Smart Motors: Do you know how to safely jump start your vehicle? How about your hybrid?

MADISON, WI – With the dangerously sub-zero temperatures forecasted for early next week, vehicles’ batteries will be pushed to the limit. This is the precise time of year when Smart Motors receives on onslaught of calls regarding vehicles not starting. Do you know how to safely jump start your car? And with hybrid vehicles being more prevalent than ever before, there may be situations when you need to jump start a hybrid. Is it the same as jumping a non-hybrid vehicle?

Smart Motors service manager Brett Cooper says that if you must jump start a hybrid, there are certain steps that must be taken. The main difference between starting a hybrid and non-hybrid is that jumper cables connect to a hybrid’s fuse box while in non-hybrids they connect directly to the car’s battery.

Cooper offers the following process for jump starting a hybrid:

* Don’t make a practice of using your hybrid to jump start other vehicles as you could greatly damage the dead vehicle’s electrical system.
*Apply the parking brake and turn off the headlight switch and interior light.
*Turn off the hybrid system and remove the key if inserted.
*Open the hood; fuse block cover, and exclusive jump starting terminal cover.
*Connect positive clamp (red) jumper cable to the exclusive jump starting terminal.
*Connect the negative clamp (black) to a solid, stationary, unpainted, metallic point of the vehicle with the discharged battery.
*If the booster battery is installed in another vehicle, make sure the vehicles are not touching. Turn off all unnecessary lights and accessories.
*When boosting, use the battery of matching or higher quality. Any other battery may make for a difficult start.
*Allow the discharged battery to rest with the jumper cables connected for approximately 5 minutes. At this time, run the engine in the vehicle with the booster battery at about 2,000 RPM with the accelerator pedal lightly depressed.
*Start the hybrid system. Make sure the “READY” light is on.
*Disconnect the cables in reverse order: the negative cable and then the positive cable.

For starting a non-hybrid vehicle, Cooper says to use the following steps:

1. Park the booster vehicle close but not touching the one that needs to be jumped.

2. Begin the process by clamping one of the positive jumper cable ends (red) to the positive battery terminal (labeled with a “+” on the battery) of the dead vehicle.

3. Connect the other end of the positive cable (red) to the positive battery terminal on the booster vehicle (again, confirm that a “+” is next to the battery terminal).

4. Connect the negative cable end (black) to the negative battery terminal on the booster car (marked with a “-“). Finally, attach the other end of the negative cable to an unpainted metal surface on the engine of the dead car.

5. Start the dead vehicle and let the two vehicles idle for a few minutes.

6. Once the dead vehicle is started and running smoothly, disconnect the jumper cables in the reverse order that they were connected.

7. Drive the revived car to somewhere safe and secure before shutting off the engine.

About Smart Motors

Smart Motors was founded in 1908 by O.D. Smart and is one of the nation’s oldest automotive dealerships. Smart Motors is the mid-west’s largest hybrid dealer, is Wisconsin’s #1 volume Toyota dealer, and Wisconsin’s #1 volume Scion dealer. Smart Motors is also the #1 Prius, Prius c, and Prius v dealer in the Chicago Region. Located at 5901 Odana Road, Smart Motors is Wisconsin’s only two-time President’s Cabinet Award recipient from Toyota Motor Sales for superior customer service & sales volume. For more information visit http://www.smartmotors.com