With the sudden drop in temperature, many car owners may experience this: the fully charged auto start battery is drained in no time. It feels as if the battery charge has been stolen, making many car owners very frustrated. This is because the capacity of the auto start battery is much lower in low-temperature environments than at room temperature. Therefore, maintaining the auto start battery in winter becomes particularly important. Here, we introduce some ways to maintain the car battery in winter.
Some functions and components are still running when the car is turned off
Many car owners think that when the car is turned off, it is completely disconnected from the electric supply. However, many devices are still running. The most common one is the anti-theft system installed in many cars today. When the car is locked, the system starts working. Though the power consumption is much smaller than that of devices like headlights, it can still drain the battery after a few weeks when the car is not started to recharge and the battery storage state is poor.
The car is not completely at rest after it is turned off
Traditionally, people believe that after the car key is turned off, all components of the car stop working. However, when the engine temperature is too high, even if the car is turned off and the key is removed, the cooling system will automatically start to cool the engine system. The system will stop working only when the engine temperature reduces, usually taking 3-5 minutes.
Car owners may forget to turn off the car lights after locking the car
Leaving the car lights on overnight can overwork the battery, causing it to fail. While many cars now have an automatic feature that can turn off the headlights after the car is locked, some cars still require manual operation, so car owners should pay attention to it.
Use a wet cloth to clean the outside of the battery, wiping off dust, oil stains, white powder and other debris that may cause a short circuit. Regular cleaning of the battery terminals not only prevents the build-up of white corrosive powder, but also prolongs the battery life as expected.
Open the battery water filler cap and check if the water level is normal. There are usually upper and lower lines marked on the battery for reference. If the water level is below the lower line, distilled water must be added. The water level should not be too high or too low, while somewhere in the middle between the upper and lower lines is just fine.