Last week I had a dead battery and had someone give me a jumpstart-- apparently, it wasn't done properly: the + terminal on my car started to spark, and the jumper cables melted.

The interior lights, which were previously dimly lit, were completely off and the car seemed to be even more dead. I got a second jumpstart, which started the car, and everything seemed OK... with one big problem: the audio and navi systems were completely off, and the climate controls were on, but I couldn't change anything.

Does anyone have an idea of what might've happened? Did something short out? Is this something as simple as replacing a fuse, or did the car's electrical system seriously get ****ed up?

I tried replacing the fuse for the audio system with one of the spares, and it didn't do anything... but then again, I didn't really know what I was doing.

Advice?

 

fried ecu? I hope not, but possibly

 

anyone else?

 

well checking your fuses should be number 1. check ALL of them when the car is completely off. then turn the key to the on position and check the fuses again. (if you're testing with a multimeter) but you may have not lined up + to +. be careful boosting your battery man. you can screw up some stuff. does the car start normally now? or does it need a boost every once and a while? you may need a new battery if it needs to be boosted regularly

 

i just got a new battery, which might mean that 4 days of the car sitting at the airport = i need a new alternator. but that's the least of my worries at the moment.