How to Avoid a Dead Car Battery

  1. Research Center
    2. /
  2. Car Maintenance Research Articles
    3. /
  3. How to Avoid a Dead Car Battery
You're late for an important meeting. You rush out of the house, fumble with the keys, spill your coffee and get out to the car only to hear that most-feared sound when you try to start the car. Nothing. It just sits there. You blink. Your mind reels. How can this be happening? The battery in your car is dead.
 
What can you do to avoid a dead car battery? How long do car batteries last? What can you do to extend the life of your battery? How do you keep a car battery fully charged? Lithia Auto is here with the answers.

Dead Car Battery Tips

Car Battery Lifespan

The first thing you should know is that weather has a big impact on how long your car battery will last. The hotter it is where you live, the shorter the lifespan of your battery. That’s why a typical car battery can last anywhere from three to six years before you have to replace the battery, depending on where you live. A conventional gasoline-powered vehicle gets pretty toasty under the hood. Add sizzling summer temperatures to that and you have a battery that’s will to live is sapped by high heat.

Heat affects batteries and hot weather drains your car battery power and that can lead to a chance that your car won’t start. The reason is that there is liquid in batteries and that fluid evaporates when it is hot. That’s the number one reason why batteries don’t last as long in warmer climates. But no matter where you live, proper battery care will help to keep your car running. Here are a few things you can do.
The battery terminals on top of your car battery tend to corrode over time. When you first install a battery, you smear the terminals with petroleum jelly to help keep them free of corrosive build up. Keep an eye on those terminals and use a toothbrush or wire brush dipped in baking soda and water to keep them free of buildup. Be sure to rinse the baking soda off when you’re done and dry the terminals with a clean, dry cloth. This will extend the life of your battery.
When you first install a battery, you make sure the terminals are tightly clamped down and that the battery itself is secured with a mounting bracket so that it won’t vibrate and jostle around under the hood. But over time, fasteners tend to loosen. Check to make sure the battery is securely fastened down and secure at all times. If not securely fastened down, vibration can damage the battery’s internal components and reduce its life.
Lead-acid auto batteries need to be checked seasonally to see if the water in the cells has evaporated. Pry off the plastic covers on top of the battery. The electrolyte level (a mixture of battery acid and water) should be a half inch deep. The water in each cell should come up to the bottom of the fill hole. If it doesn’t, use clean distilled water and be careful not to overfill the cells. Let it sit for a few hours to let the water mix with the electrolyte before you drive the car.
Your driving habits have a lot to do with how much of a charge your battery holds. If you only drive your car for ten minutes, the battery doesn’t have time to recharge from starting the car. A lot of us take a lot of short trips to the grocery store or to shop, and eventually, these short trips wear the battery down. One of the best things you can do to extend your battery life is to drive your car frequently for trips that are at least 30 minutes long. That way, your battery will always hold a full charge and be ready to go. If you don’t use your car very often, consider getting a car battery trickle charger such as a Battery Tender. It will keep your battery topped off even when it is just sitting in the garage.
Let’s talk about battery usage and what can lead to battery dying. The average lead-acid auto battery can hold a charge for a long time but they all “self-discharge” over time. That means they lose some of the charge by sitting unused. They are also drained by components in the car such as the alarm system and onboard computers even if it is sitting unused. Car batteries self-discharge at a rate of one percent per day but almost double that at over 90 degrees. So if your car is going to be sitting around for more than a couple of weeks without being driven, use a trickle charger such as mentioned above to keep it fully charged and ready to go.
One of the worst things you can do to cause your car battery to drain until it will not start is forget to turn your headlights or interior lights off when you park and leave the car. You’ll come out the next morning to discover a dead battery. Most cars today make a chime sound when you leave the headlights on and turn off the vehicle. This is to keep you from leaving the lights on. Also, don’t forget to unplug your cell phone and bring it in. charging your phone in the vehicle while the car is not running will drain the battery too. Double check to make sure your lights and accessories are off before leaving the car.
If you are sitting idling with the car running for an extended period, the battery is hardly being charged and accessories such as the radio or air conditioning will wear the battery down. Turning off accessories while you are sitting idling, or if the car is not running, will lighten the load and save your battery.
A lot of people think that really cold weather kills batteries. Not true. Sure, car batteries work hard to start a frozen car motor, but the real battery killer is excessive heat! Summer temperatures can cause water in the battery cells to evaporate causing a chemical reaction that depletes cranking power. Whenever possible, park in the shade or in the garage to keep your car as cool as possible.

Let Lithia Help
Remember, you can keep your car battery charged by driving your car just 30 minutes a week. The best thing to do is to drive it at highway speeds for at least a half an hour per week to keep the battery charged.
 
At Lithia Auto, we hope you never have to deal with a dead battery and suggest you ask your certified Lithia auto technician to check your battery every time you come by for an oil change. Getting your battery tested and maintained will extend its life and keep you rolling down the road.