Quote:
Originally posted by Undertoad
Wouldn't the most important safety aspect of jumper cables be prevent a complete short, as BrianR did with the wrench?
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Originally, battery terminals were exposed. In mid-1970s, GM introduced Freedom battery with terminals on the side and mostly protected (more difficult to jump start). However Japanese created what is now defacto standard on cars - the plastic cap over + terminal. Installed just so the bouncing wrench does not cause battery explosion. Previously the bouncing wrench could result in you signing words usually known only to angels.
IN response to previous post:
BTW, hydrogen is a danger when the fan is moving - because that is when the battery is finally under strong recharge. A running engine is required to create enough current so that battery might release significant amounts of hydrogen.
When talking about current necessary to cause a battery explosion, then yes - those heavy cables from battery to car frame do restrict current flow making battery explosion less likely or slowing down the time to explosion.