Recharging, Boosting, or Jump Starting your Car Battery

Steps for Jump Starting the Battery

1. Position the Cars: Park the donor car close to your car, but make sure the two cars don’t touch. Turn both vehicles off.
2. Turn Off All Electronics in the Car: Turn off your vehicle and any accessories like the headlights, radio, air conditioning, etc. This prevents overloading the jump starter.
3. Attach the Jumper Cables:
   • Attach the red (positive) cable to the positive terminal of the dead battery.
   • Attach the other end of the red cable to the positive terminal of the charged battery.
   • Attach the black (negative) cable to the negative terminal of the charged battery.
   • Attach the other end of the black cable to a metal part on the engine block of the car whose battery is dead (not the battery itself). This helps prevent sparks near the battery.
     CAUTION: touching the red (positive) and black (negative) terminals together when they are connected to a charged battery will create intense sparks!
4. Start the Donor Car: Start the donor car and let it run for a few minutes.
5. Start Your Car: Try starting your car. If it starts, let it run for 10-15 minutes to help recharge the battery.
6. Disconnect the Cables: Once your car is running, carefully remove the jumper cables in the reverse order.
   CAUTION: touching the red (positive) and black (negative) terminals together when they are connected to a charged battery will create intense sparks!
7. Keep the Car Running: Keep the car running for a while to recharge the battery. Ideally, drive for 15-30 minutes to give the alternator enough time to recharge the battery.

Steps for Boosting the Car with a Portable Booster Pack

1. Prepare the Jump Starter: Set up the your portable jump starter and make sure it is fully charged. Most kits have an indicator light to show the charge level. Place the jump starter near your car’s battery, but make sure it’s not touching any metal parts of the car.
2. Turn Off All Electronics in the Car: Turn off your vehicle and any accessories like the headlights, radio, air conditioning, etc. This prevents overloading the jump starter.
3. Connect the Jumper Cables: Depending on the starter kit, it could have a set of small jumper cables or a special plug for the portable starter kit on one end, and jumper cables on the other.
   
   For jump starter kits with the special plug on one end and jumper cables on the other, the process is pretty straight forward:
   • Attach the red (positive) cable to the positive (+) terminal of the dead battery.
   • Attach the black (negative) cable to the negative (-) terminal of the dead battery or a clean, unpainted metal part of the vehicle (such as the engine block) for grounding.
   • Take the special plug that comes with your jumper kit and plug it into the jump starter unit.
   For jump starter kits with jumper cables, the process of connecting the terminals is similar to jump starting a car from another vehicle:
   • Attach the red (positive) cable to the positive (+) terminal of the dead battery.
   • Attach the other end of the red cable to the positive (+) terminal on the portable jumper kit.
   • Attach the black (negative) cable to the negative (-) terminal of the jumper kit.
   • Attach the other end of the black cable to a clean, unpainted metal part of the car’s frame (preferably the engine block or a designated ground point). This is to avoid sparks near the battery.
4. Power On the Jump Starter: Turn on the portable jump starter (usually a button or switch). Some jump starters have a button that needs to be pressed to deliver power to the car, while others will begin working as soon as they are connected. The jump starter may have an indicator or light that will confirm that it's properly connected and delivering power.
5. Start the Car: With everything connected, try to start your car as you normally would. If the car starts, let it run for a few minutes to allow the battery to recharge a bit. If the car doesn’t start after a few attempts, check the connections and try again. If the engine still won’t turn over, there may be a larger issue than just a dead battery.
6. Disconnect the Jump Starter: Once the car is running, turn off the jump starter and disconnect the cables in the reverse order:
   • First, remove the black (negative) cable from the vehicle.
   • Then, remove the red (positive) cable from the battery and the jumper kit.
7. Keep the Car Running: Once the engine starts, press the clutch in again and rev the engine slightly to ensure it keeps running. Keep the car running for a while to recharge the battery. Ideally, drive for 15-30 minutes to give the alternator enough time to recharge the battery.

Steps for Charging the Battery with a Battery Charger

1. Disconnect the Battery: If the battery is in your car, disconnect it by removing the negative terminal first, followed by the positive terminal.
2. Connect the Charger: Connect the positive clamp of the charger to the positive terminal of the battery, and the negative clamp to the negative terminal.
3. Set the Charger: Set the charger to the appropriate voltage (usually 12V for most car batteries) and let it charge. Charging can take a few hours to a full day, depending on the level of discharge.
4. Reconnect the Battery: After charging, reconnect the battery to your car, starting with the positive terminal.

Push Starting (Car's with a Manual Transmission)

Another trick to start the car if you have a manual transmission is to push start the car by having someone push you and you dropping the clutch while turning the key. This method works by using the car’s momentum to turn the engine over, which allows it to start without the battery or starter motor. Here’s how to do it safely:

What you’ll need: Of course a manual transmission car (this method will not work on car's with an automatic transmission) and at least one other person to help push (if you're on your own, you'll need a slope or hill to get the car rolling). You'll also have to ensure the car is in a safe location away from traffic.

Steps for Push Starting a Car with Manual Transmission

1. Turn Off All Electronics in the Car: Turn off your vehicle and any accessories like the headlights, radio, air conditioning, etc. This prevents overloading the jump starter.
2. Prepare the Car for Pushing: Place the car in neutral and make sure the handbrake is off. Turn the ignition key to the “on” position (but don’t start the car as you normally would).
3. Get the Car Moving: If you’re on a hill, you can roll the car down using gravity. If you’re on flat ground, you’ll need help from at least one person to push the car. The car needs to reach a speed of about 5-10 mph (8-16 km/h) for this method to work, so try to get the car moving at a decent pace.
4. Engage the Clutch: Once the car is rolling, press the clutch all the way in and shift into second gear (second gear is typically best because it gives the right balance of speed and torque).
5. Dump the Clutch: With the car moving at speed, quickly release the clutch (the “dumping” part). This sudden engagement of the transmission with the rotating wheels will force the engine to turn over. If all goes well, the engine will start, and the car will begin running again.
6. Keep the Car Running: Once the engine starts, press the clutch in again and rev the engine slightly to ensure it keeps running. Keep the car running for a while to recharge the battery. Ideally, drive for 15-30 minutes to give the alternator enough time to recharge the battery.