‑post terminals. The inline safety module is compact, with clear LEDs to indicate status. My only nitpick here is the length of the jumper leads. They’re on the short side, which keeps resistance low (good for performance), but it can make positioning the pack a little awkward on some vehicles. Plan to perch the unit on a flat spot in the engine bay or hold it while someone else turns the key.

Controls are minimal—a single multifunction button and simple battery indicators—which is what you want on a jump starter. There’s a built‑in LED work light on the nose and a pair of USB outputs on the side for charging phones and accessories. No wall adapter is included, just a basic USB cable.

Performance on real vehicles

Gillaway rates this pack at 3000A peak, with the usual “up to 9.0L gas/7.0L diesel” capability. I can’t verify the amp rating on a bench, but I can tell you what it actually started.

• A completely flat 3.5L V6 SUV that hadn’t been driven for two weeks: clamped up, pressed the boost button, and it cranked immediately on the first try.
• A stubborn 2.5L four‑cylinder sedan in cold weather (around 15°F): again, an instant start with no need to “pre‑charge” the battery or wait 30 seconds.
• A small garden tractor that sits most of the winter: easy start and, frankly, overkill.

Across several jump starts, the pack used only a small chunk of its battery each time. After roughly a dozen starts, I still had about half the capacity left, which lines up with the idea that you’ll get many starts per charge on typical passenger vehicles. The takeaway is confidence: if you keep it topped up every few months, you’re unlikely to find it drained when you actually need it.

Safety and ease of use

The 001B’s protection suite covers the essentials—reverse polarity, short‑circuit, over‑current, over‑temperature, and over‑charge. The safety module won’t let you spark the clamps or energize them if you’ve connected them incorrectly. The status LEDs make it clear what’s happening: you’ll see a ready/green indicator when it’s safe to crank, and error indications if something’s off.

This matters in real-world, glove‑on scenarios. In the cold, with numb fingers, it’s easy to clip the ground somewhere convenient and get a bad connection. The clamps’ spring tension helps bite through corrosion, and the module’s feedback prevents guesswork. For most starts, I was clamped and running within a minute.

Power bank and lighting

As a power bank, the Gillaway is practical if not class‑leading. You get two USB outputs, one of which supports fast charging for modern phones. It will charge a phone or tablet quickly enough, but using it as a daily power bank will drain the pack faster than you think. I treat the USB ports as convenience features: great during a roadside stop, a power outage, or a weekend away where you want to top up a GPS or phone.

The 400‑lumen LED is genuinely useful. The beam pattern is broad enough to light an engine bay or roadside tire change, and the three modes (constant, strobe, SOS) make sense for emergency signaling. It’s bright without being a battery hog; I used it as a work light during a belt change and it barely moved the battery gauge.

Cold‑weather behavior

Some jump packs claim wide operating ranges and then wilt in the cold. I tested the 001B a few mornings around 10–20°F, and it didn’t hesitate. The pack woke immediately, the safety module responded quickly, and there was no noticeable drop in cranking oomph. If you live somewhere that sees sub‑zero mornings, you’ll still want to treat any lithium pack with care—store it in the cabin rather than the trunk if possible—but this one feels well‑tuned for winter duty.

Battery life and charging

Stored at room temperature, the 001B holds a charge well. After a couple of months in a glovebox, it still showed nearly full. I recommend a top‑off every two to three months, which is good practice for any lithium jump pack.

Recharging is straightforward over USB. It’s not the fastest system out there—especially compared to packs that accept high‑wattage USB‑C PD—but overnight on a standard wall adapter brings it back to full. I’d like to see a modern USB‑C PD input/output on the next revision, both for faster charging and to reduce cable clutter. The included cable is short and basic; bring your own longer cable if you plan to use the power bank features regularly.

What I like

• Strong starting performance on genuinely dead batteries, with no waiting period before cranking.
• Compact, light, and paired with a protective hard case that keeps everything organized.
• Sensible safety features with clear status indicators; hard to misuse.
• Useful LED work light with emergency modes.
• Holds a charge for months if you top it off periodically.
• Doubles as a reasonable power bank in a pinch.

What could be better

• Short jumper leads make placement a bit awkward on some vehicles; longer leads or an accessory extension would help.
• Charging speed is modest, and the port selection feels dated. True USB‑C PD in/out would be a meaningful upgrade.
• The included charging cable is nothing special; plan to provide your own.
• A clearer percentage readout (instead of simple battery bars) would improve at‑a‑glance state of charge.

Who it’s for

If you want a straightforward, powerful jump starter for cars, SUVs, light trucks, motorcycles, and yard equipment, the Gillaway 001B is a smart pick. It’s especially well suited for anyone who:

• Drives infrequently and wants insurance against a weak battery.
• Lives in a cold climate and needs dependable starts in winter.
• Prefers a simple single‑button device over multi‑mode, screen‑heavy gadgets.
• Wants an emergency flashlight and backup phone charging in the same package.

If you’re after a more full‑featured roadside kit—built‑in air compressor, longer cables, USB‑C PD power delivery—you’ll find those options at higher prices and with larger footprints.

Recommendation

I recommend the Gillaway 001B. It nails the fundamentals: instant, reliable starts; solid safety; and a compact, durable package that’s easy to live with. The short leads and modest charging specs are minor trade‑offs for the size and price. As a piece of emergency gear you can trust, it’s the kind of tool you’ll forget about—until the day you’re very glad it’s there.