5 Must Things To Do When Car Battery Dies

What to do when car battery dies? This is a common and important question that every car owner needs to know the answer to before driving. 

But, most of us get confused and panic when the car battery dies, especially when the car battery dies on the road or in the middle of nowhere.

Your car battery dies for various reasons in any situation; therefore, it’s worth knowing what to do if the car battery dies.

By understanding every point we share here, you are going to know exactly what to do when your car battery dies while driving or in the cold or middle of nowhere.

Here, from our own experiences and tests, we are going to show you what to do when your car battery dies, what causes a car battery to die and lastly, some emergency items to keep in your car for a dead battery.

What To Do When Car Battery Dies

Jump-starting the car battery is the most effective thing to do when car battery dies. But, if you do not have experience with Jump-starting a vehicle, calling an auto mechanic can be the best thing to do when your car battery dies.

Here are some useful things to do when your car battery dies:

1. Jump Start The Car
2. Give Some Time
3. Push-Start The Car
4. Check The Car Battery Charge Level
5. Call A Auto Mechanic

1. Jump-Start The Car

If a car battery dies, the most useful thing to do is jump-start the car. No matter what situation you are stuck with your dead car battery, jump start your car can get you out.

Also, the most common dead car battery trick that car owners follow is the jump-starting dead car battery. If your car battery dies on the road, jump-starting your car battery becomes easier for you.

But, you must know how to jump-start the car properly; otherwise it’s not going to start your car battery; instead, it makes your battery worse.

We share how you can jump-start your car when the battery dies:

• Step 1: Get jumper cables
  If you have jumper cables on your vehicle, it would be the best, but if you don’t, then help other car owners with jumper cables.

• Step 2: Park both cars
  As you know, you are going to need another car’s help to jump-start your car, and you also park both cars with the engine completely off.

• Step 3: Complete the jumper cable’s red clip connection
  Open your car hood to proceed with the jumper cable connections between both cars. First, attach positive or red clips to the positive battery terminal of your car, and then other red clips of jumper cable attract to the other car battery’s positive terminal.

• Step 4: Black clip connection
  Take a black clip of the jumper cable and attract it to the negative terminal of the other vehicle’s battery. Now, you just need to attach another black clip of jumper cables to your car’s unpainted metal.

• Step 5: Start the working vehicles
  After completing the jumper cables connection between the dead car battery and working car battery, now you need to start the working car and let the engine run for a few moments.

• Step 6: Try to start your car
  Try to start your car when your car starts. You are good to go. But, if your car is not starting, then ensure the jumper battery connection is right and try again.

A dead car battery needs to jump-start often; that’s why your car battery does not start after jump start several times, which means your car battery cannot hold the charge. So, test your car battery with a professional.

See Also: Reasons Why New Car Battery Dead

2. Give Some Time

Car owners hesitate to think about what to do when the car battery dies. You must calm down and think with your knowledge regarding dead batteries.

For various reasons, your car battery does not work as it should, making your car battery too slow to provide power for starting your vehicle.

So, sometimes giving your car a little more time to start can be the best thing to do when your car battery dies.

But, if you are in the middle of the road, first, you need to make sure you are not on the road. Take your vehicle to the side of the road and then leave it for a few moments.

From our experience with dead car batteries, we found that cars start when we give it some time and start several times again.

In your case, if your car won’t open after some time, you can perform a jump-start with another car’s help.

Check Out: Ways To Move A Car With A Dead Battery

3. Push-Start The Car

Another useful thing to do when your car battery dies is push-starting your car with a dead battery, and performing push-start is actually effective and easy.

But, push-start with a dead car battery is only eligible for vehicles with a manual transmission, not an automatic transmission. If you drive a manual transmission, you can push-start your car.

To push-start your car with a dead car battery, you are going to need 1 or 2 friends who are capable of pushing the vehicle until the vehicle starts.

Here is how to push-start a car with a dead car battery:

• Step 1: Turn your car’s ignition to the “on” position
  Enter into your car, and the first thing you need to do is turn your car’s ignition to the “on” position using your car’s key.

• Step 2: Push the clutch
  Now you need to push the clutch firmly with your legs. But don’t push too hard; just push the clutch to the floor as you normally did.

• Step 3: Put your car into gear
  When you push the clutch to the floor, the next thing you need to do is put your car into gear. But, we recommend you put your car into second gear.

• Step 4: Tell your friends to start pushing the car
  Tell your friends to start pushing your car until you reach five to ten miles of speed, and then tell your friends to stop pushing so they can let your car can go.

• Step 5: Release the clutch slowly
  After reaching 5 to 10 miles of speed, release your car’s clutch slowly and give it a little gas.

• Step 6: Drive for a short distance
  When you notice your car is starting, you must drive it for a short distance so the battery can recharge a little.

Related: What Can Drain A Car Battery When The Car Is Off

4. Check The Car Battery Charge Level

When your car battery is dead, there is something that keeps your car battery constantly draining that you don’t want to.

So, by checking or testing your car battery charge level, you can easily detach what drains your car battery and keep your car battery from dying.

Get a multimeter and use that to check the car battery charge level when your car battery dies.

If you don’t have a multimeter on your vehicle, you can borrow from other car owners for only a test.

When testing your car with a multimeter, if you read below 12 on the multimeter, your car battery is bad or dead.

You can also test your car battery at home using a multimeter; if you notice any battery charging issues, this is also going to keep you safe on the road.

5. Call A Auto Mechanic

After performing and testing all of the above ways, the only option is to call your auto mechanic or the nearest car mechanic who can help you when your car battery dies.

Nowadays, finding a car mechanic is not hard, especially when you have a smartphone with an internet connection.

Using the internet, find the nearest car mechanic who offers roadside car service and gives them a call and tell or send your exact location.

Or if you have car insurance, you need to call your car insurance company and let them know your current situation.

Roadside service is very popular in the United States. Most auto repair shops and service shops offer roadside service to their customers.

Some companies are also giving roadside battery replacement services that are very convenient for those facing battery difficulty, just like you.

Check Out: Car Battery Dead, Will It Recharge By Itself?

What To Do If Your Car Battery Dies On The Road

Your car battery can die while driving for many reasons, but it can put you in a worse situation.

So, it’s always necessary for car owners to know what to do if a car battery dies on the road.

Things to do if your car battery dies on the road:

• Pullover your car to the side of the road:
  You need to beware; you are on the road where cars are passing too fast. Especially if your car dies on the highway, you must pull over to the side of the road as soon as possible.

• Turn emergency flashers on:
  Press the hazard light or emergency flasher light button that gives other car drivers you can’t operate your car, so they give you a space for it.

• Call for help:
  If your car battery dies on the road, you still get help from the auto repair shop. So, call the nearest auto service to help you by coming to your locations.

What To Do When Your Car Battery Dies In The Cold

Even your brand new car battery can die in the cold, so make sure to keep your car battery from dying.

When your car battery dies in the cold weather, you first need to test your car battery.

By performing the battery test, you are going to be able to know if your car battery is dead completely or if the battery needs a charge.

In cold weather, an automobile battery’s electrochemical reaction goes slow, which causes the battery not to provide enough power to crank the vehicle.

So, trying to give your vehicle a little extra time is another useful thing to do when your car battery dies in the cold.

You also should not forget about corrosion on your car battery which is another reason why car batteries die quickly.

Check for corrosion on your car battery and keep it clean to keep your car battery from dying in cold weather.

Related Article: Causes of Car Keeps Dying, Battery And Alternator Are Good

What To Do When Your Car Battery Dies In The Middle Of Nowhere

When your car battery dies in the middle of nowhere, the most important thing to do is reach out for help from other vehicle owners.

Often, we don’t know much about that place in the middle of nowhere, but other car owners know much better than you.

With the help of someone’s car, you can jump-start your dead car battery.

If you have your friends or someone with you, push start the vehicle also helps you when your car battery dies in the middle of nowhere.

Getting service for your car from a professional is also possible if your car battery dies in the middle of nowhere.

Using your smartphone, you can easily connect with the nearest car service shop that can give you roadside service.

What Causes A Car Battery To Die

Your car battery dies for a variety of reasons that you can control to keep your battery from dying.

Here are some common causes of a car battery to die:

1. When you do not start your car for a long period of time.
2. Parasitic drain in your which drains all of the energy from the battery.
3. You are driving short distances often.
4. Extreme corrosion on your battery leads it to die quickly.
5. Car electrical components are used when the car is not running.
6. Avoiding car battery maintenance.

Some Emergency Items To Keep In Car For Dead Battery

Emergency or essential items are not the only things you should keep for dead batteries. Some emergency items keep your car from going through other battery issues anywhere and under any condition.

Here are the emergency items to keep in your car for dead battery:

• Jumper Cable:
  A jumper cable is an essential item to keep in the car for a dead battery. Jumper cables are also cheap; you can have a jumper cable for under 20 bucks.

• Fire Extinguisher:
  Keep a fire extinguisher in your car. This is going to be needed if your car battery explodes for any reason.

• Simple Tool Kit:
  A simple tool kit is required for every vehicle owner to keep on their vehicle.

• Tow strap:
  A tow strap helps you to tow your car when your car battery dies and you find no to start your vehicle.

Conclusion – What To Do When Car Battery Dies

These are all you need to know when your car battery dies. When your car battery dies, you must have some ideas to bring your car back to life again.

Jump-starting is the most common practice when a car battery dies, but you must follow other things if a jump-start is not possible for you.

If you are driving a manual transmission car and have friends, you can push-start your car.

A Smartphone with internet access is also going to help you when your car battery dies in the middle of nowhere by connecting you with an auto repair shop.

Ensure you keep some essential items in your car to deal with a dead car battery. So, proper maintenance keeps your car battery from dying to avoid a dead battery.

Get More Dead Car Battery Solutions:

• Can A Completely Dead Battery Be Recharged? And How