Is It Time to Get a New Car Battery? The Signs You Should Know

No one wants to find themselves stuck in a parking lot with a car that won't start. Most of the time, this unwelcome event is due to a battery finally reaching the end of its life span. A charge from a road service tow truck may help for a while, but that initially dead battery is a sign that you need to get a new one. But of course, no one wants to get to that point.

So how do you know if your car battery is about to go? Subtle signs, where you live and your driving schedule can point you toward your repair shop or battery provider.

The Ignition Takes Just a Little Longer to Catch

When your battery works but is old, your car will still start, but you might notice the faintest delay before the ignition "catches" and the car starts. If you sense something is off, and starting the car takes a millisecond longer, have the battery checked. You don't know how much time you have left before that delayed ignition becomes no ignition.

The Weather Where You Now Live

Extreme heat causes batteries to drain much more quickly than they would in regions that didn't have extreme heat. If your battery is already a couple of years old, and you've moved to a region where temperatures in the 30s and even 40s are common in summer, that can really take its toll. So, if you've moved from, say, Melbourne to somewhere in the interior of the country, and your battery is already a couple of years old, you need to get it checked and possibly replaced.

You Haven't Driven in a Long Time

Many drivers got a surprise after the first round of lockdowns was complete; they hadn't driven their car that much during lockdown, and some of them found out the hard way that letting the car sit for too long can sap battery strength. The car may run for a couple of weeks until there are problems. If you haven't been driving during lockdowns, or you've transitioned to working from home and just haven't gone out to drive, you need to do so. Even a drive around the neighbourhood can help. But if it's too late, and your car has sat unused for several weeks, bring it to an auto service to see if the battery needs to be replaced.

You need to be in tune with how your car works, from how it sounds to how it feels. When you notice differences in how it operates, you can bring it in to be repaired before the problem becomes much bigger. To learn more, contact a car battery provider.


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