How to Jump Start Your Car PDF Print this Guide Email this Guide
Written by the CollegeCodex.com Staff   
So you figured your car would be a cozy, quiet place to study for three hours last night.  Surprise, your car’s ignition won’t start today.  This is the moment when you call a friend with a car and remind him or her about those photos you took; you know, the ones that aren’t posted online yet.
Jump-starting a car is easier than changing a tire.  Play it safe, or you’ll see a miniature firework display.  Take a look at your owner’s manual for any peculiar techniques.

Remember
When finding the positive and negative terminals, you want to look for a positive sign (+), the abbreviation “POS,” or a red terminal,  and a negative sign (—), the abbreviation “NEG,” or a black terminal.  When you connect the cables, you'll see sparks, so be careful.

What You’ll Need
1  Set of Jumper Cables.
1  Working “live” Car.

Step 1:  Setting Up
  • Park both cars.
  • Put on the emergency brakes.
  • Turn off everything (including radio, AC/heater fan, headlights).

Step 2:  Positive
  • Find your trusty jumper cables
  • Connect the positive terminal of one car’s battery to the positive terminal of the other car’s battery.
  • It doesn’t matter which connection you make first.

Step 3:  Negative
  • You still have ends of the jumper cable not being used.
  • Use those ends to connect to the negative terminal on the live car and a clean bolt on the dead car.
  • Seeing sparks are good; it means you have a good connection.
  • Never touch the two ends of the cables together.

Step 4:  Start Up
  • Start the live car, rev the engine slightly for approximately one minute.
  • Then try to start the dead car.
  • Once both cars are running, disconnect the jumper cables in reverse order.
  • Drive your car to a mechanic immediately to have your electrical system checked.
 
If the Car Still Doesn’t Start
  • Allow the live car to sit running for a minute, which will allow the live car to charge the battery on the dead car.
  • Check cable connections.
  • Rev live car.
  • Try connecting the “ground” on the dead car to a different place.
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