How to choose the right car battery

Every car battery has a shelf life, whether it’s being used or not. Even brand new batteries stored on the shelves of automotive parts stores expire after a certain time. Since every battery comes with a certain timed guarantee, knowing when to replace one seems somewhat logical. However, depending on where you live, the type of weather you endure, a battery can last longer than the guarantee period or less – depending on the circumstances.

Car batteries normally have a life expectancy of 2-3 years, even if it says that they will last up to 5 years. If lately you have been facing ignition problems or sluggish functioning of your car’s electrical devices or experiencing the slow-start of your car and the battery has also passed its warranty period, it makes financial sense to invest in a new car battery rather than paying for repairs on an old one now and then.

With the vast array of auto batteries available in the market, choosing the right one is a bit confusing at times. Here are a few things you should keep in mind when it comes to replacement, of your car battery.

• Battery Group Size – This is the physical size of the battery, and most vehicles will allow for more than one group size. The wrong size might not fit securely or provide sufficient power. If the terminals are in the wrong place, your car’s cables might not reach, or it may not fit in firmly. Check your owner’s guide to find the battery group sizes that will fit in your vehicle.
• Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) – CCA determines how well your battery will supply enough power for 30 seconds at a temperature of zero degrees Fahrenheit. Batteries that only display hot cranking amps (HCA) or cranking amps (CA) are not as well suited for cold areas.
• Reserve Capacity (RC) – RC measures how many minutes the battery can supply power before falling below the minimum voltage level after the alternator has failed. In general, the higher the number, the better. This is an important factor to consider if you operate on the electrical components of the car keeping its engine off.
• Battery Date Code – Be sure to ask for the battery with a recent manufacturing date. A battery that’s been on the shelf for an extended period can lose some of its charge, and might not perform as well as the first time.
• Warranty – Look for a hassle-free warranty. Is the warranty nationwide so that you can obtain service wherever you are? How long is the free replacement period? Make sure that you are comfortable with the warranty.
• Consider value as well as price – Before taking professional advice from your motor mechanic, do search on the internet and look for discounted prices offered by various spares parts selling companies. It is certain that you will remain on the gainer’s side if you purchase your car battery online rather than buy it from a local store.
• Purchase a new battery before your existing one fails – Before you take a long trip, or when you are having your car serviced, have your battery tested. It will save you a lot of time and money down the road.

Car batteries need regular checkups, which if not taken care of, will reduce the life of the battery. We are providing you with some useful tips that will enhance your car’s battery life.

• Do not leave the headlights on for a long time after turning off the car engine.
• Do not leave the key in the ignition of the car overnight as some electrical device may stay on and can discharge the battery by the morning.
•  Never let rust remain on the battery terminals for too long.
• Do not leave interior lights on overnight; make sure to turn off all lights off and any other electrical accessories before locking the car.
• If you are not going to use your car for a long time, disconnect the battery from the car and manually remove it from the car altogether. This ensures that the battery will not get discharged when the vehicle is not used.

Maintaining an automobile battery, like checking the terminals and cables and keeping the connectors clean will free you from situations where the car refuses to start at traffic lights or get you stuck in the middle of nowhere without help at hand. Do not install used car batteries as they are extremely dangerous.To know how well your car battery is performing, do take your car to a proper service center like Carservicing4less, on a regular basis.

Take care of your car and it will never give you a headache

Have you been ever stuck on a road in-between a forest late at night while returning from work with a jammed steering wheel or in a lonely highway with a fuel tank leakage on the way to your office for attending an important meeting? Unlike many others these are the consequences most of the car owners face when they skip a proper car service. Be it a Mercedes Benz or a Skoda or an Audi, regular servicing enhances the efficiency of the vehicle and surely provide a sign relief to a greater extent while driving down a remote area.

No matter how much your pay for your car at the time of the purchase keep one thing in mind; your “dearer possession” will depreciate in its retail value as soon as it leaves the dealer’s showroom. Make a clear conversation with the dealer regarding the service provided during the warranty period as this will save you from spending extra on your vehicle. Go through the car maintenance guide book to uphold the value of your car in the market.

Gone are the days when a roadside garage would have fixed your entire car’s problem. Day by day, along with the car manufacturing companies who are upgrading their model with high class technologies in every aspect, several car servicing and repairing companies have also improved their levels. From skilled technicians to mot testers, these companies hire workmen who are best in their trade. Carservicing4less is one such company who excels in servicing and repairing of all European and Japanese cars. Their fully trained and well equipped technicians using the latest diagnostic equipments are sure to mend your car no matter in how much bad condition it is. Also by providing services like that of car collection and delivery, the company’s affordable range for car service and repair have made it a preferred one for most of the car owners in and around London.

Many car owners for whom it is difficult to access such a renowned car servicing company make sure that your car servicing is done from a reputed auto repair shop and by a skilled car mechanic from time to time. Make him aware about the parts of the car which generally goes unnoticed like wipers of the wind shield, tyre and seat belt condition and proper lubrication of the engine and hinges. Few general and easy guidelines like changing of oil every four months, checking of fluid levels and brakes every six months, if followed on a routine basis will surely increase durability of your car.

Thinking of Car Servicing

Auto maintenance or car servicing describes the act of inspecting or testing the condition of car subsystems and servicing or replacing parts and fluids. Regular maintenance is critical to ensure the safety, reliability, drivability, comfort and longevity of a car. During preventive maintenance, a number of parts are replaced to avoid major damage or for safety reasons, e.g. timing belt replacement.

The actual schedule of car maintenance varies depending on the year, make, and model of a car, its driving conditions and driver behavior. Car makers recommend the ideal service schedule based on impact parameters such as.

• number of trips and distance traveled per trip per day
• extreme hot or cold climate conditions
• mountainous, dusty or de-iced roads
• heavy stop-and-go vs. long-distance cruising

Experienced service advisors in dealerships and independent shops recommend schedule intervals, which are often in between the ideal or extreme service schedule. They base it on the driving conditions and behavior of the car owner or driver.

Common car maintenance tasks include:

• Car wash
• check/replace the engine oil and replace oil filters
• check/replace fuel filters
• inspect or replace windshield wipers
• check or refill windshield washer fluid
• inspect tires for pressure and wear
• Tire balancing
• Tire rotation
• Wheel alignment
• check, clean or replace car battery terminals and top up battery fluid
• inspect or replace brake pads
• check or flush brake fluid
• check or flush transmission fluid
• check or flush power steering fluid
• check and flush engine coolant
• inspect or replace spark plugs
• inspect or replace air filter
• inspect or replace timing belt and other belts
• lubricate locks, latches, hinges
• check all lights
• tighten chassis nuts and bolts
• check if rubber boots are cracked and need replacement
• test electronics and circuits, e.g., Anti-lock braking system or ABS

Some tasks that have equivalent service intervals are combined into one single service known as a tune-up. In modern cars, where electronics control most of the car’s functions, the traditional tune-up doesn’t apply anymore. Maintenance jobs like a tune-up used to mean getting the engine’s performance back on track. Today embedded software takes care of it by constantly checking thousands of sensor signals, compensating for worn-out spark plugs, clogged filters, etc. The so-called limp-home function allows driving on limited power when the engine is in trouble. In the old days this might have meant a breakdown and might had to look out for a car fitter in the middle of the night.

In most of the places, the completed services are recorded in a service book which is rubber-stamped by the service center upon completion of each service. A complete service history usually adds to the resale value of a vehicle.

So, if you are planning for car servicing or car repair or car battery replacement call Carservicing4less or visit their website www.carservicing4less.co.uk and avail LOCAL CAR COLLECTION & DELIVERY SERVICE.