A dead battery is a headache for any driver. Your Mazda has warning lights that light up if your battery is failing, so you’re very unlikely to be stuck with a problem like this. As your Mazda dealership, we’d like to tell you how to jump-start a car when you have a friend or family member with a dead battery.
From Your Mazda Dealership: 4 Steps To Jump-Start a Car
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This might seem obvious, but it’s important to remember. To jump-start the other vehicle, you’ll connect cables between your battery and the dead battery. If you’re parked too far from the other car, the cables will be pulled tight, and attaching the clamps will be more difficult.
Locate the Battery
Most vehicles have the engine in the front. If the car you are charging has a rear engine, the only difference is that you’ll need to park facing the rear rather than the hood of the affected car. The recharging process is the same.
Connect the Cables
A set of charging jumper cables has a red cable and a black cable. The red cable is the positive and the black cable is the negative. Connecting the cables is relatively easy, but it has to be completed in a precise order. An incorrect connection can damage your battery or even start an engine fire.
Red First
Take the clamp on one side of the red cable and securely connect it to the positive terminal on the dead battery. A secure connection is important, as electricity can’t flow through a gap. Once the clamp is attached, connect the other end of the red scale to the positive terminal on your battery.
Black Second
You’re halfway there. Next, take one of the clamps on the black cable and connect it to the negative terminal on your battery. The last step is very important. The second clamp on the black cable must be connected to any unpolished metal bolt in the engine of the car with the dead battery. Don’t connect it to the negative terminal in the dead battery, as you could start a fire.
Use Some Gas
Start your engine and allow it to idle for a few minutes. While your engine is idling, electricity will flow from your battery through the clamps to the dead battery. After about two to three minutes, try and start the other car. If it doesn’t start, idle your car for ten to fifteen minutes, and then try again.
Once the other engine starts, disconnect the black cable from the unpolished bolt, then remove the red cable from the previously dead battery. Remove the red cable from your battery and then remove the black cable from your battery.
If you’d like to know more about charging a battery, visit us today at Tom Bush Mazda in Jacksonville, FL.
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