How to Jump Start Your Acura in 4 Simple Steps

Most people have encountered the inconvenience of a vehicle battery that won’t start, but you can avoid getting stranded by learning how to jump start a car. The jump-starting process can often give you enough power to reach your Acura dealer for a diagnosis. Follow these four simple steps for a safe jump start so you can get back on the road as quickly as possible.

How to Jump Start a Car: 4 Steps From Your Acura Dealer

1. Gather the Necessary Equipment

You’ll need a set of jumper cables and a second car with a working battery to jump your Acura, so you may need to find a friend or neighbor to lend their vehicle for a few minutes. A small screwdriver makes it easier to remove the battery’s terminal covers, and a flashlight can improve visibility while you work.

2. Find the Battery Terminals

Park the working car so its hood faces the hood of your car. Then, open the hoods of both vehicles and find the battery terminals. The positive terminal has a plus sign marking and a red wire, while the negative battery terminal has a minus sign and a black wire.

3. Attach the Jumper Cables

Next, you’ll attach the clamps of the jumper cables to the battery terminals of each vehicle. You’ll match the jumper cable colors to the corresponding wire colors (red to red, black to black). Start by separating the jumper cables so none of the clamps are touching one another. Be careful to keep the clamps from coming into contact throughout the process.

Attach the red clamp to the dead battery’s positive terminal, ensuring that it has a tight connection. Once it’s set, attach the other red clamp to the positive terminal of the live battery before attaching the black clamp to the negative component of the live battery. Finally, instead of attaching the black clamp to the negative terminal of the dead battery, clamp it to an unpainted component under the hood like a bolt head to prevent sparks.

4. Jump Your Car

Start the working car and let the engine run for a few minutes with the cables attached to rejuvenate the other battery. Then, try to start your car again with the jumper cables attached. If it works, disconnect the jumper cables in the opposite order, removing the black clamp from the hood, then both clamps from the live battery, and finally the red clamp from your vehicle battery.

If this process doesn’t work, your Acura may need a new battery. Even if you successfully jump-start your car, you may want to check for possible underlying issues. Reach out to Open Road Acura of Wayne, NJ to schedule a service appointment with our experienced professional techs. 

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