Hands on with Michelin Smart Jumper cables (photos)
These smart cables take most--but not all--of the guesswork and danger out of jump starting your car.
Antuan Goodwin
Antuan Goodwin gained his automotive knowledge the old fashioned way, by turning wrenches in a driveway and picking up speeding tickets. From drivetrain tech and electrification to car audio installs and cabin tech, if it's on wheels, Antuan is knowledgeable.
These smart cables take most--but not all--of the guesswork and danger out of jump starting your car. Physically, you'll not that, unlike most jumper cables, the Smart Jumpers don't feature color coded connections.
A polarity switching feature means that it doesn't matter what clamp you connect to either terminal. Just make the connection and the Smart Jumper will figure it out.
When the first connections to the live battery's terminals are made, the control box illuminates one LED to signal that everything has been done correctly.
The connections on the dead car are made next. One clamp is connected to the car's positive terminal, the other is grounded to the engine block. Again, it doesn't matter which goes where.
With both connections made on the dead car's battery, the control box now shows both lights illuminated. Now the live car can be started, after which an attempt to start the dead car's engine can be made.
