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Starting and Charging System
Jump Starting Your Car
It's no fun having a dead battery. It can happen to even the newest and most well-maintained cars. All you have to do is park your car and forget to turn off the lights. Unfortunately, there are plenty of wrong ways to jump-start a car.
Hooking up the cables incorrectly can damage critical, and expensive, electronic components. The process of jump starting a battery is fairly easy if you follow a few simple rules.
Connecting Jumper Cables
1. Connect the red positive (+) clamp of the jumper cable to the positive terminal of the good battery and the other positive clamp to the positive terminal of the dead battery.
2. Connect the black negative (-) clamp of the jumper cable to the negative terminal on the good battery and the other negative clamp to the engine block, frame or other grounded metal. You want to avoid sparks in the vicinity of the explosive hydrogen gas that emits from the battery. It is best to not connect it to the ground terminal (-) of the battery.
Buying Jumper Cables
If you are buying jumper cables or a portable battery booster, look for well-insulated clamps and at least 8-gauge wire. (Note: the lower the wire gauge number, the heavier the wire.) Under the heavy electrical load of boost starting, lightweight cables may not be able to deliver enough current to start some engines.
If your battery is three-years old or older and you haven't had it checked, it's a good preventive measure to do so. A battery's power is reduced as the temperature drops and that's when the engine's starting demands are greatest.
Your car's battery and its starting and charging system
The battery provides the power that starts your engine and powers the accessories. It provides power to the starting system, which cranks your engine, after which the alternator recharges your battery for the next start.
Starter - If a starter isn't working correctly, the engine may start with great difficulty, or not at all. Starter problems may be due to electrical/mechanical failure or outright breakage.
Alternator - The alternator carries out two important tasks. It recharges your battery while the vehicle is running to keep it at peak starting power. The alternator also works with your battery as a team to operate electrical components, such as headlights, windshield wipers, and more. A malfunctioning alternator can cause electrical components to operate erratically, or even cause your engine to suddenly stop running.
If you experience battery trouble, there are a couple of things you may want to check before calling for service.
1. Be sure the battery is properly secured. Vibration caused by an unsecured battery can affect battery life.
2. The cables to the battery terminals must be clean and tightly connected. Build up of corrosive elements on the terminals can seriously weaken starting power.
It's no fun having a dead battery. It can happen to even the newest and most well-maintained cars. All you have to do is park your car and forget to turn off the lights. Unfortunately, there are plenty of wrong ways to jump-start a car.
Hooking up the cables incorrectly can damage critical, and expensive, electronic components. The process of jump starting a battery is fairly easy if you follow a few simple rules.
Connecting Jumper Cables
1. Connect the red positive (+) clamp of the jumper cable to the positive terminal of the good battery and the other positive clamp to the positive terminal of the dead battery.
2. Connect the black negative (-) clamp of the jumper cable to the negative terminal on the good battery and the other negative clamp to the engine block, frame or other grounded metal. You want to avoid sparks in the vicinity of the explosive hydrogen gas that emits from the battery. It is best to not connect it to the ground terminal (-) of the battery.
Buying Jumper Cables
If you are buying jumper cables or a portable battery booster, look for well-insulated clamps and at least 8-gauge wire. (Note: the lower the wire gauge number, the heavier the wire.) Under the heavy electrical load of boost starting, lightweight cables may not be able to deliver enough current to start some engines.
If your battery is three-years old or older and you haven't had it checked, it's a good preventive measure to do so. A battery's power is reduced as the temperature drops and that's when the engine's starting demands are greatest.
Your car's battery and its starting and charging system
The battery provides the power that starts your engine and powers the accessories. It provides power to the starting system, which cranks your engine, after which the alternator recharges your battery for the next start.
Starter - If a starter isn't working correctly, the engine may start with great difficulty, or not at all. Starter problems may be due to electrical/mechanical failure or outright breakage.
Alternator - The alternator carries out two important tasks. It recharges your battery while the vehicle is running to keep it at peak starting power. The alternator also works with your battery as a team to operate electrical components, such as headlights, windshield wipers, and more. A malfunctioning alternator can cause electrical components to operate erratically, or even cause your engine to suddenly stop running.
If you experience battery trouble, there are a couple of things you may want to check before calling for service.
1. Be sure the battery is properly secured. Vibration caused by an unsecured battery can affect battery life.
2. The cables to the battery terminals must be clean and tightly connected. Build up of corrosive elements on the terminals can seriously weaken starting power.