Does cold weather drain car batteries?
You’ve probably noticed that when temperatures drop, so can your car’s battery power. While the good news is your battery will automatically re-charge when you drive, first you have to get your vehicle started…not always easy if below freezing temperatures have drained your battery.
When temperatures hit 32 degrees or below, your car’s battery can start losing more than 30% of its power. At 0 degrees, that number almost doubles- and your engine requires a lot more power to start.
To understand why extreme cold affects your battery, let’s do a quick review about how your car battery works: A standard car battery consists of energy cells and a lead-acid chemical solution. When you start your car, these two components work together to get the battery started so you can operate your vehicle- not just to get it moving, but so that all the electronic components will work as well: instrument panel, GPS, stereo system, interior/exterior lights, etcetera. Cold weather slows the chemical process down. If you’re battery is dead, you not only aren’t going anywhere, but you can’t rely on all these extra electrically-powered features either. When the battery goes down, it all goes down.
What can you do to help your battery when it’s freezing outside?
Our D’Orazio Ford battery service team is always here to help when your vehicle battery needs service or replacement. In the meantime, here are a few things to keep in mind that you can do to help the health and function of your car’s battery when winter is packing a punch:
Double check that all interior and exterior lights are off when you leave the vehicle. Newer models have auto-shut off, but double check to make sure that has worked properly each time you turn off your vehicle. Leaving lights on when the car isn’t running is one of the top reasons a car’s battery runs down, anytime- not just in colder weather.
Turn electronics off when the engine is off: When cold weather is blasting, every little bit of battery preservation counts. While your battery is designed to keep some electronics powered when the engine is off, that’s only for a limited time. Cutting off those electronics when your car is cut off helps your battery keep its charge.
Unplug accessories: We all have a cell phone charger in our vehicle, but when temperatures drop below freezing, it’s a good idea to unplug that and any other accessories when you leave your vehicle. The reason is that some of those ports are designed to keep pulling battery power even when the car is off, so they can continue to drain the battery.
D’Orazio Ford Mobile Battery Service
Our D’Orazio Ford Mobile Battery service is here to help! We offer full battery service at our service center at 1135 South Water Street in Wilmington, and are trained in the latest technology to ensure your battery is operating at peak performance. If the cold weather has drained your battery and left you stranded, simply call us at (815)339-0600 and our Mobile Service team will come to you, evaluate your battery, and either service it on the spot to get you up and running, or if necessary, replace it so you’re up and running in no time!
