Just like you need nutritious food to keep your body healthy and energized, your car also needs a good battery for smooth functioning. Battery is a very vital part of your car that plays a major role in the ignition, cooling and power storage. For taking the best care of your battery, you do not need to know everything about it. Few tips can help you get an idea of how your battery works and how can you maintain it to increase its life span and productivity.

Q1. How do I know that my car battery is not functioning well?

Few signs indicate that your car battery is failing in its function. They are as follows:

• When various electronic devices of your car are facing functionality issues.

• When your car faces problems in starting or ignition.

• When your headlights are faint during immobility and brighten when you rev the engine.

• When your car cabin is not cooled properly.

Q2. What are the causes of a weak car battery?

Several factors can reduce the life of your car battery and adversely affect its smooth functioning. They are as follows:

• Excessive use in air-conditioning, music system and lightning can debilitate your battery.

• Driving habits. Rash driving can adversely affect your battery.

• Low charge and acid stratification.

• Using lights, air-conditioning, and music system when the car is motionless.

Q3. How to maintain your car battery?

There are several ways through which you can maintain your car battery for long-lasting performance. Some of the tips are mentioned below:

• To avoid corrosion, regular cleaning is very essential for the maintenance of your car battery.

• On finding any type of corrosion, clean your battery with a solution of baking soda.

• Periodically check for any kind of damages such as fluid leakage, shell racks, and others.

• Protect your battery from the entry of toxins by tightening the terminals and cables.

• Lubricate the cables and terminals with Vaseline and petroleum jellies. 

Q4. Why the ground wire system should be removed first while replacing the battery or cleaning the terminals?

When we begin to replace the battery or clean the terminals, we should always make sure that the ground wire is removed first. We should be aware of the type of grounding system used in our car. Spark may happen if the grounding system is negative and we start with removing the positive connector. Spark may also occur when you remove the positive connector with a metal instrument that is in touch with other metal parts. This may also lead to a battery explosion. Hence, it is essential to remove the ground wire system first while replacing the battery and cleaning the terminals.

Q5. How high temperature affects the life span of the battery?

When the battery is exposed to a high temperature, the water in its electrolyte evaporates which leads to oxidation of positive grids. Thus, excessive heat hampers the life span of batteries.

Q6. How can I repair my battery if it faces any damage in the warranty period?

You can directly seek assistance from your nearest battery manufacturer. For instance, if you purchase a Samsung mobile and faces some issues in the warranty period, you should contact the nearest Samsung care and not the retailer. A similar rule applies to batteries too. Depending on your battery brand, you can contact the manufacturers such as Luminous, Exide, or S F Sonic.

Q7. What is Cold Cranking amps (CCA)?

Cold-cranking amp is a rating used in the battery industry that denotes the number of amps a fully charged battery generates at 0-degree Fahrenheit for 30 seconds while maintaining a voltage of 7.2 volts for a 12-volt battery. The higher the CCA ratings, the greater the ignition power of a battery. 

Q8. What is a pro-rata warranty?

Pro-rata warranty, also called partial warranty is applicable to non-repairable objects such as tyres and batteries. In this type of warranty, when a product fails within the warranty period, it is replaced at a cost that depends on the age of the item at the time of failure. In the pro-rata warranty, only a part of the initial cost is covered. The same new warranty period is applicable to the replaced item.

Q9. What is MCA or CA?

Marine Cranking amps or cranking amps is a rating that denotes the discharge load in amperes that a fully charged battery at 30-degree Fahrenheit or 0 degree Celsius can produce for 30 seconds to maintain a terminal voltage equal to or greater than 1.2 volts per cell.

Q10. What is battery cycle life?

Battery cycle is a period or a cycle in which the fully charged battery discharges completely and then returns to the fully charged mode again. Cycle life is the number of cycles performed by the battery before it fails to function.