1. Parking the car for a long time

Modern cars are equipped with many intelligent features that continue to operate even after you turn off the engine. These features include remote control systems, anti-theft systems and some types of sensors. Even though these features will only consume very little battery energy, when you park the car for a long time, the battery power will be drained bit by bit without being recharged and eventually will be drained out. Therefore, some users may find their unused car very difficult to start.

When you park the car for a long time, the battery power will be drained bit by bit

The best advice for car owners who do not drive regularly is to take your vehicle out, start the engine and take a drive every once in a while, so that the battery will be recharged. This will also help to preserve the engine and the tires of unused cars.

2. Skipping periodic car maintenance

It is important to have your car checked by the maintenance service periodically, because many automobile parts require regular inspection, including the battery. If you skip the maintenance schedule, it will be impossible to check if the battery liquid level is sufficient, or whether battery poles are clean or dirty. Unchecked batteries often have shorter life than expected, because they might be working under abnormal conditions for a long time.

Regular maintenance helps preserving battery life

The advice is simple: take your car to the maintenance service regularly. You may think that the service can cost time and money, but it will cost a lot more if any part of your car malfunctions and you have to fix or replace them. For example, a well-preserved car battery can last up to 5 years before it must be replaced, while an unchecked battery with dirty poles may only last 2 years. Which is more costly?

3. Using too much energy when idle

This is one of the main causes of battery drain. Using the headlights, reading lights, radio, and charging electronic devices for long hours when not driving the car will cause the battery to quickly drain out of power. It may be fun to hang out in the car during the night, but will be very inconvenient to have to jump start your car the next morning because the battery dies.

4. Driving short distances

There is an optimal driving distance (usually 4-5 kilometers) for car batteries to fully recharge from electricity usage. If you constantly and only drive shorter distances than optimal, your car battery will be draining out faster than usual. The reason is that car ignition cost a lot of battery power, which can only be recharged when the vehicle moves. Driving too short will not sufficiently recharge the power consumed for ignition.

If you live near your office and only drive short distances to go to work, the best way to preserve your car’s battery life is to drive longer trips every once in a while, so that the battery can be recharged.

5. Improper battery installation

When you remove the car battery for maintenance, make sure to put it back again properly. Because if it was not installed correctly and not fitted in position, the battery would be vulnerable from road shocks and fail quickly. Exposure to severe shocks can create cracks on the battery, and in the worst case, it could be completely damaged and the car would die in the middle of the road.

When you remove the car battery for maintenance, make sure to put it back again properly