BRO Original
The Honest Instruction Manual: Jump-Starting a Car
A deadpan retired mechanic narrates as his movie-trained son-in-law jump-starts a dead car like it's the big finale, while his daughter quietly holds the jump pack he keeps walking past.
Kevin treats a dead battery like the last ten minutes of an action movie, with a headlamp at noon, a trailer voice and a hospital-drama 'Clear!', while Dana holds the answer in her hand the whole time. Walt dryly walks you through the real job: setting up both cars, the safe clamp order, why the last clamp goes on bare engine metal, taking the cables off in reverse, and what to do once it starts.
What you'll learn
- Set up: both cars off, in Park, parking brakes on, lights and radio off, parked close but not touching. Check the owner's manual first, because some cars have remote jump posts.
- Never jump a cracked, leaking or frozen battery. Keep sparks and flames away, because batteries can give off hydrogen gas. Wear safety glasses.
- Find positive (the plus sign, usually under a red cover). Red clamp on the dead battery's positive, the other red on the good battery's positive, then black on the good battery's negative.
- The last black clamp goes on bare, unpainted metal on the dead car's engine block, away from the battery, or on the ground point your manual shows. Never on the dead battery's negative, because that connection can spark.
- Keep cables, hands and anything loose, like hoodie strings, clear of fans and belts. Start the good car and let it run a few minutes, then start the dead car. If it won't start after a few tries, stop, because it could be something else.
- Remove the cables in reverse order: black off the metal, black off the good car, red off the good car, red off the dead car. Never let the clamps touch each other or metal.
- Drive at least 20-30 minutes, then get the battery tested.
- Tip: a charged portable jump starter pack in the trunk means you don't need a second car. Use it according to its own manual.
Read the transcript
Walt: My son-in-law's jump-starting a car. He's wearing a headlamp. It's noon.
Walt: That's Kevin. Everything he knows about cars... he learned from movies.
Kevin: In a world... where one battery dies... one man... brings cables.
Dana: Kev. Jump pack. No second car... no speech.
Walt: Both cars off, in Park, parking brakes on. Lights, radio off. Close... not touching. Check the manual. Some cars have remote jump posts.
Walt: Kevin wanted them touching. 'Good energy.' Cars don't hug, Kevin.
Walt: Never jump a cracked, leaking or frozen battery. Keep sparks and flames away. Batteries can give off hydrogen. Wear safety glasses.
Walt: I said safety glasses. He added safety glasses.
Kevin: Charging... CLEAR!
Walt: Not that show, Kevin. Positive's the plus sign, usually a red cover. Red on the dead battery's positive. Other red: good positive. Black: good negative.
Walt: Last black: bare, unpainted metal on the dead car's engine block, away from the battery. Or your manual's ground point. Never the dead battery's negative. It can spark. Keep loose clamps apart.
Dana: Not the battery. The block. ...The block. ...Thank you.
Walt: Cables, hands, anything loose... clear of fans and belts. Hoodie strings too, Kevin.
Walt: Dana took the hoodie. He took that harder than the battery.
Walt: Start the good car. Let it run a few minutes. Then the dead one. Few tries, nothing? Stop. Could be something else.
Kevin: It started! CLEAR! ...Wrong show. I know. Somebody should invent a little box for this.
Dana: They did, babe. My trunk. Since spring. You've moved it twice to fit your cables.
Walt: Off in reverse: black off the metal, black off the good car, red off good, red off dead.
Walt: Clamps never touch each other. Then drive at least twenty, thirty minutes and get the battery tested. ...I skipped that once. Walked home. Twice.
Walt: Keep a charged jump pack in your trunk, and read its manual. I'm buying Kevin one. ...He'll move it to fit his cables. Good kid. That's a BRO Original.
More on this in Autos.