Follow this guide to start a vehicle battery with pictures and you will be able to do the whole process without complications.
If you have read the article on how to jump a car and think you need a guide with pictures, read on.
Park the both cars facing each other
Park the vehicles facing each other at a distance of 45-50 cm so that there is enough cable length to connect them. The vehicles must never touch each other.
Gear lever in park or neutral position
Place the shift lever in park position for vehicles with automatic transmission, and in neutral position for vehicles with manual transmission.
Turns off the donor vehicle’s engine
Turns off the car engine which will transfer energy from its battery to the car with the discharged battery.
Activates the hand brake lever
Activate the parking brake on both cars.
Remove the keys and open the doors
Remove the ignition keys from the vehicles and open the car doors with a discharged battery (the car’s anti-theft system could be activated and lock the doors).
Open the car hood and look for the battery
Look for the battery under the hood of the car. It is easy to recognize, but if in doubt, consult the manual.
Identify the posivite and negative terminals
Look for the two battery terminals: the positive terminal is usually the larger one and is identified by the plus sign “+” and the negative terminal is identified by the minus sign “-“.
Normally, the positive terminal is red and the negative terminal is black. Before connecting the wires, make sure that you have identified the terminals correctly.
Clean terminals (if necessary)
You can clean the terminals of dust and dirt with WD40 or a stiff brush, if available.
Connect the starter kit to the battery
The battery starter kit should contain two wires. Usually one of the cables is red and the other black.
The color of the cables may vary (blue instead of black, for example), but the clamps on the ends of the cables are almost always red and black. This color coding helps to avoid mistakes when connecting the wires. Follow an order to connect the wires:
- One red clamp to the positive terminal of the flat battery;
- The second red clamp to the positive pole of the donor vehicle;
- One black clamp to the negative terminal of the donor vehicle battery;
- The second black clamp to an unpainted metal part of the vehicle with the flat battery. This may be a nut or bolt on the engine block.
Make sure the cables do not touch the moving parts of the engine.
Starts the donor vehicle’s engine
Start the engine of the vehicle that will donate its energy and run it for 10-20 minutes. After this time, turn off the engine.
Attempts to start the vehicle whose battery has discharged
Try to start the car’s engine with the dead battery. If you are successful, do not turn off the engine for 10-20 minutes. This time should be enough to charge the battery a little.
