Jump-starting your car

If you are planning a road trip this festive season, the last thing you want to deal with is a flat battery.

Jump-starting your car is thankfully an easy procedure and by following a few simple steps, your vehicle can be up and running in no time.

Firstly it’s important to buy a set of quality jumper cables and keep them in the boot of your car. If you don’t have jumper cables, you’ll have to source one from a friend or a good Samaritan.

How to restart your battery in the following steps:

•  Place both vehicles in either ‘park’ or neutral and turn off the ignition of both cars. Make sure to engage the handbrakes in both cars as well.
•  Attach one of the red clips to the positive terminal of your battery – it has ‘POS’ or ‘+’ on it, or it’s bigger than the negative terminal.
• Attach the other red clip to the positive terminal of the other car.
• Attach one of the black clips to the negative terminal on the working battery.
• Attach the last black clip to an unpainted metal surface on your car that is not near the battery. This will help ensure a safe, grounded jump.
• Make sure to connect jumper cables in the proper order.
• Start the working vehicle and let the engine run for a few minutes.
• Try to start your vehicle.
• If it will not start, make sure that the cables are properly connected to the working car’s engine for five minutes. Then try to start your car again. If it still won’t start, your battery may be beyond help.
• If the jump works and your car starts, keep the engine running and drive around for at least 15 minutes to recharge your battery. If the car won’t start the next time you use it, the battery isn’t holding a charge and needs to be replaced.