How to Jump Start a Car Engine

If you find that the engine on your vehicle will not start, you can often remedy the problem yourself by jump starting the battery. With the assistance of a second, functioning vehicle, you can restore your battery's charge, thereby allowing the engine to perform its vital functions. Jump starting a vehicle can be extremely dangerous if performed incorrectly, so make sure to connect every cable correctly before starting either of the two vehicles.

Things You'll Need

• Vehicle
• Jumper cables

Instructions

1. Situate the two vehicles so the engines are as close together as possible. For instance, park the functioning vehicle directly in front of the non-functioning vehicle, facing it.

2. Pop open the hood and locate the battery for each vehicle. The battery should appear near the front of the engine, resembling a rectangular box. On the battery you should see two terminals: one containing a "+" sign (the positive terminal) and one containing a "-" sign (the negative terminal).

3. Place one end of your positive jumper cable on the positive battery terminal on the functioning vehicle.

4. Place the opposite end of your positive jumper cable on the positive battery terminal on the vehicle needing the jump.

5. Place one end of your negative jumper cable on the negative battery terminal on the functioning vehicle.

6. Connect the opposite end of your negative jumper cable to any shiny, metal, non-painted portion of the engine on the non-functioning vehicle. The website Car Buying Tips recommends that you do not place the negative cable anywhere on the battery of your non-functioning vehicle.

7. Start the engine on the functioning vehicle and let it run for about five minutes before turning off the engine again.

8. Remove the cables in the opposite order in which you connected them. Start with the negative cable on the non-functioning vehicle, followed by the negative cable on the functioning vehicle, then remove the positive cable from the non-functioning vehicle and finally the positive cable from the functioning vehicle.

9. Try starting the engine on the non-functioning vehicle. If your engine fails to start, proceed to the next step.

10. Reconnect the cables and turn on the engine of the functioning vehicle. Let it warm up for about a minute.

11. Try starting the engine on the non-functioning vehicle. While it is safer to start your non-functioning vehicle without a live connection to the other vehicle, you can still attempt this as a last resort if the initial method fails, according to Car Buying Tips.

12. Gently tap the gas pedal to jump start the engine.

13. Disconnect your cables after the engine starts.

References

• Car Buying Tips: How to Jump Start a Car