How Can You Tell Your Car’s Battery Is Having Issues?
Knowing how to tell when your car’s battery is in trouble, especially before it fails completely, is crucial if you’re going to keep your car running and avoid getting stranded. Argonaut Garage has this advice for you that can help.
The Battery Doesn’t Look Good at All
You can tell a lot about some of the systems in your car by how they look, believe it or not, and the battery is one of those spots. If you make it a habit to visually inspect your battery once in a while, it’s easy to spot changes in its appearance. What you’re looking for are signs like corrosion on the battery posts, cracks in the battery casing, and bulges that take the battery case out of its normal rectangular configuration. Those are visual signs that the battery is having issues.
You Can Smell the Battery
Normally you shouldn’t smell anything coming from around the car’s battery, either. If you are smelling something that smells a bit like rotten eggs, it could be one of two things. Either your catalytic converter is failing or there is battery acid leaking from the battery case. The closer you get to your battery the more obvious it should be whether that’s the source of the sulfurous smell.
The Battery Is Old
Do you know how to tell how old the battery is? It might be easier than you think. Start with what you know. If you bought the car new, then the battery is as old as the car is, especially if you’ve never had the battery replaced. Used car when you bought it? Check the paperwork. The previous owner might have included information about a new battery at some point. Your other option is to look at the battery itself and see if there’s a date sticker on it somewhere. Batteries older than around three or four years old are nearing the end of their lifespan.
You’re Stranded Because the Car Won’t Start
The biggest way to know if you have a battery problem is that you try to turn the car on and nothing at all happens. No lights, no clicks, no response at all means that the battery is dead. There could be another contributing factor, like the alternator having issues, but until you start up the car, you won’t know for sure and that means getting a jumpstart.Need help with your car’s battery? Argonaut Garage in Berkeley, CA is here for you. Call us today and set up an appointment to have your car’s battery inspected. We can help with a variety of other repair and maintenance concerns, too.
