Jump start car battery

When your car Battery Dies
​One of the most frustrating experiences is when your car battery is dead.  You turn the ignition key or the push to start button, and you hear a click and nothing happens.  Or all you hear is the engine straining to start but quickly dying.  A dead battery is an easy fix but a very inconvenient situation especially when you don't have jumper cables.  But even when you have jumper-cables then you have the problem of trying to get some stranger to let you use their vehicle to jump-start your vehicle. 

Did you know?
Last year it is estimated that one million automobile batteries were sold through mobile roadside assistance service trucks.  Of all types of towing service calls the highest percentage of calls were for battery, fuel delivery, lockout's, and flat tire changes.

​What does a car battery do? 
A car engine needs an electric starter motor to crank the engine pistons into the proper firing position to start the engine.  The proper piston position is achieved after some fuel has been pumped into the piston cylinder chamber by the electric fuel pump and the piston has moved up in the combustion cylinder chamber to compress an air and gasoline mixture to make it more explosive. Simultaneously electricity must flow to the spark plugs so that they can create a spark to ignite the compressed air-fuel mixture. The controlled explosion in the cylinders then starts a chain reaction where the engines own movement can run a small electric generator called an alternator to recharge the vehicles battery and keep the spark plugs sparking until you shut off the engine. 

Therefore, a car battery is critical to several prerequisite engine functions.  Without the battery, a cars starter motor, fuel pump, spark plugs, and electronic ignition system will not work. Most people never think about their car’s electrical system but without it the car won't start.   

Originally the first cars were invented over one-hundred years ago, the cars did not have electric starter motors. The driver had to use a hand-crank to start the car. The hand-crank was inserted into a hole in the front grill of the car.  Electric starter motors did not become common standard features in cars until about 1920.  And as we know the starter motor won't start without a charged battery. 

The starter motor gets the ball rolling and then once the car engine is running a small electric generator called the alternator takes over and powers the car's electrical system and tops off the charge on the vehicles battery when it is below a certain threshold.  But the vehicle's battery is the key to get the car started in the first place and then again after the engine is turned off.

It is important to have a good battery that is both fully charged and is able to accept and hold a charge for an extended period of time.  The condition of the vehicles battery is important for the health of the car’s alternator.  When the battery is dead a jump start is only enough to start the engine once to start the chain reaction of the engine running the alternator.  But the alternator is not a very powerful electric generator and it is not designed to recharge a dead battery.  When a battery is dead or in other words has a zero charge, the correct thing to do is  put it on a car battery charger as soon as possible and fully charge it.  If the The vehicle alternator is used to recharge the battery it will put a strain on the alternator and the alternator will wear out much faster.

When we  jump-started a dead battery, the battery is so low on charge that the alternator needs to work twice as hard to power the vehicle's electrical systems and try to recharge the battery.  Using the alternator as a battery charger will make your alternator shorten its' life.  Depending on what type of vehicle you have, a new alternator costs between $200 and over $450 dollars just for the part not including labor.

Reasons a car battery dies
There are a few  reasons why a car battery would go dead. Sometimes because the headlights or interior lights on your car were left on overnight.  Another common problem is because the electrical system has a problem causing an excessive drain on the battery.  The weather where you live can play a factor as well. The extreme heat in the summer and cold winters in Eden Prairie will shorten the life of a car  battery below what the manufacturers may advertise for an average life expectancy.

If your battery ever dies leaving you stranded Eden Prairie towing and roadside assistance is always read to come to help.  We will jump start your car, SUV, or truck.  Even if you keep a pair of jumper cables in your vehicle you still need to find someone willing to give you a jump by letting you use their vehicle to jump start your vehicle.  There is a right way and a wrong way to jump start a vehicle.  So if both you and the person you convince to help you doesn't know the correct procedure for using jumper cables you could damage your vehicles electronic ignition.

Therefore, when you find yourself with a dead car battery, and need a jump start, your success will depend on:
      A)  Whether or not you can flag down some stranger to help you.
     B)   Whether either one of you understand the correct way to connect the jumper cables.

Another factor affecting your success is whether or not the battery is completely dead and whether or not it is defective and will even accept and hold a charge. 

A good alternative to using jumper cables a second car is to use a portable jump start power pack.  A portable car battery jump starter power pack is great because you don't need to find a stranger to help you and the portable power pack will come with instructions on how to use it correctly.

How to Jump-start a car correctly
1. Using jumper cables
A set of jumper cables in your vehicle come in handy if your battery dies.  But then you need to find someone willing to let you use their vehicle with a good battery to jump start your car.  Many people are reluctant to help because they don't know you and because they are afraid of damaging their own cars battery or electrical system.  This is what a portable jump starter power pack is a great tool to keep in your vehicle.  Then you won’t have to flag down a stranger for help.
2. Position the vehicles for a jump start
Position the vehicle with the good battery close enough to the vehicle with the dead battery for the jumper cables to reach the vehicle with the dead battery without having stress on the cables that could cause them to fall off of the battery terminal post.  How close the two vehicles need to be will depend on how long your jumper cables are.  Make sure that both vehicles have their transmissions in the park position and the parking brakes on both vehicles are engaged to keep the cars from moving.
3. Attach the jumper cables to the two vehicles
Open the hood on both cars and find their batteries and battery terminals. Connect the red positive cable using the alligator clamp to the red positive (+) battery terminal on the dead battery.  Make sure the connection is secure, so the clamp does not fall off.  Take the other red positive cable clamp, on the end of the same jumper cable and connect it to the red positive (+) battery terminal on the vehicle with the good battery.

Then attach the black negative clamp to the black negative (-) battery terminal on the good battery, and attach the other black, negative clamp to a unpainted metal surface inside the engine compartment of the car with the dead battery.
4. The Jump start
To jump start the car with the bad battery the start the engine on the vehicle with the good battery and let the engine run for a few minutes to give the dead battery a partial charge. Then start the car with the dead battery.   If the car doesn’t start, let the car with the good battery run for a few more minutes. Try again to start the car with the dead battery.  If the car with the dead battery doesn’t start, it's time to call for a tow truck or roadside assistance.
5. Remove the jumper cables
Once the car with the dead battery starts and is running let it run for 10 minutes and don't turn the engine off until after you get home. Let the car with the dead battery continue to run and remove the jumper cables one at a time.  Remove the black, negative clamps first and don’t let them have any contact with any metal on the car or to each other. Then carefully remove the red cables and close the hoods of both vehicles.
​
If the car that had the dead battery had a dead battery because of a faulty electrical power drain, and not because the battery is too old and can no longer hold a charge anymore, then driving the vehicle for at least one-hour on local roads or for thirty-minutes on the highway should charge the battery enough so that it won’t need another jump start after being turn off. 

Remember the electric generator called an alternator in your car is not meant to recharge the dead battery. Using it as a battery charger can burn your alternator out prematurely.  You should have the battery checked with a battery tester to know if the battery is still good or needs to be replaced.  The only good way to charge a dead battery is on a vehicle battery charger.

If you need help Eden Prairie Tow Truck and Roadside service is ready to help you. 
Call:   952-260-2648 
or fill out the  Free Quick Quote form on this page.

Vehicle battery Jump Start