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so this car won't start from a jump starter pack. I also tried leaving the pack in place for an hour to charge up the battery for longer before starting.

I am thinking of disconnecting one cable from the battery while jump starting the car so none of the current flows through the battery. If that's a worthwhile idea, I wonder about what to do once the car has started:

Thank you for your help!

Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2
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allstar
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3 Answers3

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The battery acts as a sort of buffer for the alternator. It can reduce the surges from the alternator that can potentially damage electrical components. The alternator will run the vehicle without the battery but is not recommended. If the alternator is good, and it doesn't jump, it may be because the installed battery is so discharged it impedes the jumpstart. If that's the case the battery should be brought to good condition before starting. If you run a car with a battery in that bad of condition it tolls heavily on the alternator.

HandyHowie
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Jupiter
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Disconnecting the battery is a bad idea. All current flows through the battery, if you disconnect it your car may not run right after you take the starter pack off as it is an important part of the electrical system. Starter packs do not charge your battery, they provide a short burst of energy to get your car started, once it is running your car's alternator will provide electricity to run the car and charge the battery.

If the car won't start despite the starter pack then you make have been using it wrong, or something else is wrong with your car. Try charging the pack up and going through the manual to make sure you understand how to use it, I had one which had been badly translated from Chinese to English and it took a bit of head scratching to figure it out.

GdD
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In the "good ole days" of 6 V batteries, I would generally disconnect the battery . Otherwise some of the jumper batterys' power is wasted going into the weak battery. This was important because normally the problem showed up in cold weather ( like 0 to 20F) and you needed all the power you could get.After it jump started ,it was no problem to hook up the old battery, the generator provided power to the ignition,etc. Things are so easy today with 12v and alternators ,now I generally don't bother to disconnect the old battery. My brother did manage to blow the side out of a 6 V battery when jump starting ( hydrogen can build up during fast discharge ) however he went on to become a college professor so understandably had limited mechanical skills. One car I had, I welded up a steel frame to hold a second 6V battery under the hood. In cold weather I would jump with both batteries in series ( 12 V).

blacksmith37
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