You rely on your car’s battery to make sure that you’re able to start your car day or night, no matter where you are. Gulf Breeze Automotive wants to make sure that you’re prepared with information about what it looks like when your car’s battery is not okay.
Your Battery Is Old
How old is your car’s battery? If you’re not sure, there might be some ways to figure it out. First, if you bought your car brand new, that’s how old your car’s battery is. If you bought the car secondhand or you know the battery was replaced but you’re not sure when looking at the battery. There may be a sticker that lets you know how old the battery is.
It Doesn’t Look So Good
While you’re under the hood, how does your battery look? If you’re not in the habit of visually inspecting your car’s battery you might not know what you’re looking for at all. Generally speaking, there shouldn’t be any cracks or bulges in the battery’s case. Also, look at the terminals on the top. They should be clean with no corrosion or liquid around them.
It Doesn’t Smell So Good, Either
Maybe your battery looks okay, but are you smelling rotten eggs? Car batteries use sulfuric acid as part of the “magic,” and when there’s a problem like a leak or some other issue, that sulfuric acid can escape the battery. It tends to smell pretty stinky, a lot like rotten eggs. If that’s something you’re smelling, you should get your battery checked out.
You Can’t Start Your Car
One really simple tell that there’s an issue with your car’s battery is that you can’t start your car at all. Or you might be able to start it, but it takes a while and it seems like a weak effort from your car. The alternator may charge the battery a little bit if you’re able to keep the car running, but this is a warning sign that your battery is not okay and that you may need to start looking into replacing it.
Need to get your car’s battery inspected? We can help you at Gulf Breeze Automotive in Gulf Breeze, FL. Give us a call today and we can set up an appointment to inspect your car’s battery. We’ll also make sure it’s really the battery and not something more serious, like your alternator.