How To Correctly Jump Start A Vehicle

1. Park The Two Cars As Closely Together As Possible 
2. Turn Both Cars Off & Clamp The Cables Properly
3. Start The Working Car
4. Check The Car With The Dead Battery After A Few Minutes
5. Let The Problem Car Run For 15-20 Minutes After It Starts
6. Remove The Cables In Reverse Order 
7. Still Won’t Work? Get A Tow To A Service Station 
8. Follow These Steps To Safely Jump Any Car! 

Whether you’re stranded on the side of the road with a dead battery, your car’s battery has discharged over time in storage, or you need to help a fellow motorist jump their car, it's important to know how to correctly jump start a vehicle. Here’s a step-by-step guide from A-1 Auto Transport.

1. Park The Two Cars As Closely Together As Possible 

First, park the cars closely so that the cables will reach from one battery to the other, but not so closely that they touch one another. 

This can be tough if one car is inoperable or the other car can’t get close – if there’s another adjacent parked car, for example – so we recommend carrying a set of cables that are at least 20-25 feet long, as this will give you more wiggle room if the position of the cars is troublesome. Standard 10 or 15-foot cables will be harder to work with in these situations.

2. Turn Both Cars Off & Clamp The Cables Properly

Once the cars are off, you’ll need to clamp the cables. This process is the same for every standard car.

1. Clamp one end of the positive cable to the positive terminal of the dead battery
2. Next, connect the other end of the positive cable to the working battery’s positive terminal
3. After this, connect the negative cable to the negative terminal on the working battery
4. Last, connect the other end of the negative  cable to a “ground” on the vehicle with the dead battery. This means any metal surface that’s not located near the battery, such as the engine block or a piece of bodywork. 

Be careful not to touch the two ends of the cable together during the final step, as this can cause sparks. While not extremely dangerous in and of themselves, these sparks could ignite other flammable fumes and vapors. 

3. Start The Working Car

Once the cables are connected as outlined above, start the working car to begin sending electricity from its battery to the dead battery. The driver of the working car can “rev up” the engine slightly to send power to the dead battery faster, but this isn’t totally necessary. Even if the working car is just idling, plenty of power will go to the dead battery.

4. Check The Car With The Dead Battery After A Few Minutes

After you’ve let the working car run for a few minutes, try to start the car with the dead battery. If the battery is still operational, it should turn the car on. If not, check the connections of the cables.

5. Let The Problem Car Run For 15-20 Minutes After It Starts

Once the car with the dead battery is running, let it run for about 15-20 minutes before shutting it off. This ensures that there will be plenty of charge in the battery, and that the car can be started multiple times, if necessary.

6. Remove The Cables In Reverse Order 

You will take the cables off of both batteries in the opposite order you began, so this will be:

1. Removing the negative cable from the ground on the problem car
2. Removing the negative cable from the negative terminal of the working battery
3. Removing the positive cable from the positive terminal of the working battery
4. Removing the positive cable from the positive terminal of the problem car

Still Won’t Work? Get A Tow To A Service Station 

If the car doesn’t start after multiple jump attempts, the problem is likely with an electrical component like the alternator or a mechanical component like the starter, and jump-starting will not work.

If this is the case, you should contact a local service station to get a tow, and have your car professionally inspected and repaired to resolve the issue. 

Follow These Steps To Safely Jump Any Car! 

Knowing how to correctly jump start a vehicle can get you out of some tough on-road situations, and ensure you’re able to help fellow drivers who may be stuck with a dead battery. So review this blog from A-1 Auto Transport again, and make sure you know what to do.

And remember, if you need interstate car transportation services, we’re your #1 choice. Contact us online to learn more about what we do, and get a quote for transporting your car or truck!