[mithun]

Guide: How to jump start your car!

Booster cables:



#1 - Position the dead car and booster car such that the ends of the booster cable can easily reach their battery terminals. Ensure that both cars are in neutral and have their handbrakes engaged:


#2 - Connect the red cable to the positive terminal of the battery of the dead car:



#3 - Connect the other end of the red cable to the positive terminal of the battery of the booster car:


#4 - Connect the black cable to the negative terminal of the battery of the booster car. IMP - The red & black alligator metal clips should NOT touch each other:


#5 - Connect the other end of the black cable to an unpainted metal surface (such as a bolt) in the engine bay of the dead car:



#6 - Ensure that the cables won't get entangled with any moving part once the engines start. Then, start the engine of the booster car and let it idle for 60 seconds:


#7 - Start the engine of the dead car and let it idle. If the dead car’s battery has gone totally flat, it can take a while before it garners enough strength to be able to crank the engine:


#8 - Disconnect the black cable from the dead car

#9 - Disconnect the black cable from the booster car

#10 - Disconnect the red cable from the booster car

#11 - Disconnect the red cable from the dead car

[RE500]

I think we are mixing up two different things here:-
1) Push start
2) Jump start
To start an engine the following things are needed, air-fuel mixture (in the correct ratio), compression & spark (at the proper time)..nothing else.
Now, the spark is caused by the power drawn from the alternator of the car. Now to start the car we need power to push the piston up to get compression and we need power for the spark. To do this initially the starter motor draws power from the battery and forces the piston to move. After a couple of rotations the alternator builds up enough voltage to cause a spark and get the engine going.
The problem happens when the battery has drained out and there is not enough power to turn the starter motor in which case we have the two options of push start & jump start.
In push start what we are doing is to bypass the starter motor and get the piston to move by brute force, i.e push the car in gear. The reason that it is better to do it in 2nd gear rather than in 1st, is that because of the gear ratio it is easier to push in 2nd. Theoretically it can be done in all the gears, and the effort required will reduced as we go up the gears. But the hitch is that the engine RPM also reduces and to get it to an RPM where it can fire, the car has to pushed at a much higher speed which may not be practical. In olden cars the fuel was mixed by the carburetor which is a mechanical device and needs no power & the timing was also maintained mechanical by means of points & breakers. But in the newer cars the above two functions are performed by Fuel injection systems & Electronic Ignition. Depending on the manufacturer these two units will draw power either from the battery or directly from the alternator. So if none of the engine sub systems need to be powered from a battery then this system will work.
The second method is to get the starter motor itself to run by using an external power source for example another car. This is done by "jumping" the source car to the car with the drained battery and running the first car for some time so that drained battery is charged a little bit and then using both the battery to turn the starter. This will work for all types of cars since the drained battery is charged up a little and all the engine sub systems that need power will get before the starter cranks the engine.
This procedure is exactly like starting the car normally so it CANNOT be done with the engine in gear. Of course you can hold in the clutch and then start, but the point is that the gear in which the car is when it is started has nothing to do with the procedure.

Hope this helps.

RE500

[supremeBaleno]

There are two ways you could start a car that has a dead battery.
One is to push the car with the gear in 2nd (or reverse) and clutch fully pressed. After gaining some momentum, release the clutch to bring the motor to life.
Another way of doing this is by using jump leads. Suppose your car has a dead battery. If you have a friend's car with a charged battery, you can connect his battery to yours using the jump leads (in a particular configuration, with proper earthing) so as to draw power from his battery and start your car. Ensure that the cars do not touch each other.

[2fast4u]

RE500 & supremebaleno - u r right on that

For Jump Start
Buy a GOOD set of Jump Cables min 6 gauge - 4 gauge is better (weak wires get hot and are useless for jump start) make sure the wire runs through the clamp and connected to the jaw.
Get the front of the car as close as you can to the front of the car with weak battery make sure u do not let the cars touch.

Shut engine of car

don't let the negative (ALWAYS BLACK IN COLOR) hang around touching any car part, when u begin - Now FIRST connect the positive (+) i.e. (Red) clamps to the positive battery terminal dead battery car and then to the charged cars (+) terminal.
Next, connect the negative (Black) clamp to the negative terminal on the good battery (i.e. car which starts)
NOW REMEMBER You will NOT be connecting the remaining Black clamp to the battery on the dead car. BUT
connect this negative clamp away from the battery, either on the engine block or a metal bracket that is directly attached to the engine make a firm contact. Some small sparking this is OK. big spark relates to wrong connection, or battery is short, don't try to jump start until you replace the bad battery

Start engine of Good car and rev ita bit.

Now start the bad car - if it dont start means wrong connection somewhere or not properly connected.
If dead car does not start first disconnect negative of bad car r first disconnect the negative cable from the bad car, then check to make sure that there is a good solid connection at each of the remaining cable clamps, now reconnect negative clamp on the dead car's engine block / bracket connecting engine and try.

Once the dead car starts disconnect in reverse order as attached i.e.
negative dead car
negative good car
positive good car
positive bad car

The dead car battery should get charged in 10 minutes no need to wait once started as u move the battery will get charged

- always carry one spare you wont regret spend on it when it comes in use the first time (especailly for automatic trannies).

I just did this 2 days back when i had my lights on the full night the procedure seems lengthy but requires some basic care requires just 2 minutes otherwise.

ALL CARS CANNOT BE JUMP STARTED AS SOME MANUFACTURERS SPECIFY IN THE MANUAL

[DRC]

Well, in theory, yes, any car can be push started, even I believed so.

Only till my son played music oin the car till the battery went flat. and I could not push start the engine! Manual mentions not to push start. but I tried and failed.

Finally had to jump start.

[2fast4u]

Originally Posted by DRC

Well, in theory, yes, any car can be push started, even I believed so.

Only till my son played music oin the car till the battery went flat. and I could not push start the engine! Manual mentions not to push start. but I tried and failed.

Finally had to jump start.

push start trying is to some extent fine but<<
if your owner manual says NOT TO JUMP START never do it as it can kill other electrical equipment fuses relays and even damage / burn wiring.

[maxbhp]

Originally Posted by mithun

Why does the Jump Starting works only in the Carburettor models ?

It's said that it's wise not to use the 1st gear to do Jump Starting, as this will definitely cause harm to the gears. What's the reason behind that ?

I've heard that vehicles equipped with electronic fuel injection system will not start by pushing or towing as the fuel pump will not work in this condition. This starting method could also result in permanent damage to the catalytic converter.

After all, a catalytic converter's job is to greatly reduce the level of harmful emissions in a car's exhaust. And catalytic converters contain a catalyst made from a noble metal such as platinum, palladium or rhodium. So how will Jump Starting causes damages to catalytic converter ?

Will there be any other damages to the engine components other than the catalytic converter ?

It's advised in the User's Manual to use jump leads to start a vehicle with a weak or flat battery. What is this jump leads ?

Is this Jump Starting possible only in the cases when the battery is dead/weak ? If the other components like starter motor is faulty, will the Jump Starting really works ?

Hello Boss , whats a gear ? A sysytem which transmits power right so obviously its dependent on the speed of the vehicle when you want to engage a gear while jump starting. If you are at 20 obviously 1st gear is a very bad idea , @nd and if there is suffiecient momentum even 3rd gear can be used.

[mithun]

Kudos to RE500 & 2fast4u for their wonderful answers.

Some questions remains unanswered....

How will Jump Starting causes damages to catalytic converter ?

Will there be any other damages to the engine components other than the catalytic converter ?

[Captain Pings]

push start - the higher the gear you select - the easier it is for the bloke/s pushing! depends on how many drinks they're down / uphill / downhil etc etc

jump start - be extremely careful. automobile batteries can cause serious damage. i once had a stupid battery shop mechanic put in an incorrect height amaron in the corsa, the moment he shut the hood, i saw smoke and realised what happened! the cross - strut under the hood had short-circuited the battery terminals and the strut had a nice burn hole in it - in 5 seconds!

emergency repairs are commonly carried out this way - welding! i recommend u get yourself a set of jumper cables - heavy grade wire , crocodile clamps (with cable shoes - even better!) and you can make them yourself! and when you need to use them - always refer to the manual!! its easy to goof up the sequence!

[2fast4u]

Originally Posted by mithun

Kudos to RE500 & 2fast4u for their wonderful answers.

Some questions remains unanswered....

How will Jump Starting causes damages to catalytic converter ?

Will there be any other damages to the engine components other than the catalytic converter ?

I checked with some auto heads, but correct me if I am wrong.

Jump Starting would normally not damage the Catalytic Converter as in this case the good battery of the other car is supplying power to the dead battery. all u have to do is wait for sometime for with Ignition Key ON so that the onboard computer (dead battery car) gets to know its functions and then u could turn the Starter.

However Push Starting may cause problems if the battery is Good as in this case the engine is turning and supplying fuel but not firing as unburnt fuel is getting on to it and the cat has some high priced alloys inbuilt.
On the other hand Push Starting with a Dead Battery "MAY" not damage Cat as in this case the car will fire up.

It is best however u stick to the Owners Manual if JUMP / PUSH start is not recomended to claim ur warranty / avoid considerable damage otherwise.

ur second quetion depends on Gods wish i believe. Seen some cars getting some weird fuses / relays blown out after jump start. eg Cigar Lighter Fuse, dashboard fuse (also known Meter Fuse), Defogger Fuse,.

The older the car the better to try and do jump or push start.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by viper

To the best of my knowledge you can jump start almost any vehicle except a automatic transmission one.

Are you sure? I have seen many cars being jump started in USA, all were auto transmission cars. Many people carry jumper cables with them all the time, it is AAA recommendation.

Checkout their instructions on jump-starting. One more link.

[Rehaan]

Samurai,

By "jump starting" he actually means "push starting"....

cya
R

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

Samurai,

By "jump starting" he actually means "push starting"....

So that's a typo... Fine.

[nitinbhag]

Originally Posted by Samurai

Checkout their instructions on jump-starting. One more link.

Samurai-san, these links ask for a US zip code to go ahead !!!

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by nitinbhag

Samurai-san, these links ask for a US zip code to go ahead !!!

Sorry, just use a NJ zip code like 07932.