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Old 07-04-2006, 09:21 PM   #1
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Killed the battery... should I jumpstart?

I have an 86 International Harvester. I recently drained the battery down by accident (not all the way, but enough so it wont turn over). Is it ok to jumpstart it? It has two batteries wired in paralell.


The batteries look kinda old, I should probably replace them soon. But for now, id just like to get my bus started again!

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Old 07-04-2006, 11:51 PM   #2
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Jump away. I know this is going to sound counterproductive, but turn on the blower motor in both the vehicles when you do it if the vehicle doing the jumping has EFI. This prevents voltage spikes from damaging anything. It's a rare occurance, but I'm sure the last thing you want is two dead vehicles.
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Old 07-05-2006, 02:23 PM   #3
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No vehical could jump my Bus. Its a diesel and has two pretty big batteries in it. I took it to an autozone, and they said they would have to trickle charge them.. so I have no choice but to let them try.

sigh.. stranded for the moment.
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Old 07-05-2006, 02:34 PM   #4
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I had to jump start my 91 International (2 large batteries, also) on a few occasions. It takes a good sized battery (my pickup battery worked) and about an hour and a half, but it can be done.
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Old 07-05-2006, 02:58 PM   #5
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Jump starting your bus is not rocket science. It's really no different than jump starting any other car, it just takes a little longer....Assuming your bus is 12 volts. In the unlikely event that it's 24 volts, let me know and i'll adress that.

I jump started my ford 6.6 liter bus with my volkswagon fox once. Any 12 volt (nominal) vehicle with an alternator can be used to jump start your bus. Using a good set of jumper cables will help a lot. A standard GM alternator is prob ~65 amps. that's almost enough current to weld with, so it is plenty to start your bus. Alternators don't make their peak current at idle, so i like to put a dime or penny under the throttle return screw on the running vehicle to hike up the rpms. I call this "high idle mode", you could also use your foot or a stick on the gas pedal. Leave the vehicle running with cables connected, then go eat a pop sickle. Make sure before you walk away that all of the electrical loads are off in the bus including the ignition headlights ect.

After you finish your pop sickle, leaving the other vehicle running and cables still connected, try to start your bus. If you bus doesn't start, somethign else is wrong. Perhaps your jumper cables are not making good contact, or there is something wrong with the starting system on your bus, or the bus batteries might be no good.

There are various opinions on where to attach the ground clamp from the jumper cables during such an operation. I prefer to connect it directly to the battery terminal, especially if the terminal connectors are also lead. Lead makes it really easy to get a good connection as it is very soft and if you move the jumber cable clamps back and forth a few times they really dig in providing an excellent connection. It makes no difference if you connect the bus or the car first, and also makes no difference if you hook up the ground or the hot cable first, although the preferred method is to connect the hot wire first, then the ground. This provides less chance that you will cause a short circuit when you accidentally touch the hot clamp to some random piece of metal connected to the vehicle. As a side note, there is nearly zero chance that you can be electrocuted while jump starting a vehicle, since 12 volts (realistically closer to 14.4) is not enough current to overcome the resistance of your body. You can touch both terminals of a battery with your bare hands and you won't feel a thing.

I heard click and clack the car guys from NPR discussing turning on some sort of electrical load ie the blower motor when jump starting a vehicle to prevent damage, and they believed this to be an urban legend. The more accessories that are using current, the less current is going to the dead batteries. If it makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside, feel free to turn on the blower motor in the running vehicle. I'm quite certian your bus does not have a computer, so it wouldn't be necessary on that end.

Taking the batteries out, transporting them to autozone, and waiting a day for them to trickle charge them sounds very unattracive to me.

My batterie gets low enough to not start my bus several times per year. I have a 40 amp comptuer controleld battery charger and a generator i use to quickly jump start my bus. It usually takes less than 5 minutes. You can buy all kinds of "smart" battery chargers for very reasonable prices. That would be the best thing for your batteries. Then you could leave them in the bus, and do the entire operation at home.

Have yo uchecked the water level in your batteries?
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Old 07-05-2006, 07:55 PM   #6
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I have jumped my bus with my 22re powered Toyota truck. That thing has a 550 cca battery and an alternator rated at 60 amps, but I'm pretty well convinced that's when it's struck by lightning. Unless you have a cylinder just a few degress before top dead center, it should start readily.

As for the blower motor thing...what I meant is that it should be on when you hook the batteries up. You can then turn it right off. The only reason I recommend this is because I know of atleast one person that cooked their car jumping it. Now granted it was an 80's vintage GM with their rather problematic EFI system, it still is a rather simple means of insurance. In fact, Jason...if you read the owner's manual that came with your 6.6 you'd see that FoMoCo even recommends jumping it in this fashion


I digress....leave the jumping vehicle on the bus for a while. It takes time to charge those batteries. If it still doesn't work you might just need to buy new batteries. They are, afterall, a "consumable" part of the bus. I'm currently looking at getting an el cheapo 15 watt solar charger to keep my batteries topped off.
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Old 07-05-2006, 08:34 PM   #7
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I've jumped my bus with my F150 before. It cranked over within just a few minutes of "high idle" with the F150. After that I got a $10 trickle charger, which I leave on all the time. I haven’t had a problem starting the bus since.
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Old 07-05-2006, 11:09 PM   #8
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I jumped mine in minus 30 degees celcius with my jeep cherokee. Took about 15 minuts on a high idle.

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Old 07-05-2006, 11:10 PM   #9
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If I need new batteries, how do I find out what kind I need? The old ones the label has worn all off and everything.
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Old 07-05-2006, 11:35 PM   #10
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Bring them with you


Chances are something else will fit. From the factory my bus was supposed to have four group 31 batteries providing enough amperage to light Las Vegas. Now it has a single group 27 battery that hardly throws out any power yet has only failed to start the bus once and that was ok with me. It was -10* atleast that night and I didn't have the block heater plugged in or the webasto running and without glowplugs or an intake grid heater....well......
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Old 07-06-2006, 12:19 AM   #11
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Funny this topic came up. I just had to jump my bus today. I left my CB on for the past 3 weeks and I guess that did it. I hooked up the jumper cables to my saturn and did the high idle thing. I used a twig from a nearby tree to high idle the car . After about 15 min the bus fired up. It probably would have started quicker if my jumper cables were not so dirty and corroded.

I am glad this worked because I needed to head to the city to get some lumber. I sure did not want to wait for my charger to get the batteries up.
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Old 07-06-2006, 10:22 AM   #12
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batteries

I am a fan of getting a bigger battery than you need if you have the space. My first battery was a 1050 cca battery from Napa. It worked great for firing up the bus, never had a problem. It cost about $140. However mine is not a diesel, which requires much more power. If I had a diesel I would be looking for a single 8D. They seem to be stock on large commercial vehicles. I now have two and they are amazing. Consider going for a used one if you can find one. Look into shops specializing in only batteries. They usually have a deal where they recycle used batteries from the shops and stores they supply. Those batteries may have a long life ahead if they are topped up with distilled water and trickle charged after a good equalizing. Good luck.

-Richard
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Old 07-07-2006, 02:01 PM   #13
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i recently purchased an 8 D new for $150 bucks. Worth every penny. IT would cost more to buy 2 large pickup truck batteries from wal-mart, and you wouldn't have anywhere near the storage capacity of the 8D.
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Old 07-07-2006, 07:58 PM   #14
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Would an 8D battery crank MY bus?

Its a 1986 International Harvester/Thomas Built S1700 "short bus". Its truely a shortbus though, not a van-sized or smaller one. Its huge, just shorter.

Also.. where did you pick up an 8D battery for 150 bucks?
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Old 07-07-2006, 08:43 PM   #15
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i was quoted $150 bucks for the new 8D at my trusted local alternator/starter repair shop. I've known that guy for years...

I actually decided i needed the battery a couple week after our conversation and picked one up at my local auto parts place. (ross auto in lapeer mi) I think they wanted $170 for the 8d, but i told him that i can get it cheaper down the road, and they gave it to me for $150.
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Old 07-07-2006, 08:57 PM   #16
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Wow that's a great price. Nice work.

-Richard
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Old 12-12-2008, 09:12 AM   #17
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Re: Killed the battery... should I jumpstart?

If your looking for large batteries check the farm stores, bought one for our no longer ours 1980 international harvester scout with a 6.9 diesel out of a ford truck shoe horned into it, it was a few years ago but was around $100.00 dollars
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Old 08-24-2016, 07:42 PM   #18
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I jumped 8d battery, bus, cummins 8.3-0using Honda element and the bus started in 5min. Now I just need to know why my bus won't start with out the jump assist. Batteries read full but no crank without jump start. Any ideas would help.

Starter solenoid?
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Old 08-24-2016, 08:26 PM   #19
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And for what it is worth... I'm running a single 8d with our 8.3l. She sparks right up no problem. Even down to about 35 degrees.
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Old 08-24-2016, 08:55 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ben Alth View Post
I jumped 8d battery, bus, cummins 8.3-0using Honda element and the bus started in 5min. Now I just need to know why my bus won't start with out the jump assist. Batteries read full but no crank without jump start. Any ideas would help.

Starter solenoid?
If the bus starts with a jump then the solenoid/starter/cabling is fine. Check your connections at the battery. If those are clean pull the battery and have it load checked. My bet is this is your problem.
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