# Why all the electrical things quit working

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [January 12, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317 "2008-01-12T17:40:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![mrblalnche](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mrblalnche/32/201_2.png) [@mrblalnche](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mrblalnche)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317/1 "2008-01-12T17:40:39Z")

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On today’s show, a girl accused her musician boyfriend of breaking her car. Tom and Ray thought not, but how about this scenario?  
  
  
  
 He got to his lesson and went inside, leaving the light (or radio) on. When he came back out, the car wouldn’t start, so he got a jump start. Unfortunately, on the first try, he connected the cables backward. That blew any number of electrical circuits.  
  
  
  
 Well, it COULD have happened that way!

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**Author:** ![Roadrunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@Roadrunner](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Roadrunner)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2008, 8:29pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317/2 "2008-01-12T20:29:05Z")

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Yep, it sure could. Sometimes a computer will get fried too.

What kind of lessons? Driving?

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**Author:** ![Skypilot](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/skypilot/32/237_2.png) [@Skypilot](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Skypilot)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2008, 8:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317/3 "2008-01-12T20:31:41Z")

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Are you posting a fact or guessing? If in fact the car had inline fuses blown I would first find out which ones and if they are shorted to ground and go from there. If you replace these fuses and you have the same problem then you have your answer. It probably wasn’t the boyfreinds fault. Just my 2 cents worth.

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**Author:** ![Craig58](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3da27b/32.png) [@Craig58](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Craig58)\
**Post date:** [January 12, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/why-all-the-electrical-things-quit-working/9317/4 "2008-01-12T21:38:34Z")

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I’m pretty careful jumping “modern” cars. Actually, I carry a portable battery pack in my trunk. If I want to give someone a jump I use that instead (connecting it backwards would still be bad).