If you find yourself stranded with a dead car battery, don’t panic! Even if you’re not the best at DIY, it’s quick and easy to fix a car battery.
Check out this post for simple step-by-step instructions on how to revive your vehicle in no time.
Here’s what you’ll need
- Step 1 – Find the Circuit Breaker
Once you’ve popped the hood, assess the situation. The first thing to do is find the car battery. Look above it for a wiring harness.
This connects to several wires that run throughout your car and is protected by a plastic covering (also known as a “jumper box”). If you see any exposed wires, disconnect them and leave the jumper box attached.
- Step 2 – Disconnect the Negative and Positive Cables
The next step is to remove the negative cable from the car battery. However, before you do that, disconnect the positive cable from your battery.
This will protect you from getting electrocuted when removing the negative cable with your bare hands. If you’re not comfortable doing this yourself, move on to step 3.
- Step 3 – Wrap the Cables
Once you’ve removed the negative and positive cables, wrap them around the new booster cables (they have a claw-like clip at one end so that you can easily pinch them together). Don’t pull on the cables too tight, or else they’ll break. If you’re not sure what to do with your wires and want help, read how to install car battery cables and battery wires.
Now, connect the negative cable to your car battery first. If you’re uncomfortable with this process, DO NOT ATTEMPT IT. Have someone who has experience with car batteries help you. If the clamps are dirty and rusty, carefully scrape them with a knife or fingernail.
Make sure they don’t get stuck on the battery! Next, connect the positive cable to your battery and close up any wire brackets that you may have opened earlier.
- Step 4 – Fill the Cracks
After you’ve connected your cables, it’s time to fill any cracks and tears in your car battery. A big part of this process is based on luck, so if something doesn’t connect right away and you have no way to fix it, just move on.
Sometimes, the clips simply don’t line up with each other properly and can get stuck when trying to secure them together. If that happens, just remove the battery from your car and take a look at it from a different angle.
- Step 5 – Reinstall the Battery
Once your battery is all patched up, put it back where it belongs and attach the negative cable to your car’s frame. Make sure that you tighten each of the bolts surrounding the battery.
Don’t forget to reconnect any wires that you may have disconnected in Step 2. Once this process is done, reattach the positive cable. If your vehicle is a stick shift or automatic, any time you replace a battery, you should also replace your positive terminal’s bolt.
This prevents corrosion that can ruin your electrical system.
We ask you to note
Batteries have to be charged and discharged regularly to avoid losing their charge, but sometimes things happen like you leave the lights on overnight or it’s just too cold outside. When that happens, your car battery could die quickly and won’t start your car.
It’s full of information including what tools to have ready on hand before you get started and how to use those pieces of equipment.