On 9/27/2015 2:57 PM, Walter E. wrote:
I am considering a Harbor Freight battery charger on sale for $ 29. The specs
show 10 A charging current, 2 A trickle charging and 50 A emergency car starting.

Will 50 Amps start modern cars? I thought it was higher than that.

Depends on the car, state of the engine, outdoor temperature, etc.

The starters on small cars are obviously less demanding than on
bigger engines/diesels. A big diesel that's been soaking in a
-10F Chicago winter obviously presents a bigger load.

FWIW, I think a Civic's starter is in the 1KW ballpark (worst case).
That doesn't mean it is running *at* capacity each time you start the
vehicle.

It also ignores any charge available in the battery -- as well as any
charge that your charger *dumps* into the battery between the time
you hook it up and the time you turn over the ignition.