Jump a Vehicle’s Battery

These days most vehicle manufacturers have installed several failsafes to prevent accidental battery death. For instance, most newer vehicles will automatically turn off unused lights after a certain span of time. But even in vehicles programmed with preventative measures, vehicle batteries will still get old or dirty and corroded, and can unfortunately leave us stranded. And in the event that we become stranded, we need to know the proper method to jump the vehicle’s dead battery. To begin, turn off all the vehicle’s accessories—turn light switches to off even if the bulb isn’t lit, turn off the stereo and other audio accessories, etc.—because the battery could arc its charge when the cables are attached to its terminals. And it can be dangerous and costly to incorrectly assign and attach jumper cables to incompatible battery terminals. So, to begin, remove the battery cable from the negative terminal first—universally, the negative terminal is assigned the color black. There should also be indicated a – sign on the terminal. If you are at home and have a cleaning brush nearby—a firm-bristled toothbrush is a good choice—mix up baking powder and water in a paste-like consistency, and carefully scrub any corrosion from the terminal. Then, if you plan to jump start the dead battery from a charged battery on another vehicle, you should take your jumper cables and attach the red clamp—this is the positive clamp and it will have a + indicated on the cable—to the positive (red or +) terminal on the dead vehicle battery. Then take the other red cable and attach it to the positive terminal on the charged battery. Then carefully connect the matching black cable to the negative terminal on the charged battery, and the opposing black clamp, the one nearest the dead battery, should get attached to some metallic part of the vehicle’s engine block. Alternatively, you could also charge the battery using a battery charger. The steps to work the charger will be written by the manufacturer and should be included with the charger. And if you need the assistance of experienced professionals, for car battery needs and anything else under the hood, then call the mechanics at Willard’s Garage.