Maybe you left your car headlights on overnight, or your car has been sitting in the garage maintaining a social distance during these challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic? Whatever the reason, turning your car key only to find the engine spluttering and clucking is a stressful situation, and your battery is the culprit.
Your car battery can literally make or break your day. But if you are a responsible motorist who keeps an emergency kit – including the jumper leads – at hand, then it’s good news. Because jump-starting a dead battery never fails, if done correctly.
A jump-start Car requires appropriate tools and special procedures to prevent significant damage to the vehicle as well as the driver. To say the least, you can end up frying an electronic component of your car. A smart move is to give us a call and get professional help to get your battery back safely and quickly to life.
However, if you must do it on your own, this article offers a detailed guide with a rundown on the ins and outs of jump-starting your car safely.
You may also read: How to Start a Car with a Dead Battery without Jumper Cables
Things you will need to jump a car
An excellent place to start is to know a few basic things you will need to jump a car.
- A pair of jumper cables
- A power source – could be a portable jump box or another vehicle with a fully charged battery
- Mechanical heavy-duty gloves
Learn about your car battery before recharging it
Basic knowledge about your car battery can avoid mixing up the cable and, ultimately, any potential damage to your vehicle.
Car batteries have two large metal terminals, one marked positive and the other negative. Almost on all batteries, the positive terminal is red with a clear “POS” or “+” marking. Alternatively, the negative terminal is black and marked clearly with a “NEG” or “-” sign. To avoid any mishap or confusion about the positive and negative terminals, look for the (+) or (-) sign and not the terminal’s color alone.
A few words of caution before jump-starting a car
- Read your vehicle owner’s manual to know if your vehicle can be jump-started or not (some cars having sensitive circuitry are not recommended for jump-starting)
- DO NOT try to jump a cracked or leaking battery
- DO NOT jump-start a frozen battery
- DO NOT jump-start a dried battery
- Make sure the jumper cable clamps DO NOT TOUCH each other or the vehicle body
- Stop using the jumper cables if they feel hot
A step-by-step guide to successfully jump-start a dead car battery
In case you don’t have a portable jump battery, you will need to ask a stranger for help. Find someone willing to help, having a car battery fully charged and the same voltage as yours (standard 12 volts).
- Park both the vehicles close to each other
Line up the vehicle with the good battery next to the car with the dead battery or nose to nose without touching. Regardless of the position, just pull the two vehicles close enough so the jumper cables can reach from one car to another (some cars have their engine in the trunk, so park as required). Turn the ignitions off, keep the handbrakes on, and prop open the hoods of both cars.
- Protect your hands
It is crucial to protect your hands before starting the process. Wear mechanical gloves or put a blanket on the ground.
- Connect the red jumper lead to the positive terminal
First, attach the jumper cable’s red clamp at one end to the positive “+” terminal of the dead battery. Then, connect the other end of the red lead to the positive “+” terminal of the charged battery, and attach the black camp at one end to the negative “-” terminal of the same.
Next, connect the black clip to an earthing point of the car with the dead battery that is well away from the flat battery. The point must be unpainted, bare metal on the engine block. Any nut, bolt farthest away from the dead battery, or the strut that holds the hood open will do.
- Start the engines
Once the jumper cables are attached with good connections and are routed away from any moving parts of the car, start the working car’s engine. Let it run for two to three minutes, and then attempt to start the engine with the flat battery. Odds are the flat battery will come to life right away. However, if it does not, turn the key off and wait for another 10 to 15 minutes at a fast pace, then attempt to start again.
- Disconnect the jumper leads
If the dead car starts, do not turn it off. Now carefully disconnect the jumper leads by first removing the black clamp from the metal connection you placed last. Finish with the red cable from the working battery (remove all the clamps in the reverse order to the way they connected). While removing, DO NOT let the cable clamps touch each other or the car. And you are good to go.
- Call for help
In case your flat battery still does not start, there is a good chance your battery is damaged beyond repair. It also means any attempts to jump-starting the car won’t work for you. In such a case you will need help from cheap towing companies in Detroit. SPN America Towing is one such professional tow service you can call to get your vehicle towed to the mechanic shop of your choice and your battery repaired or replaced.
Our highly trained and certified tow drivers use state-of-the-art towing equipment to provide prompt towing services throughout the country. SPN America Towing offers all kinds of services, from vehicle lockout service to low-profile car towing. Should you find yourself stuck with a flat battery that won’t start even after a jump-start, call us at 469-331-0777 to get affordable and reliable local roadside assistance.