You’re late for important meetings, parties, appointments, events—you name it. You hop in your trusty car, turn the key, and click-click-click-click. You can’t go anywhere. It’s that sickening sound a battery makes when it’s dead, just when you don’t need it. certainly!
You know what’s coming: you need a jump start. If you’re lucky enough to have a friend or relative who lives nearby, has a home, is willing to help you, and has a set of jumper cables, there’s one last question: You also need to know how to jump-start your car properly so you There’s no chance of damaging your car’s battery, or worse, getting injured in the process. Please follow the steps below to start your vehicle correctly and safely.
How To Jump Start Your Car
S1: Position the Vehicles
Park the vehicle at a good battery head where you need to jump, close enough to reach the jumper cables. (Note: Most vehicles have the battery located in the engine compartment; some vehicles have the battery in the trunk.) Turn off the engine in vehicles with intact batteries. Open the hoods of both vehicles and find the two batteries.
S2: Identify Battery Terminals
Now it’s time to find the positive and negative battery terminals where you will immediately connect the jumper cables. As shown in the example above, the terminals are clearly marked with “+” and “-” symbols. The positive (+) terminal is usually covered by a plastic cover (you have to remove it). FYI, the wire from the car to the positive terminal is red. The negative terminal wire is black. The jumper cable clips are also color-coded in red and black, so when you’re ready to jumpstart it’s easy to know what’s what.
Some cars put the battery in the trunk but include jumper terminals under the hood. If you’re having trouble figuring out where to close the leads, it’s best to consult the owner’s manual.
S3: Connect the Cables
Make sure the jumper cable clips are not touching each other. First, you may want to ground one end of the cable and its two clips, separate the red and black clips, hold the other end, and connect it to the dead battery. (If someone is helping you jumpstart, that person can hold the other end of the jumper cable, making sure not to let the clamps touch.)
Take the red clip in your hand and connect it to the positive terminal of the dead battery. Do not let the black clip on that end of the jumper cable touch the metal or red clip. After connecting the red clip to the positive terminal, place the black clip on the plastic part under the hood. Make sure it cuts into the metal part of the terminal and makes a good connection. If you can’t charge your car battery, you can’t start your car.
Now, connect the red clip on the other end of the jumper cable to the positive terminal of the good battery (the grounded end) and the black clip on the same end to the negative terminal of the good battery. Remember not to touch the clips when making connections or the jump start will become unstartable.
Next, find a piece of bare metal under the hood of the car with the dead battery—just stick the unpainted bolt heads out of the body. (See picture below.) Attach the remaining black clips to it. That’s right, you don’t need to connect the last black clip to a dead battery. This can create sparks and potentially start a fire under the hood (although this is extremely rare).
In the example above, we attached the negative jumper cable clamp to the exposed metal stud that connects to the suspension shock tower. (Many cars have their bolts located in this location.) Again, shake all the clamps to make sure they are connected well.
S4: Start the Engine
Make sure jumper cables are away from any moving parts, such as car fans or accessory belts. If everything is fine, you can start the engine of a vehicle with a good battery. Let it sit idle for two to three minutes, which will replenish some power to your car’s depleted battery. Then try to start your vehicle. If it still won’t start, turn the key off and let the other vehicle idle for 10 or 15 minutes before trying again. If it still won’t start, your battery may be beyond repair and won’t start quickly.
S5: Disconnect the Cables
If your car starts, let it run. Now, start by removing the negative clamp from the exposed metal connection under the hood of the car and disconnect the battery cable. Then remove the red clip from the positive battery terminal without letting the clips touch. Use separate clamps to ground them. Then remove the red clip from the good battery and finally the black clip. Anyway, you’ve started your car and are ready to go.
Conclusion
If your car won’t restart after half an hour or so of driving, you have a problem that needs to be fixed. Either your battery is permanently dead and needs to be replaced, or there’s something wrong with your car’s charging system. Jumping again and again will never solve the problem. You will need to take your vehicle to a repair shop or dealer for diagnosis. Alternatively, you can remove the battery and take it to an auto parts store – some stores will test your battery. If it’s toast, you can pick up a new battery and install it yourself while you’re at it.
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