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Ensure Your Car Battery “The Good Life”

Owner
Audrey
Good car maintenance includes checking your battery regularly. A car battery that's kept clean and filled with water should last a long time. I cannot help but draw an analogy between a car and the human body here (probably because its impossible to imagine a life without both). If you analyze deeply, you will learn that a battery is as essential for keeping your car alive, just as your heart is for keeping you alive! (hope I am not getting too carried away in getting my point across). We all know that if your battery is dead or temporarily not working, your car will never start.

This holds even more true for the winter season when the chill doesn't spare even lifeless machines! The vitality and uses of a well-functioning car battery are innumerable. For  starters, the electrical power produced by the battery is used by the car's ignition system for powering the engine. The car's battery, in most cases, also powers the lights and other accessories. Throwing light upon the above-mentioned function of a car battery, it is only obvious for us to accept the fact that the only way to ensure the life and performance of your car is by ensuring the health of its battery. In the following, I will enumerate a few “must do's”  for maintaining your car battery:
   
Get  the battery tested on a regular basis, including; when the car is serviced, before heading  for long trips and after it's been recharged.

Know how old your battery is. To see how old your battery is look for a small decal on the battery. A letter with a number should be there. The letter indicates the month of manufacture, starting with “A” for January, "B" for February, and so on. I is skipped so December is indicated by the alphabet, "M". The number represents the year of manufacture, with "9" standing for 1999, "0" for 2000, etc. Thus D2, for example, will stand for April, 2002, F5 would be June, 2005, and so forth. It is usually advisable to get a new battery when it is four or more years old.

Always keep an eye for corroded terminals or battery posts, loose clamps, loose cables, or a leaking or damaged battery case. Also look out for dirty, wet, corroded or swollen cables and battery top.

Look for a loose or broken alternator belt. If the alternator fails, the battery might also be required to power the vehicle's entire electrical system until repairs can be made.

Always be equipped with jumper cables in the trunk of your car for emergency start up. Do  ensure that the cables are free of rust and corrosion and that there are no exposed wires before using them.

Experts advise you to park your car in a garage whenever possible. If you have to leave your car outside all day, go out and start the car at least three times a day and let the ignition be on for a few minutes to so that the car can warm up. This will help you start the car  more easily when you are ready to go.

Avoid leaving the car out for extended periods of time, when temperatures are below zero Fahrenheit.

For more tips on keeping your battery in excellent working condition visit:

http://www.apluswriting.net/gasmiles/batterycare.htm

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