Your car’s battery is part of the entire electrical system of the car, which makes it almost central to the entire vehicle itself. With an electric vehicle like a Tesla or a Rivian, it’s a wholly different story, but for regular cars with internal combustion engines or ICE in them, a battery provides the electrical current to keep all systems in the car energized. As such, keeping your battery in good shape is imperative, and failure in the upkeep of the battery can be detrimental to the proper functioning of the car. Short of buying a battery every couple of months, maintenance is crucial for batteries.
However, in this blog post, we will look at the impact of weather on car batteries. We’ll look at what common misconceptions people usually have in terms of batteries and their response to weather changes, whether it’s extreme heat or extreme cold, weather can have an impact on your car’s battery. We will discuss some tips that you need to keep in mind in order to ensure that your battery isn’t adversely affected by weather changes and extreme weather. So, let’s start by understanding the impact of weather on car batteries and trail off with some tips for all seasons.
Impact of Weather on Car Batteries
Car batteries, much like batteries in electronics like your phones and laptops, degrade and lose their efficiency over time, which is why, after the passage of some time, you will need to replace your car battery. Weather and its cycles can also accelerate this process of a battery losing its efficiency over time. There is a common misconception that winters do more damage to a car’s battery than summers, and while this might be true for batteries in electronics like phones or tablets, the same is not the case for car batteries.
On the contrary, high temperatures can be troublesome for car batteries, and most of them usually reach their failure point earlier due to exceptionally high temperatures in the engine bay. For example, normal operating conditions for a car battery are around the same as the engine temperature. However, excessively hot engine bays can reduce the life of a battery to the point where it may reach failure earlier than what the supplier or manufacturer may have suggested.
During Summers
Car batteries operate normally during summer, although due to the excessive load of air conditioning and other peripherals utilizing energy, they may get worn down a little over time. But batteries are manufactured with their rough usage in mind, and therefore, summers and excessive electrical discharge aren’t usually a cause for concern. What is a cause for concern is, as explained beforehand, the excessively high temperatures in an engine bay, which can cause the battery to self-discharge, reducing the battery life by a lot and causing too much degradation of the battery itself. Therefore, keeping your car cool during summer and your engine bay in the usual temperature range is important if you want your battery to last longer and not stick you with a replacement bill every couple of years.
During Winters
Contrary to popular belief, winters are not as damaging to car batteries as they have been thought of. While older batteries may experience some issues with discharging in extremely cold weather, well-maintained batteries will not act up even if the temperatures are sub-zero. But that does not mean that winters don’t affect the operation of batteries or that low temperatures won’t affect the performance. Typically, you will see weak discharge during extreme cold, but once the temperature in the engine bay has returned to normal, the battery will continue to operate normally. However, it needs to be said here that if a battery is discharging too much or isn’t working at all during winter, it might not be wise to throw it away and get a new one.
Tips for all Seasons
Whether it’s winter or summer, car batteries can provide you with unbridled performance all the time, however, they need to be maintained and given due care as one of the integral parts of the entire car. Because if a battery dies on you at the wrong time, it can be quite troublesome since getting a jump can take quite a lot of time, provided you have jumper cables on hand. Even then, it’s only good for the trip, and once you switch off the car, it’s as good as dead again.
- Maintenance: Maintenance is what allows the car to perform efficiently and to the maximum, and your car’s battery is no different. If you have a dry battery in your car, these are usually manufactured to be ‘maintenance-free’, and a simple wipe with a cloth is usually enough every now and then. But for regular lead-acid batteries, maintenance includes topping off fluids, ensuring that the terminals are always clean and that there is no carbon deposit on the battery itself. Once that all is done regularly, you can get far more mileage out of a battery than you would with no maintenance at all.
- Extreme temperatures: As explained beforehand, extreme temperatures can disrupt the functioning and performance of the battery and can shorten its lifespan by self-discharging during extremely high temperatures. This is why ensuring that your cooling system (fans, radiators, intercoolers, etc.) is in top-notch conditions and keeps the temperatures in the engine bay down can do wonders for the battery and will once again allow you to get more mileage out of the battery.
- High-quality batteries: Skimping out on the car’s accessories or peripherals is never recommended, especially when it comes to the battery. Since it is responsible for energizing the entire vehicle, you should always invest in a high-quality battery rather than skimp out on a cheap one and potentially put your car at risk of a short-circuit, endangering you, your car and other motor vehicles on the road.
Conclusion
Batteries can be affected by the weather, especially during summer when the temperature in the engine bay gets too much, which can drive down the longevity of the battery. Therefore, it is always recommended that you provide the battery with ample maintenance and normal temperatures to get the most out of it.
Magnum Autoclub: Treat your Vehicle to Exceptional Maintenance!
Going above and beyond with your car’s maintenance can work wonders and will extend the life of your car. Regular maintenance will ensure that the car keeps operating smoothly and efficiently, and with Magnum Autoclub, you can finally have the confidence of knowing that whatever maintenance your car requires, it will be done flawlessly by professionals. Magnum Autoclub is dedicated to providing services that dispel the notion of cheating mechanics; with the best services, best prices and a professional workforce that is all composed of petrolheads, your car will receive all the attention it needs at Magnum Autoclub to make sure it stays on the roads and serves you smoothly, without any issue, for the many miles to come. Trust Magnum Autoclub with your car, and don’t ever worry about regular maintenance; your car will always be ready to take on the world with you.