Car battery short circuit

[inquirer]

While jump starting another car, while removing the cables from the poles of the dead battery, the guy who removed them (and I know that's not the correct order to disconnect the cables), touched them for a brief moment, short circuiting my car's battery.

2 quick questions:

1. Will short circuiting a car battery's poles mess with the electronics of the car damaging any of them? (My guess is not because all the device are connected in parallel with the battery and high current flow takes place between the the battery's poles, but I'm asking anyway.)
2. Can a brief short circuit have any effect on the battery's lifespan? (It's a dry battery by the way.)

Thanks in advance for any answers!

 

[ZeeOSix]

If it was brief contact for a second or less, then probably no harm done. If everything still seems normal, then not much else you can do to determine if anything was affected.

 

[Lubener]

Won't hurt the battery and if your electronics were damaged, you would know right away.

 

[inquirer]

Well, nothing seems affected...
But theoretically speaking lets say that you short circuit the two battery terminals while the car is running with a cable that won't melt. Will this cause damage to electronic devices? As the current runs through the battery from one terminal to the other I don't see how other devices could be affected.

 

[Lubener]

Electronics "usually" will blow immediately if there was an issue. I doubt the situation will cause your PCM to fail in a month.

 

[inquirer]

If something gets burned it probably gets burned instantly. But is it possible that something will get burned or not? My guess is not, because the current flows through the battery. All the other devices are connected in parallel with the battery, so how can they get damaged?

 

[ragtoplvr]

most jumper cables have such small wire and bad connections that you would be hard pressed to get more than 100 amps on a dead short.

Car electrical systems are protected against a load dump, which is what this would be called. It happens each time the car is started. There will be no effects.

Rod

 

[The_Jeff]

If he just clicked the alligator cables together and threw sparks you're probably fine.

 

[HerrStig]

Shorting the battery terminals with a low ohm connection will likely get you a facefull of acid.

 

[andyd]

You got away with it this time. If you'have ever touched off H2 created by a sick battery, you don't wanna repeat the event. Smarten up.

 

[Linctex]

Originally Posted By: ragtoplvr
most jumper cables have such small wire and bad connections that you would be hard pressed to get more than 100 amps on a dead short.

Car electrical systems are protected against a load dump, which is what this would be called. It happens each time the car is started. There will be no effects. Rod


100% truth

Want to really blow your mind? Look up "car battery arc welder"

It's done all the time, batteries never suffer any harm from it

 

[inquirer]

Originally Posted By: andyd
You got away with it this time. If you'have ever touched off H2 created by a sick battery, you don't wanna repeat the event. Smarten up.


The cables were stretched, so away from the battery.

 

[Superflop]

When removing cables pull the black cable first, clamp it to the red cable well below the red clamp then remove red clamp. You can't touch them together this way.

Anyways doubt it will hurt much. If it hasn't already

 

[Wolf359]

As for the electronics, there's usually fuses before that so the fuses or fusable links should blow first.

 

[i_hate_autofraud]

On GM cars with OnStar shorting the battery for a second can trick the system into believing a collision occurred, it then turns on a backup battery in the OnStar module that runs til dead.

Then when you need OnStar to work in a real collision or accident, OnStar won't work. The battery is sealed in the module and true to GM form, is not easy to get or replace.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: ragtoplvr
most jumper cables have such small wire and bad connections that you would be hard pressed to get more than 100 amps on a dead short.

Car electrical systems are protected against a load dump, which is what this would be called. It happens each time the car is started. There will be no effects. Rod


100% truth

Want to really blow your mind? Look up "car battery arc welder"

It's done all the time, batteries never suffer any harm from it
There's no protection for shorting positive to negative right AT the battey.

 

[barryh]

50+ years ago when I was still in short trousers and before I'd fully grasped ohms law, I decided to test if my dads new car battery was charged by shorting it out with a bread knife. I was lucky, the brief flash just frightened the life out of me and vapourised the tip of the knife but the battery came to no harm.