Help me get around my car's battery housing and jump start it!

June 9, 2019 3:27 PM

The batty died this morning in my 2013 Hyundai Elantra. Ordinarily this wouldn't be an issue -- get out the jumper cables, jump-start the car, drive to the nearest auto supply store for a replacement. Except the housing of the battery is preventing a jump-start. Help!

Somehow, my car ended up with a plastic housing around the positive terminal that is so constricting it's actually impossible to get a jumper cable to clip on to the terminal itself -- whether I orient it horizontally or vertically, the outer wall of the plastic blocks the clips from opening wide enough. Visual aid. I'm not experienced at DIY car repair but I have a full set of socket and regular wrenches; can I safely remove this housing without disconnecting the battery itself? Or do I need to suck it up and call a mobile repair service to do the replacement on site?

posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish to Technology (3 answers total)

Have you looked at the owners manual? There are sometimes alternative contact points for jump starts.
posted by rockindata at 3:33 PM on June 9, 2019

Best answer: Apparently, you clip to that plate and a negative terminal elsewhere!

https://www.carcarekiosk.com/video/2013_Hyundai_Elantra_Coupe_GS_1.8L_4_Cyl._Coupe_(2_Door)/battery/jump_start
posted by advicepig at 3:34 PM on June 9, 2019 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Well I'll be damned. In my defense, the instructions in the manual for jump-starting the car are, in their entirety, "jump-start the car."
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 3:43 PM on June 9, 2019 [5 favorites]