Vehicles face problems everyday on the road, but its difficult to make out the real problem often. Hybrid vehicles run on two power sources–combustion engine and electric motors. To keep them running properly, you need to have battery that works efficiently and for long run.
The battery life of any vehicle according to manufacturers say is 3-5 years, but you should get your battery checked after every 3 years No battery works for 5 years continuously. Batteries often start getting drained for the following reasons:
- If you travel short distances, battery is unablr to get charged and drains out. If your car is sitting idle for one or two weeks, it will loose connection with the alternator. An alternator takes over after you start a car and turns on the electrical system. If not driven for a long time, it won't have enough fluid to charge a battery.
- Corrosion is caused by the acids leaking from the battery and sometimes repel it from working properly. If the two ports of the battery(positive and negative) have a loose connection or corroded connection, it won't be able to transfer power from starter to the battery and your battery will die soon.
- Due to extreme weather conditions such as in summers, battery box starts swelling because of high temperatures inside the engine. This leads to burning up of the terminals of your battery which ends up draining your battery.
- In winters, due to excessive energy usage for blowers, seat heaters, rear glass blowers, its working capacity is reduced. Battery discharges due to excessive load.
Your vehicle may start showing up “change your battery now” signals. Take your car to the auto service provider like auto electrical services where you can get best battery replacement or fixation.
You may know now is the time:
- If your car makes a cranking sound when you start it. Either it won't start at all or the car starts with a jolt and then stops immediately. It may make weird sounds unheard of before. Even if you try to jump start your vehicle, it faces trouble in starting or won't start. This means, your battery has gone bad and you need to replace it. After jump starting it more than three times, if it still does not show any signs of starting, it needs to be replaced as excessive jumping also kills your battery.
- When your car's dashboard starts showing up 'battery dead' signal and flashes up like a bulb, it means you need to check your battery's condition. Sometimes signal light flashes just to tell you that your battery needs to be recharged.
- Even when your car starts with a jump and then runs normally, you need to check. You should take your car to an auto elctrical store to check its voltage. Normal voltage of your good battery while its charged is 14 volts but if it shows high voltage, its time to replace it.
- If your car's lights are not working properly, either your battery needs to be charged or it is bad. Sometimes there may be a problem of terminals, but if you have checked the terminals and found them in place, you need a mechanic to check your battery for replacement.
- Everyday, when you have to put extra efforts to start your car, please mind that your car needs help. 'Cold cranking', you may find this label on your battery . If your battery is weak, cold cranking helps the car to start in the morning. But if the problem persists for a week or so, you must replace your battery as soon as possible.
- Why ain't your car's electrical system such as your radio, your blower, your music system, your lights and so on working properly. If the systems in your car that run on battery stop working efficiently, you need to check your battery. Bad battery can turn connections weak and will lead to poor working of the car's electrical systems. Either you need to recharge it or change it entirely.
If you find your car not working properly, please keep above mentioned signs in mind and save yourself from the trouble of paying extra bills for parts that have been affected due to a bad working battery.