Hi,

Recently, when I had a problem starting my HONDA ODYSSEY 2001 I asked
a guy on HYUNDAI TIBURON 2004 to give me a jump-start. To my surprise
he refused stating that this could cause damage to his car's engine.
So the questions are:

Is it true at all?
Is it true if you do it ocasionally (once-twice a year)?
Can any other (not engine) part be damaged by a jump-start?
Do car makes matter?

Thanks.

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Clarification of Question by shlagbaum-ga on 18 Feb 2005 12:01 PST

Hi,

I don't need instructions on how to connect cables -- i know it down pat.
I guess my question is, will there be any damage to any part of a
"donor" car, PROVIDED THAT CABLES ARE CONNECTED CORRECTLY?

Thanks.

It would only damage your engin if you hooked up the jumper cables incorrect.

Agree with tviren. If your battery was completely flat there would be
quite a blast of current from the other car?s battery which will
shorten its life by about a second. The alternator would current limit
so no damage there either.

One point which is quite important though is the order in which you
connect the cables to avoid accidental shorting to chassis if you drop
them -- but no one ever bothers :-)

Best

It will not damage the engine on any car.  If the cables are not
connected properly, damage to the batteries or an explosion or fire
may result due to fumes from the batteries.

Hook + on one car, then + on the other car. Then do the same with -. 
Reverse procedure to remove.
    Never jumpstart a totally dead battery. Dead bateries release
hydrogen, Always trickle charge a completly discharged battery and
have it tested.

The only way any damage can occur to either is from hooking the cables
up backwards.  Now you can damage a car by disconnecting a battery and
reconnecting it with out any sort of voltage or current supply so you
don't spike the cars computer when the battery is reconnected. ( this
is only for 1995 and newer cars with omd2 computers.
trust me, I'm A.S.E. certified and do this for a living.

Hi

The guy with the Hyundai is partly right. The other people who have
replied are correct, it won't damage your engine but it can severly
damaged your electronics. NEVER jump start cars if either car has a
computer. This has been a no no since they started putting computers
in cars in the early to mid eighties. One car can have it's computer
spiked by the other car and if that happens you will be faced with a
major repair bill.
Workshops, caryards, auction houses have a special device that
incorporates a car battery(they are called Jetstart in this part of
the world)and these devices have been devised to start cars with flat
batteries and to do it safely. I THINK you can jump start safely off
another battery as long as that battery is not connected to a car. To
be absolutely sure of this check with a couple of auto electrical
workshops in your area. I spent 25 years in smash repairs and although
I haven't done that sort of work since 2000 I'm 99% sure I'm right.

Mike

Cars with computer controlled engines can have their computers damaged
by a voltage spike transmitted from one car to the other.  They sell
jumper cables that have a special resistor in them that is supposed to
prevent such a spike.  The other safe method if you do not have these
is to use the other car to "charge" your battery--that is, hook it up
and run for about 10 to 15 minutes, but do not try to start the car
with the dead battery while they are connected. If the car with the
dead battery is in good shape, that should be sufficient to give it a
good crank. It is also recommended that the ground cable of the car
supplying the charge be grounded to the engine block rather than the
negative terminal of the battery. The owners manuals of newer cars
generally have a section of specific instructions regarding safe
jump-start proceedures, but many most will play it safe and tell you
not to.