Lokithor JA301 review | Jump starter, tyre pump and torch tested

Date reviewed: January 2024 | Tested by: John Milbank | Price: £141.39 (from Tayna Batteries) | www.lokithorshop.com

The Lokithor JA301 is a combined jump-starter, tyre pump and powerful lamp in one fairly portable package. I’ve been testing it on the VFR800 as well as a diesel van to find out if it’s any good…

Note that while I got the Lokithor direct from the company via its European warehouse, it did incur import duties. I’d advise looking for a UK shop if you’re going to buy one. The full RRP on the Lokithor site is $189.99 (around £150), but discounts seem to always be running. A quick Google search though showed Tayna Batteries (a good company I’ve used in the past), currently has the JA301 in stock for £141.39 including delivery.

Lokithor JA301 features

The Lokithor JA301 is described as a 4-in-1 multi-function device thanks to the following features:

• 2,000A jump starter for up to 8-litre petrol / 6-litre diesel engines

• 35 litre/min pump up to 150psi.

• Power bank with claimed 15Ah lithium polymer battery

• 300 lumen LED flashlight

The powerful jump starter has polarity and short-circuit protection built in, and overall it seems a well-made piece of kit.

The power bank is a useful addition, and while obviously charging your phone, action camera, tablet or other devices will reduce the power it has for jump starting, the claimed 15,000mAh lithium polymer battery has plenty of juice for the 5,000mAh cell inside a Google Pixel 7 Pro for instance.

There are two USB sockets under a silicone flap on the Lokithor; a USB-C for power in at 5V/2A or 9V/2A with a QC charger, and a USB-A for output at 5V/2A or 9V/2A, auto-switching to suit compatible devices. It’s a shame the USB-C port isn’t two-way, but having that power to hand via USB-A can be valuable.

The Lokithor JA301 instructions are a little poorly translated in places, but it’s not hard to get going with it – I just wish a summary of the key points was printed on the bottom.

The Lokithor’s 28cm-long jump leads are well-protected and very well made with hefty silicone-coated 6AWG cables, but that size and protection can also make them hard to clip onto the small terminals of a motorcycle battery.

Having taken it apart, I wasn’t able to verify the battery capacity, but it seems well put together with a logical layout and some glueing of connections to reduce damage caused by vibration. I was also impressed to see a proper bearing on the pump piston’s connecting rod and metal gears that should last well.

As always, this review will be kept updated if there are any issues down the line.

A bearing fitted in the piston connecting rod and bonded joints point to some thought going into the Lokithor JA301’s construction

Lokithor JA301 jump starter performance

I’ve got to say that I was extremely impressed with the Lokithor JA301’s performance as a jump-starter. It’s not surprising that it’ll easily power up a bike to start as they have relatively small-capacity batteries and don’t take much power (relatively) to turn-over even a large single or twin.

According to the owner’s manual, the JA301 will start up to an 8-litre petrol engine or a 6-litre diesel, as long as they’re 12V systems. So when the work’s 2-litre diesel Citröen Relay van was dead, it seemed an ideal chance to properly test it, given the much higher-compression that diesel engines run at, which is why they’re harder to start.

The van wouldn’t unlock remotely, so I knew it was low, and when getting in I found the battery was at just 2.8V (I didn’t think to use the voltmeter function here, instead using my own multimeter).

The torch was very useful while working in the van’s cab

Given how flat the battery was, I really was impressed when the moment I turned the Lokithor on it clicked and a green light came on to show it was connected correctly, then I just turned the ignition on and within a few seconds the van started. It seemed slightly more sluggish than usual, though the temperature was around zero and the van hadn’t been used for several weeks.

After starting once, I tried three more times and the van fired up very quickly with no issues – there was still plenty left in the JA301. After this, the Lokithor was showing two bars of power remaining, so there’s no doubt that you’d have no problems starting a motorcycle or indeed most cars and vans you might have in your family with the JA301.

When connecting to the battery, the Lokithor checks the polarity of the connections, and also protects itself against short-circuit. However, if the battery you’re connecting to is below 1V, the JA301 won’t ‘recognise’ it, so will need to be put into ‘forced start’ mode by holding the ‘Bar/PSI’ button for five seconds. This activates the relay and means that power is live at the connectors, so you MUST ensure they don’t touch, and that they go onto the battery the correct way around.

The Lokithor’s jump leads are well made and well-protected, but a little large for small bike batteries

It seems unlikely you’d ever need to use this mode as a battery that flat is very, very knackered! Still, I’d have liked to have seen the instructions for this printed on the base of the unit, rather than relying on the user carrying the instructions at all times.

Charging the unit after use took two to three hours using a Power Delivery USB-C charger, then it was ready to go again. It’s a shame no charger is supplied – you get a USB-A to USB-C lead, but that’s it. Of course, most people have plenty of chargers now, but it’s worth having a quick-charging one to juice this back up as quickly as possible.

My only real disappointment with the JA301 is that the silicone cover for the jump-starter port tore off after just a few uses. It’s the same design as the one on the USB ports, which is fine, so I can’t help thinking that this was an isolated incident, and that normally it’d be fine.

However, what is a let-down is that I used Lokithor’s chat on its own website and, though I did get an initial response quickly, asking for a photo of the issue, I had to chase a week later after hearing nothing more, only to then be told that the covers aren’t available as spares.

Compared to my own multimeter, the JA301’s voltmeter appears accurate

Lokithor JA301 voltmeter performance

An additional feature of the JA301 is its ability to display the voltage of a battery it’s attached to. This is somewhat limited though, as if the battery you’re connecting it to is higher than 12V, an error code 430 is shown on the display. However, this error can also mean that the Lokithor’s battery is lower than 12V, with no indication of the state of what you’re connecting it to is. Given though that the JA301 can still start a diesel van when it’s down to two bars, if the Lokithor is even moderately charged, an error 430 almost certainly means the battery you’re connecting to is above 12V.

The instructions aren’t great here as they appear to say that when the Lokithor is connected to a battery it’ll show the voltage before powering on, but this isn’t the case. I tested it on three batteries, one at 13.1V, one at 4.5V and one at 8.1V and needed to turn the JA301 on before it would do anything. It then went into jump-start mode and showed the unit’s output voltage of 12.4V, but by tapping the power button, it then showed the battery’s voltage, which proved to be accurate to within a few tenths of a Volt compared to my own multimeter.

Lokithor JA301 compressor performance

For a long time I’ve used a Ring handheld tyre inflator on my bikes and car thanks to its decent performance and compact form: it’s small enough to sling in luggage, so if you’re in the faster groups of track days and need to drop the pressures, you can easily pump them back up before riding home (if you’re in the novice group, don’t worry about changing tyre pressures).

At 1,766g, the Lokithor is a lot more bulky than the Ring, so while it is easily portable, I wouldn’t recommend it if you only want to use it as an inflator. However, even ignoring the jump-start and other features, the pump is impressively powerful, fully inflating the VFR800’s rear tyre from zero to 42psi in just 2 minutes and 41 seconds, stopping automatically as it reached pressure. The Ring took 10 minutes and 35 seconds to do a similar-sized tyre.

It's disappointing that the pump’s hose can’t be stored on the device – I’d have liked to have seen clips on the bottom to hold it, though you do get a bag to store the hose and jump leads, supplied adaptors for footballs, Presta valves and the like, plus a larger bag to put it all in.

The 60cm hose has a quick-release attachment for your Schrader valve, which feels pretty cheap but has proven pretty easy to use on my car, the R1250GS, ZX-6R and VFR800 wheels, though it can be a little fiddly to remove at times. Oddly, the other end has a female connection to fit onto the JA301, which seems unusual as most hoses have a male connection. A female output on the Lokithor would have made for a more compact unit, and made it easier to source replacement hoses if needed. As it is, the only way to get a new one seems to be to buy the  JA-Series accessory set from Lokithor for around £12, though at the time of writing it wasn’t available in Europe.

Setting the required pressure is easy with the plus/minus buttons, and the LED display is clear any conditions, but it’s a shame there are no user-presets. The Ring offers three, but on the Lokithor you need to adjust it yourself each time when switching between 36 and 42psi, for instance.

Accuracy has been within the stated +/- 2psi, but when comparing it to my handheld inflator it can sometimes waver a little within that margin, especially when first connecting to the valve. As someone who likes to have their tyres spot-on, I do find myself needing to check them after using the Lokithor; something I haven’t had to do with the Ring.

Lokithor JA301 demo

A quick demonstration of the compressor and torch on the JA301

Lokithor JA301 torch performance

The torch built into the Lokithor JA301 is very useful, giving a good spread of light. It’s not a ‘thrower’, giving much more of a ‘flood’ pattern, which I found really valuable while working in the pitch-dark cab of the Citröen Relay.

It would be helpful to have different output levels, as sometimes you don’t want something this bright, but there are two other modes – a strobing pattern that seems pretty pointless on anything but a tactical torch, and an SOS pattern, which hopefully won’t ever be useful but is a good addition.

I’d like to see some fold-out legs at the front of the Lokithor to allow it to point up a little more. It still gives a great flood up and down so it’s no deal-breaker, but if you’ve got it on the ground while working on a bike or car, it could be handy.

Three alternatives to the Lokithor JA301

There are lots of separate jump packs, pumps, power banks and torches out there, but this is a good combination of all three. Here are some other options to consider…

• The Ring RTC2000 Handheld Tyre Inflator is usually £42.99, but at the time of writing it’s £29.99 from Ring here. It doubles up as a small power-bank and is great for topping up your tyres, but it’s very slow at fully inflating them. It’s still going strong after three years and a great bit of kit. For the full review of the Ring RTC2000 pump, click here.

• The £280 CTEK CS Free is more than just a jump-starter/booster: it actually charges a flat battery in 15 minutes. CTEK says this is better for the battery and delicate electronics in your bike or car. It’s also a power bank and a maintenance charger, though you can’t buy a fly-lead to attach to your bike for it due to the potential for high current. Read the full review of the CTEK CS Free here.

• While we haven’t tested the Halfords 6-in-1 jump starter, BikeSocial Community member James Frazer has had one for two years and says that while it’s quite bulky, it’s proven very useful. He’s used it to start his bike and his 1.6-litre car, and is impressed by the inclusion of a compressor, 100W inverter, LED lamp and power bank. It currently costs £99.99, but BikeSocial members save 8% at Halfords.

These are just three of many alternatives – you can find all the motorcycle battery chargers we’ve tested here and be sure to regularly check for the discounts available through Bikesocial membership.

Lokithor JA301 review: Verdict

For car and van use, there’s a lot to like about the Lokithor JA301, but for motorcycle use I’d like to see a little more accuracy in the pressure gauge and some user-presets, as well as a pump hose that clips to the base.

Overall though, the Lokithor JA301 is a very useful piece of kit – it just feels like a little more polish to the design could make it perfect. Still, despite the jump-starter being something you probably won’t plan to use, having it as part of a very good pump, along with the fairly powerful flood light, makes this a decent workshop tool to have to hand.

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