Car Won’t Start? Here's What to Do

Having a car is like being in a relationship. When your car is running great, your relationship is doing fantastic, but when the first putter hits, you know to prepare yourself for a down swing. Fear not, car problems don’t have to be big problems.

Picture this: today is the day you’re supposed to have a meeting with your boss to go over that promotion that he’s been promising you. Your children are on their way to school, your suit is pressed to perfection and those two cups of coffee have you pumped and ready for the meeting. You’ve just sat down, put your seat belt on and tried to turn your car on when… Nothing happens. Here’s what you do:

Check electrical

If your lights don’t turn on or they do but it’s very dim, chances are you’ve drained your battery. This can happen from leaving lights on in the car or leaving your headlights on for an extended period of time. You don’t necessarily have to get a new battery; a good set of jumper cables can do the trick.

Check the battery

If the lights are working, the radio plays, but the car still won’t turn on, check the battery. You’ll probably have to use jumper cables, but you also want to make sure that the battery cables are clean and not corroded. This isn’t unusual, but too much dirt and corrosion can prohibit your car from starting. Brush them off and you’ll be good as new!

Check temperature

Cold weather wreaks havoc on cars. Extreme temperature drops can freeze your cars fuel lines and limit your car use on those brisk winter days. To avoid this, make sure your gas tank is always at least half full. This reduces the amount of condensation which causes fuel lines to freeze.

Check with a mechanic

If you’ve checked all of the above, but your car still doesn’t start or starts to turn over and then stops, there may be a bigger problem. At this point, there could be a wide range of issues both big and small, such as, alternators, a bad starter or even wet spark plugs. In which case, it’s time to check in with a mechanic.

If it turns out that your cars problems go further than a dead battery or a frozen fuel line, then it’s time to lean on your insurance. Unfortunately, life still carries on even when we’d prefer it stop for a short while. With car insurance, you’ll be up and running in no time, whether it’s with a fixed car or a borrowed one. It’s there for times like these.