Who keeps jumper cables in their car?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
81

Absolutely. I use them on average at least once a year, averaged over the three cars in the family, though this includes helping others (or jumping one of my cars from another of my own cars), and also due to a stretch of about 10 years where one of my kids regularly left a door or the hatch not shut all the way, or a cabin light on, and the battery would drain out.

We also mostly drive infrequently and short distances, which are bad for battery life, especially in cars with an alarm system, and also keep the cars for 10+ years, which means we’ve had to get a new battery at least once per car, and usually the sign of being to do so is “gee, I’ve had to jump this car twice this winter, maybe it’s time for a new battery”.

One car which I drive only once every 2 weeks or so now I’ve begun putting on a battery tender on the weekends.

82

Depends on the car. Modern cars should be completely safe and shouldn’t leak fuel when rear ended, but you might want to Google your year and model to see if there are any such reports. Some Jeeps (Cherokee, Liberty) have had issues in the past, Police Interceptor Crown Vics should have been fixed, but you might want to verify your car if you happen to have one, and of course the Pinto, but that’s not really modern.

Of course if your fuel tank ruptures and inflames, the flares will be the least of your worries!

83

I carry jumper cables for all of the reasons listed above (not the best quality set, but good 'nuff) and a tow strap, mostly for my benefit and out of habit, my little jeep patriot couldn’t pull crap, and doesn’t handle so well in the snow.

chappachula no, well maybe if you hook the cables up wrong, but then again if you do that you’ve fried the entire electrical system anyway, not just the ECU. ECUs in cars are designed for coping with jumping another vehicle/getting a jump from another vehicle.

ninjad by,everyone

84

Well, if you are concerned, get one of those battery powered jumper thingees, where you dont even attach your car to his.

That’s what i do.

85

I drive a 20 year old Dodge Dakota with a 10 year old battery, but I stopped carrying jumper cables because I’ve never needed them for myself and everyone else in KY seems to have them. I’ve given about 10 jumps this year with my truck (one this past Wednesday) and the person asking has always had cables hooked up and ready to go - never taken more than a couple of minutes.

Plus it’s very hilly around here. While waiting for a starter solenoid for my bike, I simply pointed it downhill and popped the clutch; I could do the same with my truck.

86

I have the whole kit and kaboodle in my Jeep: jumper cables, fire extinguisher, basic tools, blanket, fluids, breakdown reflective triangles, and so on. In just the last two years I’ve jumped three stranded cars (including my mail carrier’s USPS van) and got to use the extinguisher this summer when my battery caught on fire (long story).

The only tools I carry in the BMW are a few replacement fuses and the phone numbers for the tow service and my mechanic :

Though I’m guilty of not having cables in one car ^^ I’m surprised that most people don’t carry jumpers. In Ye Olden Days, everyone had 'em.

87

A couple of years ago I took the bike out on a short ride just to warm the chain up, and stopped to lube it. Got back on and it wouldn’t start. I pushed it up a hill, and coasted down and dumped the clutch. No go. So I repeated 2 more times. Then realized my kill switch was on. I was so exhausted I thought I was going to die.

88

I have AAA Premier, but I still carry jumper cables, a tool kit, emergency supplies and a light trauma kit in the SUV at all times. Old habits die hard.

89

I do. I know how to use them too. I am a “girl from the North country” abd long ago learned to use them safely. They aren’t needed much here in Vancouver but I have used them from time to time; especially on an old 1981 Econoline van we used to borrow from my husband’s boss. In general people seem to be scared of the though. When I find someone with a dead battery I offer to help but in general people say “Oh I will call BCAA” instead. People seen genuinely concerned that you will fry the electrical system “if you do it wrong”. I understand this happens but I kave NEVER seen it and I grew up where weeks of -40 happened every year.

I

90

I like to share this story for people like you because I used to be like you–although I did always carry jumper cables, I didn’t carry stuff to fix a flat tire beyond what I assumed would be in the car.

I was on my way to a friend’s house in West Virginia, en route to his hunting cabin. I have a BMW M3, now before assuming this isn’t an appropriate vehicle for rugged roads–I agree, but I was on a U.S. Highway, not some ridiculous West Virginia dirt/gravel back road. Plan was to get to my friend’s house, then he had a large SUV we’d use to get to the cabin. I was on US-33 about an hour east of Elkins, WV, when I got a flat tire. Okay, I’ve been driving for decades and have changed many a flat. I know I’m kind of far away from any nearby tow company, so even though I have AAA I opt to get out and change it myself to save time.

Now, I’ve typically not owned BMWs, and have never changed the tire on one. I quickly discover, perhaps I should’ve known this–on the M Series there is no spare tire, no donut or anything. Instead they have some over-engineered equivalent of Fix-A-Flat spray with a device designed to repressurize the tire. The issue was, looking at the damage to the tire and the distance I still had to go, I knew this wasn’t going to get the job done. So I call AAA, they contact a nearby tow company, and I’m told help is on the way. Great, this is why I pay for AAA, right?

About 30 minutes later I get a call from the tow driver, he says that AAA had called him and he wanted to verify where I was. I tell him, and to my shock he tells me that I’m “way too far away, AAA only pays me $x, and it’s just not worth it for me to drive all the way out there, you may want to see if there’s someone who is closer who will come out for you.” I won’t waste time explaining the whole sordid follow up, but I basically spent like four hours on the side of the road haggling to get random WV tow drives to come way out in the middle of nowhere to tow me to town, and AAA never makes it right, either, when I make the next-week bitch out call to them.

Now, in my case it’s not real easy to have been “more prepared”, because my car doesn’t even have a place to store a spare, and I’m not a big fan of the run-flat option (can easily damage the wheel/rim.) I’ve just recognized I need to have alternatives available on travels through more rural areas, and while I like the M3 as a daily driver I use a different vehicle for road trips now, in addition to having cancelled AAA and stocked my trip vehicle with the MacGuyver of preparedness stuff.

91

I always keep jumper cables, pliers, clamps, plugs, towels, lubricants, and condoms in my nightstand.

92

I’ve got a car that is just barely over a year old. I also have cables. In that year, I have given jump starts to at least a half dozen people.

93

Jumper cables are the things every smart driver carried 30 years ago, including me. But unless you are driving through an extremely remote area now, if you have a cellphone (doesn’t everyone?) and a relatively new car, I just can’t see having cables now, including me. Heck, when younger, I wouldn’t want the humiliation of calling AAA just to change a tire (or tow me out of a ditch), but now, I consider AAA to be the reason I don’t have to get out of my car for an emergency, ever.

94

6 AWG minium, 4 is even better, but there’s a tradeoff between bulk, expense, and quality.

95

**Whoa there, Bubba. **
The person who I knew was in charge of a fleet of trucks for a small company & had the jumper cables pulled out of every on of them (20+ ?). Jumper battery packs were put in them to replace them. A memo was also sent company wide that ANYONE caught having jumper cables in their vehicle would be suspended for a week without pay.

Now that’s just what I saw in the workforce personally. Maybe I can interest you in some ‘cites’ backing me up in this?

from the comments:

At Witz’ End - Throw away those old jumper cables… they could damage your car!

Article is titled “Why you shouldn’t jumpstart a modern car”

https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110217194611AAzzJIo

Well, these are some cites that back me up. Granted its your car, do what you want… and I probably would have let it go until you said it “wasn’t true at all”. :mad:

I think I deserve some cites from you to back up that strong worded claim, don’t you? Something from no earlier than 2010. And if not, perhaps a nice retraction/rephrasing…?

Thanks!

96

Dont be sorry. I am a volunteer ranger, and I carried a trauma kit with QuikClot all the time. I ran into some dad panicking as his little girl had bashed her knee really bad on a trail, and his cell wasnt getting a signal.

I showed & helped him apply pressure and Quikclot and sent some young lad up the trail to call the rangers when the cell got reception. The Rangers and paramedic got there almost the same time, and the medic said the girl was so little that the blood loss was dangerous and the aid likely saved her life.

So, carry that trauma kit- and you do have Quikclot or the equivalent, right?

97

Wimp :smiley:

This road (and I use the term “road” very loosely) gets you to this view.

Yup. Be lucky you had an older M with the M Mobility Kit- normally the spare tire well is filled with a piece of styrofoam, in which are seated lots of expensive electronic components. Into which the sunroof drains empty.

These days, “run-flat” tires are common, which allow you to supposedly drive up to 50 miles at reduced speed. The early ones were abysmal (think of a ride like Fred Flintstone’s car), shops didn’t stock them, and so on. I’m told they’re better now, but I’m still running regular tires on the wagon.

BTW, it is a good idea to inform the tire shop that you used a can of the goop before asking them to make a more permanent repair. It gives the operator of the bead-breaker a chance to put on a raincoat and goggles. :slight_smile:

98

Jumper cables used to be carried by everyone “back in the day” - in the days of carburetors before fuel injection, before electronic ignition (points and condensor).

Wintertime was a sketchy time, lots of block heaters and folks rigging 150 watt incandescent light bulbs to the intake manifold, to help vaporize the fuel. Since a cold start often led to flooding a common result was grinding the starter until the battery was dead. Thus jumper cables were a necessary accessory. Modern engines are MUCH better in this regard so it is not nearly as common to find them carried.

One thing to keep in mind when offering to jump start another vehicle, is each situation is unique, and the amount of stored potential energy in an automotive start battery is large. They can explode, it’s not “common” but it is by no means “rare” either. Under no circumstances should a frozen battery be jump started. While a fully charged battery will not freeze until -50F say, a dead battery will freeze at around +20F, and may explode. An old neglected battery may be low on electrolyte, and the internal battery plates exposed. This is another sketchy proposition.

A jump start is really an emergency situation, a better choice if possible is to install a serviceable battery, but in any case once the vehicle is started the alternator should not be tasked to recharge the battery. It takes about 18 hours for this to work and may well roast the alternator innards or voltage regulator. Get the battery on a dedicated plug-in charger as soon as practicable and charged that way, your alternator and/or other sensitive electrical fiddly bits (and your wallet) will thank you. Some thought should be given to having the battery load tested as well, if the headlights were left on (modern vehicles have protection against this) then the reason for the dead battery is immediately apparent, but generally a battery will perform well until the end of its usual expected service life. In much of the country 5 or 6 years is about it.

Labor rates and parts ($$$) being what they are keeping a good battery installed and good cables and grounds on our modern vehicles is money VERY well spent.

99

The times, they sure are changing.

According to the National Roads and Motorists’ Association (NRMA) article you listed:

*–An NRMA technician can revive a flat battery in a modern car by supplying power to the battery but only by following the official jumpstart procedure.

–“Your mate can’t jumpstart the car anymore – the NRMA has to do it for you.”

–Most definitely not ‘technology well beyond the grasp of the regular motorist and their vehicle.’ … Plus they’ll all usually have labels telling you the correct order & location for the leads (it’s not battery to battery for all 4 connections…).

–Follow the manufacturers instructions on jump starting the car.

Darrin: If you follow the manufacturer’s instructions, ensure you have the correct test equipment and tools to jumpstart the vehicle safely.

–I’ve Been an Auto Electrician for 15 years and install ECUs and computers into cars and never have I hurt anything from a jumpstart if the procedure is followed correctly!! Many a time you will find its dodgy leads bought from Servos that don’t allow enough current to travel through them due to bad wire or terminations. These modules are generally designed to run from 9v to 15v this very reason.

Darrin: You’re absolutely right. Unfortunately, most of our Members aren’t auto electricians!

–OK so if I need a jump start will there be anticipated damage if the positives are linked and the black (negative) lead is attached to a part of the motor/chassis? Is this now a no no?

Darrin: You are describing correct procedure. The negative lead needs to go onto a good known earth, for example unpainted metal.*
It sounds as if a 12vdc battery that drops under 9v (or whatever the individual vehicle manufacture recommends), it could cause under-voltage damage to some electrical components. Oh joy!

And if someone accidentally connects two 12vdc (12.6 actual volts) in series, the 25.2vdc is going to fry some very expensive components. Oops.

Having said that, it still seems possible to jump start a 12vdc vehicle with a 2nd 12vdc battery. Assuming you have no “dodgy leads” (aka poor electrical connections), adding a 12.6v battery in parallel with a 8.5v battery should provide the voltage needed to start the disabled vehicle without doing any additional damage to the magic boxes under the hood. It also assumes that the 2nd battery isn’t attached to a running vehicle (jumping-car isn’t running)???

Now I’m wondering if I should ground myself to the vehicle before I begin the process (yes, it’s now a process) of changing the engine oil?

Many decades ago, I owned a 4-speed Datsun Maxima. While driving 60 mph into Chicago, very late at night with temps in the teens, my engine quit. Three times. Each time, I stomped on the clutch (after bouncing off the steering wheel), and was able to bump start the engine without having to pull off the road. That was an interesting drive. I managed to get the car back home, and found that my battery had a dead cell. 12.6v minus 2.1v equal 10.5v. While looking thru the shop manual, I discovered that if the $250 ignition module didn’t receive a minimum of 10.5vdc, the ignition module wouldn’t turn on. I could crank the engine, but the spark plugs will not fire. Or in my case, the ignition would shut down and the plugs wouldn’t fire. It acted as if I had slammed on the brakes. Yippee, a new battery and a new ignition module.

100

Twenty years ago, while on contract in a Hell-Hole, I had reason to buy a battery charger.
I had one or two trickle chargers at home.
The store I wen to had cheap, wheeled “carts” with heavy amperage circuitry with cheap cables and a meter showing battery “health”. It also had a selector:
2 amp (trickle)
10 amp (fast charge)
“Start”.

Best $35 I have yet spent on car-related stuff.

Between finding the door was ajar all night and battery dead to dead alternator, that little “Start” option has saved my butt a couple of times.

These new battery packs are a great invention. If nothing else, they make the old starter carts (seen on shoddy Used Car lots everywhere it gets cold) available dirt cheap.