Bump Start Stories

Hi guys,

So this week's thread about Auto's Vs. Manual's has gone into multi pages and many people are starting to relate tales of bump-starting stick-shift vehicles in the past with dead or weak batteries. Rather then polluting that thread with a sort of off-topic tale and since it's Friday I thought I'd post my tale of bump-starting a car (not a Taco) here. Feel free to laugh along and add your own tale. Or don't. Oh and save the manuals!

About four years ago a Girlfriend I had at the time and I were trying to bump-start one of my air-cooled VW's out in the woods. The girl I was with at the time knew nothing about cars and thought I was crazy for trying to start a car with a dead battery without using another car or calling the Auto Club (neither were options as we were pretty far out in the hills). I explained to her that she had one job, hold the wheel straight from the passenger seat (she couldn't drive a stick in a normal situation so I knew there was no chance of her being able to pop the clutch in this situation) I would get the car rolling then hop-in to the driver's seat, pop the Clutch and away we'd go.

Things went well at first, the road had a nice grade on it and it was almost dead straight. I went-over our roles one more time (knowing me I likely drew a diagram in the dirt with a stick) we seemed to be on the same page so I got the car rolling and she held the wheel straight, for maybe the first ten seconds, then she looked-back at me and unknowingly turned the wheel as she turned her head and almost ran me over. Fail #1

Attempt #2, after more explanations and likely another diagram we got the car rolling again. This time she looked straight ahead, kept the wheel nice and straight and soon I had enough speed to hop-in, slide-in into second gear, pop the Clutch and drive-off into the sunset (literally, it was getting dark) except for I'd forgotten to turn the ignition on. Fail #2

Another (probably heated) road-side discussion took place as we were more than half-way down the hill and if we got to the bottom of it without the engine running I knew where we'd be spending the night. This time I made sure the ignition was on, I got the car rolling again and knowing that this would likely be our last attempt I waited just a little too long to make sure we had enough speed and now the car was going too fast for me to get back into! I didn't want to let go of the car so I jumped onto the fender, my feet still sliding along the road and yelled for her to hit the brakes (the car had and still doesn't have a working hand brake). We stopped, I fell-off the fender and looked-down at my ruined shoes. Fail #3

Last attempt. We were basically out of hill now, she was out of patience with me ("If you think this is funny, it's not!") I was out a nearly new pair of Etnies Sneakers and I we still needed to get the stupid car started! The car was now on the wrong-side of the road, it was basically dark and I didn't care, we were going to try one more time. Thankfully, now both of us were clear on our roles: Ignition on, soles from my shoes flopping against the road way as I pushed. The car got moving barely fast enough and I hopped-in, clutch in, gearshift in second pop the clutch, blip the gas (all at basically the same time) and the engine fired-up! (It really doesn't take much to get a small air-cooled VW engine started). We drove away and later I bought a new battery.

Two years later, that relationship has ended (and not because of the above situation, or it might have been a contributing factor, it's hard to say). I still have the old VW, but I'm better about keeping an eye on the battery now. I meet a new girl, she claims to be a gearhead. Literally on our first date, probably half-way through Brunch I ask her, casually if she knows how to bump-start a car. Without hesitating she replies it's how she started her Porsche about a month earlier when the battery went dead. I smiled, we've been together ever since

 

Amusing story - love it!

This method of starting a vehicle was one of the first my Dad taught me - before I was old enough to get a driver's license.

 

@Kev250R good story telling!

i needed that as I'm sitting on my hands waiting to find out what's up with my broken clutch for the second time.

 

So far I've bump-started the following vehicles:

• 1991 Jeep Wrangler (2.5L) - Accidently left the headlights on
• 2006 Yamaha R6 - My buddy backed into it in a driveway and knocked it over. Ever since then, it was hit or miss on starting up
• 2003 BMW M4 - Easier to bump-start in reverse (accomplished on a VERY short, but steep driveway)
• 2009 Honda CBR 1000 Repsol - Sat outside with the key "on" waiting for my wife to grocery shop... killed the battery
• 2008 Suzuki M50 - Old battery
• 2011 BMW S1000RR - Old battery
• 1965 Honda S90 - Got tired of trying to kick start

I clearly neglected a lot of motorcycle batteries. I never put them on battery tenders over the winter. Fortunately, they're relatively light and easy to bump-start. Pro tip: bump-start a motorcycle in 2nd gear or higher. In 1st gear, the tires will just skid.

 

I have always known it as push start, but anyway was in the middle of BFE Kentucky on a Sunday night when the starter failed. I was able to give my old car just enough push in the flat parking lot to get going again.

 

I spent a month in Kenya last year and this Toyota Hilux had electric issues so we bump started it every time we drove it!

 

Few times on my 1999 Mazda B2500 - Left my radio on too many times at beach parties, really hard to do in sand but had several buddies pushing
2012 Harley 72 - Battery
2003 Harley Springer - Battery
1967 Triumph - Sometimes it was just easier to than kick starting it depending where I parked

 

This picture got me thinking. If you were stuck on a hill like that could you put a vehicle in reverse and bump start it going backwards??

 

The first time I ever tried it I was roughly 15 years old. I knew about bump starting just hadn't needed to use it first second and third try were all fails.i had enough speed but I was trying it while in 1st gear. Finally tried it in second gear and it was nice and smooth. Like an above poster said, in first the tires would just skreech and the car would buck and die

I miss that little car. I just thought about it.. kinda weird.

1st vehicle 1995 vw jetty standard trans
2nd. 1995 Subaru outback standard
3rd. 1995 tacoma automatic
Now is when I changed it up 1 year ago
4th. 2015 tacoma standard trans

The 20 year upgrade is crazy. I love the truck but the metal is paper thin compared to the 95 and the 'mid-sided' trucks are much larger than they used to be.

I still have the 95 tacoma because it still runs great and still a little workhorse. Looks like hell but I don't care

 

I have an old Honda moto (‘69 CB350) that I bump start every time I ride it because it came to me with a broken starter and missing kick start. Figured this saves weight

 

Yeah, I don’t know the reverse gearing ratio but it’s probably deeper than 2nd gen so it won’t be enjoyable but should work

 

Yup, it’s doable.

 

Tried to bump start a push "start" button ignition switch car (non traditional key cylinder ignition) and the battery was so low it wouldn't trip the ignition button in the run position making bump starting impossible. Had it been old school key start, it would have worked


The opposite story:

Dead gas motor on my honda. Used the starter motor to move it up a hill in traffic and parked till I bashed the distributor cap in place.
You didn't need to press in the clutch to make the starter work so it was essentially an electric car at that point (i'm sure the starter electric motor loved that)

 

Once after doing some work on my truck I drove into town to run some errands. On the way home my idle speed jumped up to around 3k RPM. I got it home by getting up to speed (w/o hitting throttle), shutting off the key, coasting for a while until I slowed down, then turn key back on, and release the clutch to get back up to speed. When I popped the hood I realized I had routed a vacuum hose incorrectly and it had pinned the throttle cable.

My dad told me that for about 6 months in college he drove a MT with a bad starter and just parked on a hill everywhere he went. He didn't have money to fix it at the time.

 

My parents had a Volkswagen bus they had to bump start once down a boat launch - that being the only hill available. Talk about a one chance deal!

They also had a friend who lived in a shack with no electricity - lucky for him it was up a hill because he would take the battery out every night to power the fridge and bump start his rig in the morning.

Finally, I had a 1969 Ford Cortina (think English made mini Falcon). The solenoid went bad and it wouldn't charge the battery so for a few weeks one summer I bump started it nearly every morning, by myself, on a nearly flat road. And it was column shift

I've bump started pretty well every manual vehicle I've owned, driven or rode either out of necessity or just because

 

I used to deliver Chinese food, and there was a pizza place next door so all the delivery guys would hang out in the back alley. One day someone killed their battery, and was looking for help, and I was the only 'car guy' there. I told him "I don't have jumper cables, do you have a manual?" thinking I could bump start it because we were on a hill. He replies "Yeah hold on" and comes back a few minutes later with the owners manual from the glove box...

And not quite a 'bump start' in the traditional sense, but when I was in the Army we had an LMTV with a bad starter. We had to keep a ball peen hammer in it to smack the starter every time we needed to use it

 

February 1992, Flagstaff, Az, in the parking lot on the east side of Sechrist Hall (tallest building in northern AZ) my dorm on NAU campus.
My 1981 VW Dasher Diesel 4spd manual Wagon decided not start, the starter was worn out. I had the 10 second glow plug system, yet really could not get enough speed and compression heat matched with the GP timing. I pushed that car back and forth for over two hours before it fired off.
I drove it to an automotive auto electric shop to have the starter rebuilt, and ended up getting hired there for three years. Great job, learned a tons about automotive, trailer, semi, heavy construction equipement electrical systems.

 

I just used that ‘trick’ two weeks ago to get my VW thing into it’s spot in my yard. Worked good until I had to climb a curb.

 

The Clutch Starr Cancel Switch on your Tacoma allows you to get moving using the starter too.

 

I know, it's actually one of the features of my truck that I like as I've been in situations in my VW Dune Buggy where I've had to use the Starter to climb over something, although I'm hoping not to have my Taco in any situations like that for a while!