Had to jump start my truck after the bitter cold and not driving it. Since guidance is to make the last connection to a grounded point that is not the negative terminal on the dead battery, where to you suggest making that connection?

 

What does your owner's manual tell you to do?

 

I read the manual which, like many other manuals, makes a basic statement about connecting to an exposed metal part of the engine or to a ground connection point. My question was based on asking what point other users found/chose for making that connection.

 

https://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/2...ery/jump_start

 

I ground mine at the generator/alt mounting bracket...power steering pump bracket is good as well.... but this connection is to the charging vehicle.

 

Straight to the battery and I've not blown up yet. Might be survivor bias, but I think it's a hold over from 19****ity2 yee old guys with batteries that were venting hydrogen gas.

Adrianspeeder

 

There's actually another reason to not connect the negative cable to the negative battery post besides the possibility of a spark igniting hydrogen gas. If you connect straight to the negative post on newer vehicles, you bypass the Battery Management System (BMS) that tells the vehicle's computer the charge state of your battery and allows it to be charged properly. Bypassing the BMS will make the computer think your battery is still discharged and can cause all sorts of problems (even if you get the vehicle started). The BMS is normally located along the negative cable just short of the negative post. So, if you connect your negative jumper cable to the point where the battery's negative cable connects to the frame, that will allow the BMS to "see" the charging current. My truck's negative cable connects to the frame at a bolt right along the top of the fender next to the battery. This bolt is unpainted and will hold the jumper clamp easily.

I have connected all electrical options that connect to the battery using this bolt as the negative connection too, so that the BMS "sees" what they draw.

- Jack

 

That’s wild. I for sure will not run a truck with that amount of silliness to go wrong.

Adrianspeeder

 

Adrian, you may not have much choice. My old 2014 truck had the same BMS device and I learned about it when I had charged the battery fully (at the terminals) but the truck told me the battery charge was low. I think it's installed on ALL newer vehicles.

- Jack