How to Jump Start a Car

If your car isn’t starting, you more than likely need a jump start. However, jump starting your car isn’t as difficult as it may sound. Rather than contacting a jump start car service like AAA or a location near Grand Island, all you need is a pair of jumper cables and another running vehicle to get your car back on the road. Learn more about how to properly jump start a car with Midway Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Kearney. 

The Proper Way to Jump Start a Car

To begin, you’ll need a set of jumper cables and another vehicle that runs. Once you have these two things, follow these instructions to jump start your car battery:

1. Have the front of your vehicle, and the front of the running vehicle, facing one another. Make sure both are turned off and that both vehicles are either in park or neutral. 
2. Open both hoods and locate the batteries. There may be a plastic hood you will have to remove to expose the battery terminals.
3. Find the positive and negative terminals on both batteries. Make sure that every terminal is clean and doesn’t have any corrosion.
4. Connect the red clamp of the jumper cable to the positive post on the dead battery.
5. Uncoil the battery cable and hook the other red clamp to the positive terminal of the charged battery.
6. Connect the black clamp to the negative post on the good battery. 
7. For the final clamp, connect it to an unpainted metal surface on the car’s frame.
8. Once all of the cables are connected, start the engine of the vehicle with the good battery first, then the one with the dead battery.
9. After the dead vehicle has been jump-started, carefully remove the jumper cables in the reverse order that they were placed on, then shut off the car with the good battery.
10. Keep the engine running for at least 10 minutes to make sure the car’s battery doesn’t die again.

What to Do if Your Car Won’t Jump Start

If your car won’t jump-start, you may need a battery replacement, or it may be a sign of a more serious problem. Take these steps to troubleshoot the issue:

1. If you hear a clicking sound when trying to turn the car on, the starter may be malfunctioning. If you’re near Hastings, schedule service at Midway Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram for a replacement. 
2. If the electrical systems of the car turn on, but the engine fails to turn over, there could be an issue with the ignition switch, battery, starter, or a fuse. You can bring the car into our service department where they can diagnose the problem. 
3. After the car turns on, make sure to keep the vehicle running for a while so that it can get fully recharged.

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