How to Jump Start a Riding Lawn Mower with your Car * Safely *

This video is an actual demonstration of how to jump-start a riding lawn mower with your car on a John Deere S240. I'll run through the steps you need to take to be sure to you are jumping your riding lawn mower safely.

I really did drain my battery on my John Deere S240 by accidently turning the lights on and then leaving them on. Yep, I'm a big dummy for that. That's the sad backstory behind this lawnmower jump start video.

When jumpstarting you lawn mower you should wear safety gloves/glasses, keep your car engine off, make sure both the batteries are 12 volt and check your lawn tractor or mower manual for manufacturer recommendations before you start. Never make the final negative connection at or near the negative battery terminal on the mower. Make sure everything is parked securely and then connect your jumper cables in the following order:

Attach Order:

Red Jumper Cable to Lawn Mower Positive
Red Jumper to Car Battery Positive
Black Jumper to Car Battery Negative
Black Jumper to Lawn Mower Engine Block

Remove Order:

Black Jumper Cable from Mower
Black Jumper Cable from Car
Red Jumper Cable from Car
Red Jumper Cable from Mower

My legal disclaimer.

DIY and Home Improvement involve risk of personal injury and should be done with care. Please adhere to all safety recommendations from material and tool manufacturers and check your local codes. Some work may involve permits and it is your responsibility to comply with your local building officials.

My videos are for entertainment purposes only. Although I hope you learn something, I'm not a professional and you are responsible for making sure you know what you are doing before taking on any home improvement task. If you do something dumb that results in personal injury or property damage, that's on you. I'm in no way responsible for your workmanship and results if they are terrible, or even if they come out great. That said, I wish you much success in your DIY projects.

[mikewengal]

Worked great! I've been troubleshooting my John Deere for the last four days, I replaced the solenoid, new spark plugs, looking for loose wires or broken safety switches -- nothing -- just that machine-gun cranking sound with no turnover of any kind... after this video, I hooked up my car (which I would've done with the engine running if I had tried it on my own -- BIG thanks for telling us NOT to turn on the car during the process!) and the mower started right up! I cut the entire lawn, put it back in the garage, shut if off... then I turned the key and it started right up again -- without a jump from the car! Guess I found my problem -- hopefully the battery will last me the rest of the season! Thanks man, you saved me many headaches!

[luisgutierrez]

Aaron, I google how to start my riding mower with a car and your video popped up. It was short, detailed and to the point as if the video was made just for me. Awesome video brother! Thanks!

[romvoid]

One of the BEST quick how-to videos ive come across for this. Clear and simple warnings. Precise step by step onstructions. And SHOWING threm fully. And with disclaimers.. This saved so much time. Thank you!

[havingfunyet]

Got mine running after letting the cables sit for a few minutes. Thank you!

[shannonwatson]

You saved me a whole weekend trying to figure this out so much gratitude Aaron! I will be following your channel for a long time!

[waynemyrie]

I changed my gas, oil and entire time it was my battery needing a jump😂 Thank you!

[geneside]

Thanks mate, I thought this was how to do it but I thought I’d double check, nice tip about staying away from the positives on the motor when grounding it

[jeffreykeiser]

VERY helpful. My JD E110 started right up. Thank

[ADubvids]

I always give credit and show love where it is due. I would feel bad not to comment when you helped me and taught me something new thank you so much for your time tou took out to help others!!! ❤

[christamorris]

Thank you, I will be having to do this tomorrow. I think I need to get a new battery for my mower, it won't charge hooked up to a battery charger. Therefore I'm using your method tomorrow. 😁👍

[TRYCDC]

Why don't you connect the black clamp to the negative part of the battery? Also, I've heard conflicting things about jumping with a car. One being that it's okay to turn the car on, but just don't rev the engine.

[blakewynn]

Worked perfectly! Thanks for the tutorial 🤙🏻

[bwiseok]

My mower won’t start unless I’m sitting on it and the battery is under the seat

[vincentcalderone]

Silly question, but should I start my vehicle to help with the charge? I noticed during the video you only started the mower. Thank you in advance.

[corseg]

Can u jump it with a 450 amp power pack jumper instead?

[RDCards]

Just tried this and is shuts off after I unhook the cables. X2 time doing it let it sit for 10 minutes and shut off 2 minutes after undoing the cables again

[curtstowell]

Could I jump-start my John Deere with a Tactlife T8 jump starter, the same one I use to jump-start my Toyota Camry? Thank you.

[ThaStonedGardner]

My cables arent split enough to connect the ground to a bolt on the engine block. Can i connect it to a bolt on the back side of the frame under the battery by the wheels?

[lawrenceglenn]

Hey my lawn mower wont start with a new battery..but it will start if I get a jump fro. My truck ?

[martacarranza]

Did you have the car on or off when you powered up the lawnmower?