Car Problems

abrcrombe

abrcrombe

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Ok, So I don't know CRAP about engines... never learned. So my GF's battery dies, and guess who comes to her rescue... not me. I tried though. I hooked up my jumper cables incorrectly (battery POSITIVE was hooked up to wire NEGATIVE, and vice versa). Stupid me didn't know what color was what, I thought as long as they were the same color on POS or NEG it would be fine. Then we tried starting it, nothing. I turn off my car, and SWITCH the wires on her car... without taking it off mine. SPARKS!! crap... Now the interior of my car smells like a burned smell, and her car still does not start. I am pretty sure I messed up her battery, but what did I do to my car? Weird thing, when I turn it off, the heater/ac comes on for like 2 seconds until the automatic lights turn off. Thanks in advance. :(
 
Probably you blew some fuses... sounds electrical now, which could be complicated.
good luck with it! sorry, i asked my husband who is quite good with cars, just not detailing.....
 
If the sparks were bad you most likely shorted the terminals, as for the smell, if your interior has a "burn" smell I would check your wiring as something either melted or got seriously hot enough to give off an odor, check your fuses (might have shorted something on your car as well if it was that bad, especially if your a/c is acting up after the car is turned off lol)

Red = Pos
Black = Neg
:D
 
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Check my wiring? Which wires should I check? What should I be looking for? More importantly, check all the same things on my GF's car?
 
This one time I was trying to air up the tires on my '97 Dodge with one of those pumps that you connect to the cigarette plug. Well, apparantly the load was too much and I melted the wires behind my dash. Had to take the dash apart and make sure everything was correct. Rewiring the burnt cable was a right pain.

Always be careful when charging another car as I've melted the terminals before when doing it incorrectly. Yes, very scary stuff sometimes!
 
Yes the wiring behind the dash, I don't know how it is on your car, but generally you can see some of the wiring under the drivers side dash but the bulk of it is behind it.....not fun removing the dash lol, at least it wasn't on my other suv when redoing a system I had. It really sounds like you have a burnt/melted wiring and shorted fuse (or some other circuit) if your a/c is doing that when switched off, a/c wiring would not be tied to your lights (again unless something shorted/melted out and is now "completing" a circuit to flow through).

If anything take it to a good mechanic for a second opinion and see what they say.
 
Well, I will be getting a new car within a month or so... so the main concern is on my GF's car. I will check all the wiring I can, fuses, and hopefully everything works out.
 
First check all your fuses, then check wiring. try smelling them, looking for that burned smell.
That really suck. Pay close attention next time.

good luck.
 
abrcrombe said:
Ok, So I don't know CRAP about engines... never learned. So my GF's battery dies, and guess who comes to her rescue... not me. I tried though. I hooked up my jumper cables incorrectly (battery POSITIVE was hooked up to wire NEGATIVE, and vice versa). Stupid me didn't know what color was what, I thought as long as they were the same color on POS or NEG it would be fine. Then we tried starting it, nothing. I turn off my car, and SWITCH the wires on her car... without taking it off mine. SPARKS!! crap... Now the interior of my car smells like a burned smell, and her car still does not start. I am pretty sure I messed up her battery, but what did I do to my car? Weird thing, when I turn it off, the heater/ac comes on for like 2 seconds until the automatic lights turn off. Thanks in advance. :(
Click to expand...

As far as jump starting a car goes you had it OK the first time. It really does not matter with jumper cables which color as long as they are attached the same on the batteries POS to POS, NEG to NEG.
That said, a wise person gets in habits. Usually (unless your very old and of British origin) the battery cables in the car will be two colors. The BLACK one is always NEG. If you follow the cable it will be very short and attached to the car frame somewhere nearby. Put the NEG cable on the battery first and the BLACK one can attach ANYWHERE metal on the car thats grounded, frame bolt, radiator mount (watch out for the fan), etc. On my BMW you cannot even see the battery (its in the trunk) but there is a red post in the engine bay just for this purpose.

As for your car, if everything still runs it is not a fuse problem. If its a newer car you may have oopsied one of the control computers when you shorted your battery. If the "spark" session was VERY short you might just need it reset. You probably need the appropriate diagnostic device (ie "mechanic") to read it to know what needs fixin.

Not enough info on GF car not starting to tell. Does it turn over? Does it just make clicking sounds? Does it do nothing? Do the lights work? All indicate different problems
 
Well on my GF's car, it has been having funky problems lately. This is the second time it did not start, but the first time it got jumped fine. After the sparks, the lights still work, it makes clicking sounds, does not turn over (that is when it like... starts to start but doesn't right?). We got the battery tested and that is all fine, but still does not work. She feels it was something that happened previously that is not causing it to start. We are taking it in to the shop today.
 
The clicking when you turn the key is usually the starter trying to turn the engine over.

It will click for various reasons, but it's normally low voltage. This can be caused by low battery voltage, corroded or loose connections, or internal starter problems. With low battery voltage, you'll still have some power to turn the lights on and run the accessories, but not enough to fully power the starter motor.

Repeatedly cranking a starter with low voltage to it will cause premature failure. Good call getting it to a shop. Curious to see what they find...good luck.
 
abrcrombe said:
...I hooked up my jumper cables incorrectly (battery POSITIVE was hooked up to wire NEGATIVE, and vice versa). Stupid me didn't know what color was what, I thought as long as they were the same color on POS or NEG it would be fine. Then we tried starting it, nothing. I turn off my car, and SWITCH the wires on her car... without taking it off mine. SPARKS!!...
Click to expand...

Always check your car's operators manual for information about jumpstarting your car.

Connecting the battery cables positive to positive and negative to negative from one car to the other is NOT the correct / safe way to jump start a battery. Doing it this way greatly increases your risk of having a potentially serious accident. Batteries contain some pretty nasty acids (i.e sulfuric acid) that can quickly burn your skin or eyes, etc, in addition to producing hydrogen gas, which is both flammable & explosive. When a battery is overcharged or jumped, it will out-gas. Also, if the battery is cracked and or leaking / out-gassing and a spark occurs at the right place / time when connecting your jumper cable to the terminal of the dead battery, then you run the risk of this battery exploding. You could easily be seriously injured and or killed from the explosion or shrapnel.

I’ve seen people do this the wrong way more times than I can remember and most of the time there’s never problem, but it’s never a problem for most people until it happens to them. Don’t take the chance that most people take when they connect their jumper cables incorrectly. Plenty of people have been seriously injured or killed from battery explosions.

Too correctly jump start a battery from one car to another, you’ll want to…
First check the batteries for cracks, corrosion and or loose wires, especially on the car you’re jumping. Don’t jump it if the battery is cracked or oozing acid, etc. If the terminals are corroded, then clean them first.
I’d recommend wearing some type of safety goggle just to be safe. Chances are slim that you’ll have a problem, but it only takes a split second to loose an eye from acid or shrapnel, etc.

Never ever smoke or do something to cause sparks around a battery!
Make sure your jumper cables are in good condition (no tears in the insulation, etc) and are not corroded.
In this exact order…


1) Connect one end of the jumper cable (usually a red clamp) to the (+) terminal on the dead battery. Once you connect the first half of this cable, the other end is live and you must not touch it to anything metal at this time.

2) Connect the other end of this same cable (usually a red clamp) to the (+) terminal on the good battery.

3) Connect the other jumper cable (usually a black clamp) to the (-) terminal of the good battery.

4) Connect the other end of this jumper cable (usually a black clamp) to an unpainted metal surface (bracket, bolt, alternator, etc) on or connected to the engine. Do not connect it to the (-) terminal on the dead battery or any fuel lines or moving parts, etc.

Connecting the (-) jumper cable to a good engine ground will greatly minimize the chance of an explosion if the battery is out-gassing / leaking. Batteries WILL out-gas when they’re being jump started or overcharged. This gas is both flammable & explosive, which is why you do NOT want any sparks close to the battery.

Double check to make sure the cables will not get caught in any moving parts.

Make sure everyone is standing back from the both cars / batteries. Now start the car with the good battery.

Start the car with the dead battery. If the car with the dead battery isn’t turning over or is turning over slowly, then make sure your jumper cables are tightly clamped to a clean surface, especially the (-) cable on the car with the dead battery. If the car with the dead battery is still turning over slowly, then rev the engine (a little bit) on the good car while trying to start the car with the dead battery. Once it’s running, let the two vehicles idle for a few minutes.

Now you can remove the cables, but remove them in the reverse order and make sure the ends do not touch anything metal while disconnecting them and that they don’t get caught in any moving parts inside the engine.

And don’t throw your car battery in the trash because it needs to be disposed of properly. Call your city to find out where you can take hazardous waste or perhaps your local auto parts store or gas station will help you out.
 
UPDATE:
Car was taken to the shop (my GF's car) and electrical testing was performed. They replaced the starter and it works fine now. Hopefully that was all that needed replacing. Thanks for all the help guys!
 
:righton: Glad it's working properly again
 
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