Picture this: you’ve just stopped off at the grocery store on the way home from work to pick up a few things for dinner, when all of the sudden, as you’re ready to finally head home, your vehicle doesn’t start. You turn the key and all you hear are clicks!
It’s a frustrating situation to say the least and one that many people are familiar with. Nine times out of ten, it’s because of your battery—even if you’re diligent about ensuring that your lights are off when you leave your vehicle and nothing is putting excess strain on the battery.
Now, you’re faced with two prospects: call someone to come and give you a jump or call for a tow truck to come and haul your vehicle to the nearest foreign auto repair shop in Conway, AR so you can have a new battery installed. If you’re short on people to call who know how to properly jump your vehicle, you could be paying a lot out of pocket for a problem that may have been avoidable in the first place!
How do you prevent yourself from ending up in a situation like this? The answer is to have your battery tested regularly, to keep you in the loop about its functionality and condition.
Battery tests
Caring for your battery can be easy to forget about, as it’s not something that you have much contact with over the life of your ownership of a vehicle. The battery functions silently to keep your vehicle powered… except when it doesn’t. And, because there’s no real indicator to tell you when you might need to think about having your battery swapped out, it’s important to let a professional get under your hood and give your battery a test for good measure.
Battery tests are quick, inexpensive (or sometimes free) and they’re considered a crucial part of your regular maintenance regimen. Ask your local foreign auto repair shop in Conway, AR about them if you’ve never had your battery tested before.
Avoiding mishaps
What can a simple battery check do to keep you out of trouble when it comes to vehicle mishaps? Take a look at what you can avoid with regular battery testing:
- No-start situations that occur as the result of a dead battery.
- Corroded battery contacts that might create connection problems.
- Erratic power issues that make a battery unreliable.
- Lack of power to your vehicle due to a bad battery.
If you’re dedicated to your vehicle and want to ensure its total functionality, don’t forget to have one of its most essential parts tested and inspected regularly: the battery. Battery testing should be done annually at minimum, but can be done twice yearly if your battery is getting on in age. A good time of year to test your battery is during fall, since winter conditions can really put a strain on the battery and its ability to provide your vehicle with appropriate power.