Bump starting a car / vehicle

Over the years as a mechanic I have come across a high number of people who are not aware how to bump start a car. I guess it's one of those things you either know or you don't. It is extremely easy to bump start a car and can be very handy knowledge to have should your battery run flat (could be a number of reasons for this and most likely you probably just left your lights on) or maybe your starter motor is on the blink.

Many people use jump leads to effectively jump start their car or a colleagues car but a much simpler way is to bump start the car, plus you don't need the leads or another car in which to do this. I once got to and from work for over a month using this method when my starter motor had packed up.

So I thought I'd run through a quick guide to bump starting your car should you ever need it:

Firstly it is much easier to bump a car into life if it has been parked on a hill, in these cases you don't even need other people to help push the car. If you are parked on a flat it is exactly the same technique you will just need a few willing passers by to volunteer to push your car. Someone will need to be inside the car and its a good idea to have the window down if possible so you can communicate with the guys pushing.

Step 1) Put the key in the ignition and turn the ignition ON.

Step 2) Depress the clutch pedal down and select second (2nd) gear (this usually works best).

Step 3) Keep your foot down on the clutch pedal and take the hand brake (parking brake) off.

Step 4) Ask the people to push the car forwards as fast as they can (if you are on a hill just let it build up enough speed to get to approximately 5-7 MPH). As soon as the car reaches a steady forward momentum ( approximately 5-7 MPH) let your foot off the clutch pedal.

Its that simple! The car will fire into life so give it some gas to make sure it doesn't stall and away you go. Be aware that while your car is being pushed forward, even with the ignition on, you will have no power steering so expect heavy steering. As soon as you lift the clutch up and the engine fires into life all systems will be up and running.

If you have never done this before just give it a try. Even if your car starts properly its a good idea to know how to do this should you ever rely on it. I've got myself out of so many sticky situations (Usually starter motor problems or helping a friend out who cannot start the car using jump leads).

Hope this has been useful, happy bumping :)