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How jump start a Car or Truck

Introduction

Jump starting is a way to start a car with a dead battery by using another vehicle's battery to provide power. This is done by connecting the dead battery to the other vehicle's battery using jumper cables. The other vehicle's battery provides power to the dead battery, allowing the car to start.

Jump starting electric cars

Electric vehicles are also equipped with a 12-volt starter battery to activate the high-voltage system. Empty or defective starter batteries are therefore also possible in this vehicle category. The jump start basically works the same as with any petrol or diesel engine.

Jump starting is usually allowed for electric cars, but using them to jump start another car is usually not permitted by the manufacturer. Electric vehicles are normally equipped with smaller starter batteries. For this reason, in the worst case, an electric car that provides power for a jump start could damage the donor battery or the on-board electrical systems.

Warning

It is important to follow the proper procedure when jump starting a car to avoid damaging the vehicles or causing harm to yourself.

What you need

  1. Edit

  2. How jump start a Car or Truck, Unlock the hood: step 2, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the hood release lever. It's usually located inside the car, near the steering column.

    • If you can't find the release lever in your car, it might help to consult the car's owner's manual.

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  3. How jump start a Car or Truck, Open the hood: step 3, image 1 of 1

    • Raise the hood by simultaneously lifting and pressing the hood latch release. It is usually a paddle located beneath the front edge of the hood, near the center or center-right.

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  4. How jump start a Car or Truck, Secure the hood: step 4, image 1 of 2 How jump start a Car or Truck, Secure the hood: step 4, image 2 of 2

    • At this point, depending on the vehicle, your hood may raise and support itself automatically, if not, use one hand to hold the hood open temporarily while securing the hood with the prop rod.

    • Lift one end of the prop rod up or out to release it from the front area of the engine bay.

    • Swing the end of the prop rod up and slide it into the corresponding cutout on the underside of the hood.

    • Make sure the hood is well secured before you let go with your other hand, or it may fall and injure you.

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  5. How jump start a Car or Truck, Locate the battery: step 5, image 1 of 1

    • Locate the battery on both cars.

    • The battery might be hidden under a cover. Usually, you can just look for a car battery-sized plastic cover with a battery pictogram on it.

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  7. How jump start a Car or Truck, Connect the red wire: step 6, image 1 of 1

    • Connect the red wire to the + lead of the battery in the donor car.

    • Then connect the other end of the red wire to the + lead of the dead battery.

    • The + lead is typically covered by a plastic cover. If both leads are covered the + lead is usually red.

    • If you mix up the + and - poles when starting the vehicle, you risk expensive damage to the vehicle's electrical system.

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  8. How jump start a Car or Truck, Connect the black wire: step 7, image 1 of 1

    • Connect the black wire to the - lead on the donor cars battery.

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  9. How jump start a Car or Truck, Connect the black wire: step 8, image 1 of 1

    • Connect the other end of the black wire to the ground connection/ground point or a metal part of the motor block of the broken-down car.

    • You can typically find the ground connection/ground point written in your car’s manual.

    • Do not connect the black wire to the - lead of the dead battery!

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    • Start the motor of the donor car

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    • After a couple of minutes, try to start the broken-down car.

    • If it doesn’t work, try again a minute later.

    • After the third unsuccessful attempt to start the car may get damaged. Then consider getting professional help.

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    • If the broken-down car has succeeded in starting, let both vehicles run for a few more minutes.

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    • When the engine is running in the recipient car, switch on larger, power hungry electric loads, such as the AC, radio and lights to avoid voltage peaks and thus protect the on-board electronics.

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    • First disconnect the black wire from the donor car, then from the broken-down car.

    • Remove the red wire last.

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    • Keep the broken-down car’s engine running and switch off the unneeded electronics again.

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    • Watch out for any warning lights on the dash and call a professional if any problems occur.

    • In the event of problems occurring, the electrical support for driving functions such as power steering can fail.

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Conclusion

Drive safe and don’t forget to recharge or replace your battery!

Author

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Sebastian Dorr

Member since: 08/19/2018

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