Did you know that if you have a manual transmission car that you can start it without even cranking the ignition? This is a very helpful trick to know if your battery ever dies on you, since you do not even need jumper cables or another car. All you need is a small hill, or a couple of people willing to push your car. Unfortunately, this will not work on a car with an automatic transmission.
Identify a stretch of clear downhill roadway, either in front of your vehicle, or behind it. The path should be about 10 to 20 yards long and clear of traffic and obstacles. If someone is with you, have them help keep an eye out for traffic. Alternatively, you could use a flat stretch of roadway, but for this you will need a couple of people to help you push the car.
Get in the car, put one foot on the brake and fully depress the clutch with the other. Release the parking brake if it is on.
Put the car in first gear.
Set the ignition switch to run.
Verify again that there is no traffic in your path, and release the brake. Keep the clutch depressed.
Coast down the hill until your speed reaches about six or seven miles per hour.
Release the clutch quickly and you should feel the engine turn over and start. If the engine does not start running within a second or two, then depress the clutch and release it again. By now, it should be running. Take care to watch where you are going. If it looks like you could run out of room before the car starts, then stop and come up with a different plan.
If your runway is flat rather than downhill, then follow the same steps, except have two or three people push your car along the flat roadway. Once more pop the clutch to start the car.
