A car battery typically lasts 3 years. During scheduled vehicle maintenance, an auto mechanic will check and let you know if it needs to be replaced. Of course, specific situation depends on your driving habits. I don’t see a new car. During year, there are also a lot of battery losses, which are mainly related to driver’s driving. When you encounter following situations, pay attention, your car battery is about to be replaced, let's find out what symptoms will appear before battery fails.
1. Battery swollen
When a car battery is deformed and swollen, and it is severely swollen, battery is basically discarded and can no longer be used. There is a serious potential safety hazard and everyone should replace it in time. There are two reasons for a battery to swell, one of which may be due to long overcharging, and other reason is that battery outlet is blocked, plus charging, gas in battery case cannot be discharged, and a bulge is formed.
Secondly, car is hard to start
If car is very difficult to start properly, or fails to start after a long time, this means that car battery is about to be disposed of and cannot provide starting current to engine. At this time, it is necessary to replace battery, otherwise car cannot be driven.
3. Viewport changes
Many maintenance-free batteries have a viewing window. There is an indicator to show if battery is working well. Green means battery is good and black means battery needs to be replaced. However, some car owners report that this indicator is not reliable and cannot be started even when it is green. Vehicle, let's use it as a reference.
4. At idle, headlights become "candles"
For example, when you're waiting for a red traffic light or stopping temporarily, you suddenly find that your headlights suddenly dim. This is because engine charging power drops at idle. If battery is not strong at this time, and at same time it is necessary to supply power to electrical equipment in car, power factor of headlights outside the car will drop a lot.
5. Battery failure indicator is on
There are many warning lights on car, such as power steering warning light, ASS warning light, etc. These warning lights come on when car breaks down. The car battery also has a warning light. When car battery warning light is on, it will remind you that battery is out of order, and you should send it to repair shop for repair in time.
6. Voltage change before and after start
The daily voltage of car battery is about 12 V. After starting car engine, battery voltage rises to 13-14 V. If battery voltage is below 12 V before starting car or below 13 V after starting engine, then there may be problems with car battery .At this time, it is necessary to check car battery.
Why does a battery become brittle at low temperatures?
In fact, not only car batteries, but all batteries shorten their life in low temperatures, such as your mobile phone.
Currently, batteries used in automobiles are usually maintenance-free lead-acid batteries. The best operating temperature of this battery is around 25 degrees Celsius. When temperature drops, chemical reactions in battery slow down. And for every 1 degree drop, available battery capacity will drop by about 0.8%, and as temperature rises, capacity will be restored.
In addition, in low temperature conditions, in order to get more driving pleasure, car owners turn on heating functions such as seats, rear-view mirrors and steering wheels. When power is relatively reduced, load is increased instead. .
Remember to check your battery often in cold winter weather
Winter is coming, we will replace car with a lower viscosity oil, glass water with a lower freezing point or winter tires, but many car owners also ignore battery. In fact, cold temperature in winter also has a big impact on battery, especially in north, where temperature is more than ten degrees below zero. In addition to changes in battery performance caused by temperature, corresponding changes in car owners' cold weather habits are also a test for batteries.
Optimal battery operating temperature is 25 degrees. With a decrease in temperature by 1 degree, relative capacitance will drop by about 0.8%, and with an increase in temperature, capacitance will be restored. Therefore, when air temperature drops sharply, chemical reaction inside battery becomes more difficult, and ability of battery to discharge large currents to outside is greatly reduced. At same time, due to low temperature, viscosity of engine oil inside engine is greatly increased, and running resistance is greatly increased, Requires more starting power from outside. Under action of trimming a different length, car is more difficult to start.
Some battery brands we commonly hear are similar to Varta's claimed PowerFrame grid technology (it can improve corrosion resistance of battery by 66% and increase service life; conductivity is increased by 70% and winter start is also smoother) is to improve chemical characteristics of battery in winter. As for actual effect of use, author did not use it. If we get a chance, we'll check it out ourselves, so be careful!
In addition, during winter, there will be an increase in frequency of use of features such as seat heating, heated steering wheel, heated mirrors and defogger, which are not normally used in some models, which will increase power consumption and increase battery pressure. If battery has been used for 2 years, it must be checked before winter.
In cold winter of north, when a cold car starts, it can be difficult to start it all at once. At this time, care must be taken not to start ignition frequently for a short period of time. If it does not start within 5 seconds, you must wait Try again in 30 seconds and turn off all electrical appliances. If it doesn't work three times in a row, wait 3 minutes and try again. When ignition is triggered, battery is instantly discharged with a large current. If battery continues to discharge, it will only drain the battery faster and make it harder to start.
Summary
Every season changes, not only people are subject to physical discomfort, but also a test for car batteries. Changing car habits and increasing electrical equipment in a car are all sorts of pressure on battery. If it happens that your battery has been used for more than 3 years, you should pay attention to its additional check before winter, otherwise car lying on road in cold wind will not be a pleasant feeling.