Maintenance Tricks for Extending Your Car’s Battery

A key part of keeping your vehicle running for as long as you need it is maintaining your car’s battery, but no matter what you do, batteries typically only last between two and five years. Because this is a necessary vehicle part, follow our maintenance tricks for extending your car’s battery. 

Keep Lights Off Until You Need Them

One of the top culprits of a battery running out before its time is when a driver leaves their interior lights or headlights on when they aren’t needed. If you don’t take the time to make sure your vehicle is dark once you’ve locked those doors, you may find yourself with a dead battery in the morning. This is an important one, so think about writing yourself a note and leaving it where you’ll see it when exiting your car, or setting a reoccurring alarm on your phone that will remind you to check your vehicle lights.

Test and Clean Your Battery

It’s important to understand how your battery is doing so you have a good idea of how much life it has left. Your battery’s condition will clue you in on if your maintenance measures are working or if you need to replace your battery before it affects your vehicle’s performance.

When testing your car battery, clean it at the same time. It’s common for a battery to collect dirt and grime, which can lead to corrosion, one cause of shorter battery life. To clean your battery, mix baking soda with hot water and gently scrub the terminals, followed by a quick rinse and a thorough dry.

Use Your Car for Longer Periods

There will be plenty of times when you need to make a quick trip to the store or to drop off something at a friend’s house, but try to limit these shorter drives to preserve your battery life. Think about ways you can combine errands into one trip instead. If you drive your car often and for longer distances, you’ll end up giving your engine a chance to recharge the battery on the way as opposed to a half-charge that can severely impact how long your battery lasts.

Make Sure Your Battery Is Secure

It’s natural for your car to vibrate slightly while running, but bigger vibrations may mean that a battery isn’t properly secured, which can drastically reduce the life of your battery over time. You’ll want to tighten the clamps, but not too tight, as this can also damage the battery.

Monitor Electronics Usage

Just as you should make sure your lights are turned off when not in use, monitor your electronics too. Especially if you’re idling, you’ll want to turn off the radio and air conditioning and unplug accessories like phone chargers that you don’t need at the moment.

If you want to minimize the chance that you need to replace the battery in your vehicle or of your car giving out on you while you’re driving, keep the health of your battery as a top priority. You’ll be glad you did.

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