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Unable to jump start another car using my 2013 Terrain - tried 2 sets of cables

46K views 35 replies 18 participants last post by  Alan47717 
#1 ·
I have Tried 2 pairs of Jumper cables to Jump-start my fiance's Beetle.

After connecting/reconnecting both pairs several times, car running, not running etc etc.. I tapped the cables together to see if it would even spark.. Nope (did this with both sets of cables)

I do not find it likely I have 2 sets of bad cables, is there something that makes it not possible to jump another car with a Terrain, or is there some other hoop I need to jump through because it has remote terminals?
 
#27 ·
dad called me yesterday- said his Trailblazer would not start.
Luckily he was nearby.

So instead of jumping him with the Traverse or Equinox.

I grabbed the battery out of my 1970 Chevy.
Took it and a set of jumper cables.

set it on the floor and we jumped the Trailblazer.
The battery was 5.5 yrs old.
 
#35 ·
I recently experienced a bad battery and had to find somebody who can do a jump start over a cable with another vehicle. It got me thinking I don't want to bother other people of the misery of having a bad battery in the middle of the night. Luckily there is this Truck Pac ES6000 Jump Starter Review 2021 | Guide & FAQ | MOTORING CRUNCH
Yeah ... I lot of us have those portable jumper boxes. I bought the one from Harbor Fake (Viking), and have used it successfully to jump my Dad's Impala from a dead-dead state:


I have never jumped anyone off my 2011 Equinox, though, and I hope I never do. Just afraid of damaging the electronics.

I remember one time here at work, someone with a '97-ish Grand Prix needed a jump, and a co-worker jumped it from his '97 Monte Carlo. Well, that was the end of the Monte Carlo's Alternator! Had never seen that happen before!
 
#30 ·
If jumping someone else make sure your vehicle is turned off when connecting cables. That minimizes any spikes or surges protecting your vehicle. If their battery is that flat and needs a slight charge then you run your engine to charge it then turn yours off before retrying to start the dead one. Again that isolates your electronics protecting your vehicle.
 
#31 ·
You’re never supposed to connect two car batteries in parallel ... but probably 90% of people do ... by connecting POS to POS and NEG to NEG. When you make that last connection and it sparks/arcs on the battery post, there’s a chance the battery could explode. That’s why you make that last NEG connection on the Dead car away from the battery, on a good ground point. If it sparks/arcs there, there’s no chance the battery will explode.

To remember the order of putting the cables on the batteries, I use the following:

Start with B+, End with B-

So: Bad POS to Good POS, then Good Neg To Bad NEG (but use engine ground point, NOT the NEG post on the Bad Battery!)
 
#36 ·
If you mean me sorry for the capitals. Didn't notice.
I was just saying if you are giving someone a boost you want to remove the cables before they make an attempt to start their vehicle
Although I suppose you could attempt to charge the dead car's battery, allowing the removal of the cables(would take a long time), you have to leave the cables connected for jump starting purposes.
 
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