Maintaining your car battery
Final battle: battery vs. winter!
Wrapped up in your warmest coat, you desperately press the start button on your car. Nothing happens. All you can do is take the kids back inside and hope the tow truck arrives quickly.
Does this scenario sound familiar? Fortunately, if you had your car checked at Pneus Chartrand Mécanique before winter, the chances of this happening are slim. But if not… we hope you have roadside assistance!
Cold VS Battery
Why does your battery suffer so much? It’s a simple physical reaction. Batteries contain chemical compounds, including water and lead, that are sensitive to extremely cold (or hot, for that matter) temperatures. Cold weather will prevent your battery from recharging as quickly, reducing its amperage. When you try to start your car, your battery won’t have enough power to do so effectively.
Several other factors can also affect battery capacity. In winter, we use more electrical accessories, such as windshield wipers. If your trip isn’t long enough to allow the alternator to do its job properly, and you also use up too much of the available electricity, you won’t have enough charge left for the battery to do its job.
So, are we ready to go?
You have to leave. The kids are expected at school, and you’re expected at work. You should still try to start the car, but take a few precautions.
- Turn everything off: you want to conserve the battery’s energy for the engine. Turn everything off, including your heater (we know, it’s cold), the radio, and the defrosters. Turn them back on when the engine is running, not before!
- Press the button. But no more than 10 seconds, or you risk flooding the engine. Stop for 5 minutes, then try again. No more than three times is best.
- Don’t remove the battery to warm it up indoors. Let our specialists do that for you. A poorly made connection could cause you more trouble.
- If nothing works, you’ll need to jump-start the battery (call roadside assistance) or tow the car. Jump-starting may seem easy, but be careful. You don’t want to damage your battery, or worse, your charming neighbor’s battery who came to help you!
What can you do to prevent this?
There aren’t many miracle solutions.
- Maintenance
The best thing to do is to make sure we inspect the battery at the beginning of the season. It needs to be strong enough and clean enough to get through the harsh cold months. Ask our experts for advice.
- Engine block heater. Installed in the shop, the engine block heater keeps the oil at the right temperature, making it easier to start the engine. However, it must be plugged in.
- Charge your battery. If you know your car will be stationary for a long time, use an external charger. It’s easy and inexpensive.
- Drive for 20 minutes. In winter, trips to the convenience store 500 meters away are hard on the battery. Drive longer so that it can recharge and recover its energy with each use.
- Consult our specialists. They can diagnose the condition of your battery and suggest solutions. After all, we are the experts!
With proper maintenance, your battery should not cause you any problems below -55 degrees. And at that temperature, who really wants to go outside anyway?
Feel free to visit us directly at one of our workshops. Pneus Chartrand Mécanique has a team ready to help you make the right choice. Our experts know their products inside and out and will be able to tell you if your tires comply with Transports Québec regulations and are safe for winter driving.