How to Jumpstart Your Car

You know the feeling - you missed your alarm, you’re rushing around the house getting ready for work, you cram a piece of toast down your throat and grab a coffee for the road. You get in your car, put the keys in the transmission, give them a turn and…nothing. You must’ve left your lights on last night, or something, and now you have a dead car battery. If you’re like many people, you may have forgotten the exact steps to jumpstart your car. Don’t panic! Just follow this simple how-to guide and you’ll be back on the road in no time. 

To jumpstart your car, you’ll need a set of jumper cables. It’s a good idea to keep a pair in your car for emergencies such as this. 

Position the jumper vehicle

In order to jumpstart your car, you’ll first need to find a friend (or willing stranger!) with a working vehicle. Have them park their car so that it’s close to yours, with both batteries near one another. In pretty much all gasoline-powered vehicles, the battery is located under the hood. However, certain vehicles may have the battery located elsewhere, like in the trunk or under the seats. Be sure to know where the battery is before parking the working vehicle. The cars can be either side by side or facing one another - it doesn’t matter as long as the jumper cables will reach both batteries. 

Locate the battery terminals in both cars

Once the cars are in position, locate the batteries in both vehicles. As mentioned above, the battery will typically be under the hood in the same compartment as the engine. There will be a positive and negative terminal located on each battery. Usually, the positive one has a red cap so that it can be easily spotted. If you are having trouble finding the terminals, they may be hidden. In some car models, the battery is underneath a removable cover, made of plastic or other material. There may also be metal posts sticking out specifically for jumping batteries that are located in hard to access areas. 

Before attaching the jumper cables, ensure that the battery is not cracked or leaking. If this is the case, contact your service department for assistance. You’ll need to replace the battery.

You should also verify that the terminals look clean. There should be no corrosion, which may appear as a white or green coating. If you do see some corrosion, remove it with aluminum foil or something similar. Never use your hands for this step, as it may cause skin irritation. 

Attach the jumper cables

After locating and verifying the health of the terminals, it’s time to attach the jumper cables. The jumper cables will be color coded. The red side attaches to the positive terminal, while the black side attaches to the negative terminal or another grounding point. To avoid damage to yourself or to your vehicle’s electrical system, it’s very important that you attach the four clamps in the proper order. It’s also important to verify that they are attached securely before attempting to jumpstart your car. Ensure that the clamps don’t touch one another accidentally while you’re connecting the others to the correct terminals. 

To connect the jumper cables, follow this configuration:

1 - Attach one of the red clamps to the positive terminal of your dead battery

2 - Attach the second red clamp to the positive terminal of the working battery

3 - Attach a black clamp to the negative terminal on the working battery

4 - Attach the last black clamp to the negative terminal of the dead battery. Alternatively, you can also attach it to another grounding point. This can include a metal, unpainted portion of the car’s engine, like a metal bracket. In some cars, there may be a specific grounding bolt in the engine compartment installed specifically for this reason. 

Jump your car

Once all of the jumper cables are securely and safely placed, you’re ready to try and jumpstart your car. Step into the working vehicle, place the keys in the ignition, and turn on the car. Then, move over to your vehicle and attempt to start it as well. If the engine is having trouble turning over, you may need to give the battery a few minutes to charge up. To make this process go faster, you can increase the idle speed of the working vehicle by revving the engine. Typically, somewhere around 1,200 rpm should be sufficient enough to build up a decent charge. 

Unless there is a more serious issue with your battery, you should be able to start the vehicle using this method. Once you hear your engine start, you’re ready to get back on the road!

Remove the jumper cables

If all has gone well, you’re ready to take off the jumper cables and continue on with your day. Just as you did with placing the cables, it’s important to still follow a specific order when removing the cables. Again, be sure that none of the metal clamps accidentally touch when you’re taking the cables off of the battery terminals. 

To remove the jumper cables, follow the reverse order from before:

1 - Remove the black clamp from the grounding point

2 - Remove the second black clamp from the negative terminal of the working battery

3 - Remove the red clamp from the positive terminal of the working battery

4 - Finally, remove the second red clamp from the positive terminal of the jumped battery.

Get back on the road

With your battery now working, you can get back on the road. Before turning the car off again, be sure that you’ve driven around for at least 20 minutes. This enables the alternator to recharge the battery, to prevent it from dying again. Just in case, it may be a good idea to park the car in an open area. If there is a larger issue going on with your battery not being able to hold charge, you may need to jump it again. If the problem persists, schedule an appointment at your local service center. Most service centers will have a new battery available in their parts department, in case a replacement is required.