In fact, a car battery is cheap and easy to replace. But, so much of what we do and depend on with our cars are reliant on a good battery. And when they do go wrong, they can be a massive inconvenience.
Despite massive advances in automotive engineering design which has hugely increased the performance and safety of vehicles on our roads today, the one consumable item upon which we are all reliant is still pretty much the same in appearance and performance as it was 20 years ago.
Before we analyse why we are likely to come a cropper at some point, it’s firstly worth us considering how the aforementioned advancement in automotive technologies has actually placed more of an onus on the common battery.
In the 1970’s, a car radio was listed as an option extra in most new car dealerships. Step forward to 2018 and most cars that leave the garage forecourt have not just a stereo, and probably colour sat-nav as standard, but also electric windows, ECU’s, electric seats and possibly even electronic driving aids like reversing cameras too. Back in the days of flares and long hair, the battery just needed to start the car, power the headlamps and operate the wipers.
So, whilst we have established that the common car battery has a lot more responsibility than it’s peers of a few decades back, one thing remains the same – batteries like to be used. The way batteries have been designed is to lose, and re-charge their cells. If you don’t use a battery for weeks or months on end, a possible suggestion (we suggest you check with your car manufacturer main dealer regarding this) would be to keep your car ‘on charge’. An alarm alone is enough to drain the battery of a normal family sized car after a few weeks or no use.
And if you only use your car for short journeys – to the school gate a mile or two away or even less, you could be continually draining your battery without giving it the chance to recharge. On colder days too, it takes more effort for the battery to crank the engine and of course, chances are you will also be using lights, wipers, heaters etc. more then too…hence why car batteries more stereotypically cause problems in winter months.