One of the most basic car maintenance tips that everyone should know is how to jump start a dead battery. Unfortunately, the vast majority of people have no idea how to jump a car and end up calling someone else to help whenever they end up with a dead battery. It’s actually a very simple process, but even if you’ve learned it in the past, it’s easy to forget which cables go where, when you should connect each cable, and what to ground. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be able to jump a dead battery any time – now you can save a damsel in distress (or more likely, save yourself!).

Before you start, you need to make sure that a dead battery is really the issue. If you pop in the key and try the ignition and nothing happens, there’s a good chance that you’ve got a dead battery. If you hear the engine cranking, then your problem isn’t a dead battery, and a jump start won’t do anything for you.

Before you connect the cables

  1. You’ve got to move the running vehicle near the car with the dead battery – pay attention to the batter placement on both cars. Usually you can just park them front to front, but sometimes you’re forced to park them parallel, and you want to be sure that you’ve got enough cable length to reach both batteries. Make sure that the vehicles aren’t touching.
  2. Put both cars in park and make sure the parking brakes are engaged.
  3. Turn off both cars, along with anything that would use electricity: radios, lights, or anything else that draws power.
  4. Clean off the battery terminals on both cars. You’ll need to clean off any corrosion – you probably don’t have a battery brush handy, so just scrape off what you can to get the battery posts as clean as possible.
  5. Check the dead battery for any cracks or leaks. If the battery is damaged in any way, no matter how small, DO NOT try to jump start the battery.

Connect the Jumper Cables in the Correct Order

  1. Again, check to be sure that both cars are off.
  2. Take the RED CLAMP of one end of the jumper cables and connect it to the POSITIVE POST on the DEAD BATTERY.
  3. Take the other RED CLAMP and connect it to the POSITIVE POST on the GOOD BATTERY.
  4. Take the BLACK CLAMP on the same end of the cables and attach it to the NEGATIVE POST of the GOOD BATTERY.
  5. Take the other BLACK CLAMP and ground it by attaching it to bare, clean metal on the DEAD CAR. Usually your best bet is to attach it to engine brackets or bolts.

Start the engine of the running vehicle and let it run for 2-3 minutes. Then, try starting the car with the dead battery. If it doesn’t start, wait another 3-5 minutes and try again.

Disconnect the jumper cables in the reverse order of how you connected them. Make sure that you run the engine of the disabled car for at least 30 minutes to charge the battery. If you turn it off too soon, it won’t build a charge and you’ll have to jump start it again.

Make sure you stop by Lone Star Cars and get your battery checked as soon as possible, or if you don’t live nearby, head to your usual mechanic. If there’s a problem with the battery, you’ll need to have it replaced. If you have any other questions about jumping a dead battery or about your car battery in general, don’t hesitate to call us at 972-612-2323. We’re here to help you with any questions you might have.