What is correct name for spark plug wire bracket?

[steveplym]

Had a battery blow up in my face once. Luckily it didn't do any damage to me, but put a whole in my shirt and pants. Stupidly jumped my mom's car one time with another guys. Hooked the guys truck up first with the truck running, then hooked it up to the car. One spark hooking up the positive post and BOOM sounded like dynamite.

I'm always very careful when jumping a car or hooking up a battery charger. Keep the sparks to a minimum if none at all. I don't want to get that surprise again.

[BobT-47P15]

I think the system is still 6V. It was 14 degrees outside that day, and I

was jumping it with the 12V Caravan. The engine would start, run just a

short bit, then die. Went thru this process several times. Once it kept

running, I was just getting ready to disconnect the cables when - "bang".

Kinda sounded like a gunshot. Was still sitting in the car when it went.

The guy at the battery store said it might have had a bad cell....he

couldn't tell for sure....that could have caused the problem. Or maybe

was a combination of both things. Never had one blow before, and have

jumped many a 6V with 12.

What really aggravated me was--- I had painted the engine, the radiator,

polished the case of the coil - it even landed on my brand new $3

radiator cap.

[Norm's Coupe]

Bob,

Up here they caution you never to jump a frozen battery. If you do, it could explode like yours did. At only 14 degrees, your battery may have been frozen when you jumped it. I've never had it happen to me. Of course, never jumped that many cars during the winter either. But.....I've heard of other people blowing theirs up in the winter when jumping the car.

I know that sounds strange, but it happens. We even have people starting fires by filing up their gas tanks in cold weather. That happens from static electricity. Usually caused by the person getting out of the car rubbing the fabrics together. If you don't discharge that static electricity from your body by touching some metal part on the car first, you could discharge that static electricity while filing the tank. That's when the spark from the static electricity hits the fumes or gas while filing up.

Same thing happens with the gas when filing up a gas can, if you don't take the can out of the vehicle and set it on the ground before filing it.

So........you should warm up the battery first when it's that cold. Also, make sure you don't have any static electricity in your body prior to playing with the battery post. Just touch something metal before working with the battery or gas. That will discharge the static electricity in your body. Will give you a little tingle as it happens too. Static electricity is usually caused when the air is very dry out and especially when it's dry and cold.