There are a few common sources that will cause your car to not work properly, but two of the most common and easiest to fix are low or out of fuel and a dead or faulty battery.
Stalling is also a symptom of low fuel. Check the gas gauge, and if you're empty, that's your problem. Hahaha joke :)
If you turn the ignition and the starter clicks but the car does not start, your battery probably doesn't have enough juice.
Thankfully, these problems can be resolved easily, if you have the right tools. Here are the next steps to take once you've identified the source of your problems.
Jump your car with jumper cables if your battery is dead
If you've determined that your car won't turn on because of the battery, you need to jump your car.
Jumpstarting a car is a skill everyone should learn because there is a high likelihood you will need to do this more than once in your lifetime. It requires a set of jumper cables and another vehicle that runs.
Step 1: Park a running vehicle beside your car. Get close enough that the cables will reach between the two batteries. Leave the engine on.
Step 2: Open the hoods of both vehicles. Make sure they are propped in place where they will not fall.
Step 3: Attach the cables to the running vehicle. Clip the positive then negative terminals on one end of the jumper cables to the running vehicle’s battery posts (red is positive, and black is negative; this may also be indicated by plus and minus signs).
Step 4: Attach the cable’s to your car. Clip the positive then negative terminals on the other end of the cables to your car’s battery posts, and wait one to two minutes.
Step 5: Start your car. You can then remove the cables in the order they were attached, and allow your car to run ten or more minutes before turning the engine off.
MORE: Make sure you have roadside assistance coverage
Push starting a car with a manual, or standard, transmission
Another method to bypass a dead battery or alternator in a car with a standard transmission is to push-start it. This just requires the help of others to push your vehicle.
Step 1: Get help. Recruit one or two strong people to push your car from the back end.
Step 2: Switch ignition in "on position"
Step 3: Put the the transmission into 2nd gear and hold the clutch. Tell the people to push, once it build up the speed, this works best if you are positioned on a downhill slope if you don't have people to help you.
Step 4: Swiftly remove your foot in clutch pedal at the same time press the gas.
Note: Just be vigilant once it start sometimes it jerk and start fast so make ready your foot in brake pedal just incase.
These are just a few common fixes for how to react when your car does not start. If one of these does not work in your situation, you need to have your car towed to a qualified service technician to diagnose and repair the issue.
If your car jump starts and works for some time, but it consistently runs low on battery, your alternator is probably not working properly. Get your vehicle to a mechanic to check out your alternator as soon as possible.