by James Coplin

Created on: December 27, 2009   Last Updated: December 29, 2009

There's no adventure like rolling along down the the open road. It's when things stop rolling where it can get pretty tricky. If you are one of those that think a Jack is a character in a fairy tale or a Jumper a horse that goes over fences you might appreciate a quick session in Car Talk.

No matter how you love your car, how often you wash it or how sweetly you talk or plead with it  sometimes it lets you down. It will almost always be at the most inconvenient time and its no fun at all shivering in the cold, waiting for AAA. There are some things you simply can't do anything about; major mechanical or electrical failures for instance. Yet most of the things that stop us in our tracks can be handled easily and on-site with just a bit of know-how and preparation.

*It Won't Start! - Jumping a Dead Battery

You can threaten, yell or plead but it does you no good. When you turn the key and your engine gives out that pathetic little whir, leading to a series of tiny clicks; you are dead in the water and going to remain there without a jump start.

The first step in getting going is to locate some kind hearted soul who will allow you to jump your battery off of theirs. One of the two of you is going to have to have a jumper cable handy and that should really be you.  It is a lot to ask of a person to not only maneuver their car in position to Jump you but to first have to rummage around in the trunk for the cables they alone had foresight to carry.

Next, look under both cars hoods to see on which side the respective batteries are. How and where the cars will be positioned will be determined by how close the batteries are to each other. Make sure everything - headlights, radio, ect. - is turned off on the dead car and that everything is unplugged. If all goes well, in a minute there will be 300 plus volts of electricity surging into your battery and the voltage spike could easily fry delicate circuits.

Look at the dead battery. If it is cracked or leaking liquid put the cables away and call it a day. It needs replacement, not a charge and could very well blow up in your face if you seek to jump it. Even if it took the charge, it would quickly run down and maybe next time there will be no accommodating person to help you.

Take a look at the connections - the knobs on the battery where the wires are attached. These are the terminals and if they are caked with white powder or grease they need to be cleaned

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