batteries - Why do we connect a battery to ground when jumping a car?

This may seem like a very simple question, but I've searched all over the place and haven't found an answer.

When jumping a car, we connect the + end of the charged battery to the + end of the dead battery, and the - end of the charged battery to the chassis or other metal part of the car.

I always thought that you need a closed circuit for current to flow. But this circuit appears to be open: we are connecting the - end of the charged battery to the ground! Thus, how can any circuit connected to ground have a current?

I believe another way to ask this question is: will jump starting a car still work if I connect the - end of the charged battery to a third (powered-off) car, instead of to the chassis of the car with the dead battery? If so, why? (I've heard people say that jump starting a car only works because the chassis is connected to the electrical components of the vehicle, thus providing a closed circuit since the battery is also connected to the electrical components of the vehicle).

Answer

"Ground" is just a code word which, in this case, refers to the "current return common" circuit node. There is a complete circuit because everything electrical in the car, such as the starter motor, also connects to ground in order to return current to the minus terminal of the battery through the ground. The car's chassis is used for this return network, and so the entire chassis is an extension of the minus terminal of the battery.

During jump-starting, we connect the boosting battery to ground rather than to the dead battery's - terminal for the simple reason that this provides a more direct return path to the good battery which is powering the dead car: the return current does not have to travel through the dead battery's minus terminal hookup cable and then to the jumper cable, but can go directly from the chassis ground to the jumper cable.

A more direct return path allows for better current flow and less voltage drop, like plugging a big appliance directly into an outlet, rather than via an extension cord.

In case you're also wondering why the plus jumper connections are made first, then the minuses. This is because there is no harm done if you leave the minus jumper dangling in the chassis of the car. Anything it accidentally touches is likely to be ground. If you connect both alligator clips on one end before connecting the other end, the other end is now live and you can accidentally touch the clips together to create a short circuit. If you connect the minuses/grounds first and then go to connect one of the pluses, you can create a short circuit, because the opposite side plus is probably dangling and touching something that is grounded.