Your Car Battery Could be Bad If…

If your car battery is dead, you are in trouble. Without a properly working battery, a car isn’t going anywhere. It can be very frustrating when a car battery dies. Here are some signs to know that the car battery is on its way out:

Car Won’t Start
This may seem obvious. If you try to turn on your car and hear a “tick, tick, tick” and the car starter doesn’t turn over, the battery could be the culprit. If the car doesn’t start it could also be a problem with the alternator. So it’s important to determine the root of the problem and then go from there when getting the car fixed.

It’s Older Than 5 Years
The typical life span of a car battery is four to five years. Keep track of the battery life of your car. If it’s over 5 years it’s advisable to replace it. A car battery is not meant to last 10+ years or over 100,000 miles, like your car might. It’s normal for a car to go through two or three batteries throughout its lifetime.

Cold Climate
Four to five years is the average life span of a battery, but that can be less if the car drives in extremely cold weather climates. The cold weather takes more out of the battery because it has a harder time recharging and uses more energy to start the car in the cold.

Additional Wear
We can all be forgetful sometimes, but leaving the headlights, interior lights, or alarm system running can affect the shelf life of the battery, even if it does get recharged.

If the car was in a front end accident, the battery may have been affected. Check the battery for damage like cracks. Cracks can cause leaks of acid and other chemicals which are dangerous and diminish the battery quality.

Dashboard Warning
Most modern cars include warnings in the dashboard when a component of the car isn’t working properly. A check battery light will appear if the battery is failing. Of course, this means that it needs to be fixed quickly. This isn’t a light to ignore for days.

Electrical Components Not Working
A healthy car battery should allow the car to use many electrical components at once. If you find that the radio, lights, heating, air conditioning, etc. aren’t working properly there could be a battery issue.