By providing proper care and routine MINI service, we hope to help our customers avoid dead batteries and other dangerous problems on the road. But sometimes, accidents happen, like leaving your headlights on and unintentionally draining your battery.
To help you in the event of an emergency, our service experts compiled this brief overview of how to safely jump your battery.
Jumpstart Checklist
Before you jump your MINI vehicle, you’ll need a working set of jump leads, which come in some vehicle safety kits. If you don’t have a set, you can usually buy jump leads at gas stations, auto parts stores, and big-box stores.
You’ll also need a car with a fully-charged battery in close proximity to the dead one, preferably hood-to-hood so that the cords can reach. Before you attach any cables, run make sure to:
- Never jump start a battery that looks damaged or is leaking
- Never use jump leads that are damaged
- Stop jumpstart if the jump leads get hot
- Never allow smoke or flames anywhere near the batteries
- Watch out for any dangling clothing or metal objects that could come into contact with the batteries
Jumpstart Checklist
- Line up both cars in a safe area.
- Connect the red jump lead to the positive (+) terminals on each battery.
- Connect the black jump lead to the negative (-) terminal on the working battery, then to an earthing point (unpainted metal on the engine block or chassis) away from the flat battery and fuel system.
- Start the working car and let it run for a minute.
- Start the dead car and let both cars run for five to 10 minutes.
- Turn off the vehicles and disconnect the black ends first and then the red ends, never letting any of the ends touch one another.
- Restart your car.
If you still can’t start your vehicle, give us a call. If you’re looking for an auto parts store in Orlando, you can trust Orlando MINI. Visit us soon!
