How to Jump Start a Car

Do you know how to jump start your car if the battery's dead?  Maybe you do and you're just curious on the proper way to do it.  Either way, most of us have and if you haven't jump started a vehicle, you will at some point, so we thought we'd list all of the steps for you!

1. Pull the active car that you’re using to power your own as close to your car as possible, without touching.
2. Make sure both vehicles are turned off.
3. Connect the cables appropriately.
   1. Take one end of the positive (red) jumper cable and connect it to the positive terminal of the dead battery.
   2. Connect the other end of the positive (red) jumper cable to the positive terminal of the charged battery.
   3. Connect one end of the negative (black) jumper cable to the negative terminal on the charged battery.
   4. Take the other end of the negative (black) jumper cable and ground it.

i.      Ground the negative cable by hooking it up to an unpainted (and clean!) metal surface under your car’s hood—not the engine. We recommend a nut or a bolt.
ii.      If you cannot find an okay place to ground the cable, then connect it to the dead battery’s negative terminal.

1. Turn on the charged car, allowing it to run for about three minutes.
2. Start the engine of the disabled vehicle.
3. If successful, disconnect the cables in the exact opposite order in which you originally connected them.

There you have it; the proper way to jump start a car!