How much could it cost to fix a car when the battery was put in wrong?

Answer 1

It depends on what part of the car needs to be fixed. Hopefully you didn't fry your starter. If there are no electrical problems, then you just have to put the battery in right. It's really hard to mess up putting in the battery. If you follow your manufacturer's guide in your glove box about battery installation, you should be fine. Some batteries are located in very odd places, like the back of the car under the trunk for some foreign, smaller cars; or even in the front wheel well for some models like some minivans. However the majority of vehicles today still have them readily accessible in the engine bay. Keep in mind that some batteries will have the positive and negative terminals accessable on the battery itself, and some may have the positive terminal accessible and the negative terminal located in another location for grounding purposes. This makes it a little trickier when jumpstarting a car. A lot of the smaller Chevy's like Cobalt are set up like this.

Make sure you have the right battery for your car! You can reference a catalog at your local car parts store or Walmart, or simply ask a representative to help you. Each car requires a certain type, size of battery. The cold crank Amperes are what's most important. Any representative worth anything can tell you exactly which battery you need. Getting the wrong battery is the most common mistake I've seen with my friends. I've never seen anyone hook it up wrong. After all...you have a 50/50 shot at getting it right if you guessed.

You'll have to get a professional to look at the wiring in your car and run a diagnostic check. You can save a little money by first going by Auto Zone to get a free basic diagnostic and they'll tell you if it reads any electical problems. If it doesn't, just make sure you have the right battery, hook it up right, and you'll be good to go.

Most places will hook up your battery for free if you buy the battery from them. Walmat, Autozone, and Interstate batteries will either install it for free or for a nominal fee of usually less than $10 in my experience. It's worth the money to get rid of your hassle. Good luck.