What to Do When an Automatic Car's Battery Dies?
3 Answers
The most common cause of battery issues is when car owners leave their vehicles unused in one place for various reasons. Below are some solutions when the car battery runs out of power: 1. If you're on a highway or in a situation without help or tools, the only option is to contact an emergency assistance center. They can dispatch an emergency charging vehicle for a quick charge or arrange a tow truck to take your car to the nearest repair shop for charging and maintenance. 2. If you can easily find a fully charged battery with the same voltage as your car's battery, you can use an external battery to start the car. Connect the positive terminal of the car's battery to the positive terminal of the fully charged battery, then connect both negative terminals. After that, start the car. Once the car is running, first disconnect the negative terminal connection, followed by the positive terminal connection.
Last time when I drove back from camping in the suburbs, my car was parked by the roadside and the battery suddenly died without any response. I always keep a set of jumper cables in my car, so I quickly found a passing car to help. I connected the red clamp to the positive terminals of both cars, and the black clamp to the negative terminal of my car and a metal part of the other car’s frame. Then, I asked the other driver to start their engine, and within seconds, my car was able to start. The key to the whole process is to ensure that the clamps do not come into contact with water or oil to avoid a short circuit. If the battery frequently dies, you should check the alternator and charging system, or replace it with a new battery. It’s a good habit to open the engine compartment before driving to avoid such troubles. Prevention is better than cure, so I also use a multimeter to check the battery voltage every month to ensure it’s within the normal range. In such situations, never push the car—pushing an automatic transmission car can damage the gearbox.
As a new car owner, I was totally panicked when my battery died for the first time. The car just wouldn't start in the supermarket parking lot. Then I remembered the portable jump starter my friend recommended. I took that little box out of the trunk, connected the cables to the battery terminals, pressed the button, and the car started right away. These tools only cost a few hundred bucks online - super practical and safe, much more convenient than asking for a jump start. After this incident, I've become smarter: I now regularly monitor my battery health via a mobile app and subscribed to a roadside assistance membership where they'll handle it with just a phone call. This situation is especially scary for automatic transmission drivers - push-starting doesn't work and might damage the car. My advice? Learn basic car maintenance to avoid being clueless like I was. For prevention, minimize power consumption from headlights or AC when parked to extend battery life.
