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Cant get jump leads to work on my 944.

dirtydirtyharry

dirtydirtyharry

New member
Can someone please advise.

I got a flat battery yesterday as I stupidly left the lights on while I was at work. When I returned to the car it was as dead as a dodo. I got a mate to pull his car alongside and tried using jump leads to get my 944 started. It just wouldn't do anything. This is not the first time this has happened. Ive twice asked people to try getting my 944 started with a flat battery using jump leads connected to their batteries and twice had no joy whatsoever. Ive also failed to jump start the wifes car using my 944.

Is there something obvious I may be doing wrong here? Surely +ve to +ve and -ve to -ve, running the donor engine (and revving it) for ten minutes should enable my 944 to fire up?? I even went and bought new jump leads but it made no difference.

I was only able to get her fired up again by borrowing one of them heavy duty booster packs from a nearby garage.

Its made me think I best get a new battery as mine is only '580' so may try a '700'. Any recommendations for a suitable replacement battery would be welcome.
 
If the battery's really really flat I find it takes heavy duty thick leads to do the job.

Also if you search for one of my first posts you'll find battery recommendations there, I went with the snall Bosch and it's good.
 
As stated above your Jump Leads are not up to the job. Buy another set the same and use both at the same time and it'll go.
 
Firstly the jump leads have to be a certain thickness , if the leads are to thin then they will not do the job . Make sure your battery terminals are nice and clean , if you have a bad contact then you will not transfer from one car to another .
The 944's need a lot of power to turn them over , so if you are using a Nissan Micra for example then the power output is to weak and will not start your car . You need a Diesel car to jump from or high power vehicle.
Now this is the best bit ! Most newer cars now have smart alternator ? You can not get a jump from one of these cars , they give no extra power output , when they sense a power drop then they kick in to power there own system .

So what was the most recent car you was trying to power up from ? Jump start from ?

Also your starter motor might be sticking a little , or it is on it's way out ? So greater power is needed to turn it over ? When you start your 944 , does it turn over slowly or faster ?

How many cranks does it take to start the engine ?
 
I'm always using the 944 to start the Galaxy - it may stand for a couplr of months - never a problem and once I left the lights on on the '44 and again had no problem jumping it.

I'd say the leads are no good - one of my sets is very old and knackered but still works - so they must be pretty bad......
 

ORIGINAL: J.C944TurboMan

Firstly the jump leads have to be a certain thickness , if the leads are to thin then they will not do the job . Make sure your battery terminals are nice and clean , if you have a bad contact then you will not transfer from one car to another .
The 944's need a lot of power to turn them over , so if you are using a Nissan Micra for example then the power output is to weak and will not start your car ........................
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Sorry jc but I beg to differ. until I got myself sorted and charged the battery starter pack i had to stat the 944 using the Citroen AXgti, mind you I have jump leads that could be used to distribute the national grid. Thicker than the supply cable for the starter motor. Furthermore, how much kick compared to a 12a/h gel battery in a starter pack has versus the output ffrom a nissan micra, because that is all that is inside my starter pack.
They key points are the clean connections thicknes of the leads. the battery in the "donor" car battery is a massive reservoir and if the leads are good should be able to start the car even withthe donor's cars disconnected. If the battery is dead as a dodo then the trick is to whip off the earth lead, and connect to that; that will stop the flat battery from draining all the juice, and once running the earth lead can be put back on the terminal. if this is done quickly it will do no permanent damage to the alternator. However I do remember driving back from Silverstone in my old '81 Audi 80 with the battery light on. What it turned out to be was the battery teminal had come adrift but that was then when eletrics could be fixed with three sizes of screwdriver and two sizes of hammer
 
Indeed regarding the small car comment. A Ford Ka I had used to jump a 1989 Jaguar XJ40 4.0 XJR I had and that battery really was flat when I initially bought it (it would not even turn over if you turned the car off despite it running for 20 minutes!).

As 924nutter said, good quality thick jumper cables are the key. I would also say to try jumping the car via the positive battery post on the bulkhead of the 944 in addition to getting the negative lead onto the engine (a lifting point would be ideal here).
 
You must not use the positive post under the drivers side windscreen! Youll set the car on fire!
 
Thanks for all ther advice fellas. I will avoid the positive connection under the bonnet like [;)]

I was trying to jump it from a diesel corsa. I would have assumed that as long as the corsa battery is ok, it should work.

I may invest in a better set of jumper cables for Xmas but to be honest im tempted to get a bigger battery too.
 
The cheapest route to good jump leads is to buy the clamps for pennies and then use two lengths of welding cable. Not cheap, but usually less than inadequate and overpriced commerically available jump leads and you cant pick a length to suit your requirement.
 
This is advise from the AA :http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/breakdown_advice/using-jumpleads.html

Step by step

Before connecting any leads make sure the vehicles are the same voltage and that they're parked with their handbrakes on and ignition off. The vehicles must not touch as this can cause sparks or an explosion.

1.Use the red jump lead to connect the positive terminal of the donor vehicle's good battery to the positive terminal of the flat battery.
2.Then use the black lead to connect the negative terminal of the good battery to a suitable earthing point on the engine or chassis of the other vehicle. This earthing point must be away from the battery and fuel system.

3.With both leads connected wait three minutes for the voltages to equalise before starting either engine.
4.Start the engine of the donor car and allow it to run for a minute 5.With the donor car engine still running, start the engine of the other car and leave both running at a fast idle for ten minutes.
6.Don't remove the jump leads while the engines are running as this can cause serious damage to the electronics on either car.

7.If the jump leads get hot switch off both engines and allow the leads to cool to avoid a possible fire.
8.Turn off the ignition on both cars and then disconnect the leads carefully in the reverse order to the way that they were connected.
Be careful not to touch the clips against each other or against the car bodywork.
9.Start the car that had the dead battery using its own battery power.
If it won't start this could indicate a more serious problem with the charging/ignition system that will need investigating by a professional.

Basically I can differ from a lot of the advise above !!! have done several 100's of jump starts over my days !!!

With my van running , I attached the leads to the vehicle that needs a jump start and I turn the side lights on , this allows for a voltage surge to dispurs . Then I had a plug on the other end that I plugged into the van !!!
Once the car that needed a jump start was running , I would still allow a few mins. before disconnecting the leads . I would not stop any of the cars !! Make sure the leads do not touch as this couls short out the ecu od blow fuses .
I have attached the leads directly to the starter as to get better voltage .
Cars with batteries in the boot , such as BMW and 944's tend to lose a lot of power from the rear to the starter !!
I have put leads onto the battery of a 7 series and also a jump pack onto the jump terminals under the bonnet to get them going !!
Porsche 911's are tricking to get going !! You need to power up the fuse box to allow the bonnet to open , so you can then jump them !!
Aston Martin V12 are a nightmare to jump start ! You need to remove the seat pads behind the drivers seat and they demand a lot of juice !!!
I used a Snap On 1700 pack with a lithium battery inside , you need to give it a regular cycle to keep a healthy battery pack !!
Over winter if you lay up your Porsche ? Use a Battery conditioner to keep it topped up .

DirtyDirty I would really check your starter motor out as well mate ! Lazy starter is a massive drain the battery ! When your battery is fully charged ? Does your 944 start quickly ? Does it turn over quickly or does it sort of whine slowly ??
You might need the starter reconditioned or get it replaced ? If you do not know when it was last replaced ? Go off the mileage . You might find that you replace the battery and still get a lazy start ? Massive drain on the battery upon start up.
 
Fit an audible buzzer that sounds if you leave the lights on with the ignition switched off. Heavy duty jump leads with strong terminal clamps for starting the car (or any car).

Cheers,
 
Interesting advice from the AA "turn off both engines before disconnecting the leads". It missed off"then reattach to restart the car with a flat battery, repeat until board". [&:]
 
The post under the bbonnet only has a very light cable to it and should be used to work the central locking and open the hatch to get access to the battery.
 

ORIGINAL: supersport

Interesting advice from the AA "turn off both engines before disconnecting the leads". It missed off"then reattach to restart the car with a flat battery, repeat until board". [&:]
Click to expand...
What? You want them to say "repeat until the battery in the car that wont start has turned to a piece of wood" I'd get bored with that
 

ORIGINAL: A9XXC

The post under the bbonnet only has a very light cable to it and should be used to work the central locking and open the hatch to get access to the battery.
Click to expand...


Indeed. Simply look to see if it has a half-inch cable running from it, in which case use jump leads on it. If not, don't! [:eek:]

It's a charging point, not a jump or boost point.
 
It's a charging point, not a jump or boost point.
Click to expand...
...and it's the only way to get the boot open if your model has the battery back there - unless there is a passing Victorian child chimney-sweep or skinny pot-holer.
 

ORIGINAL: 924nutter


ORIGINAL: supersport

Interesting advice from the AA "turn off both engines before disconnecting the leads". It missed off"then reattach to restart the car with a flat battery, repeat until board". [&:]
Click to expand...
What? You want them to say "repeat until the battery in the car that wont start has turned to a piece of wood" I'd get bored with that
Click to expand...

LOL.
 
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