Your car battery is one of the most crucial pieces of equipment present in your vehicle – completely essential for not just safe driving, but to have an ability to drive at all! In this blog entry, the Chicagoland battery jump start service experts here at Towing Chicago will detail the top causes of drained car batteries.
Leaving Headlights On
If your car battery is rapidly draining, you’re probably leaving your car headlights on when you turn your vehicle off. This rapidly drains car batteries.
Loose Battery Connections or Corrosions
When battery terminals (both negative and positive) get loose from motion or rapidly corrode it can cause serious issues. If your battery terminals get loose or become corroded, your car battery might not be able to transmit energy right, and your car might not be able to start. Other electronic aspects of your vehicle might experience issues, causing sudden stalling during driving. Driving with loose batteries or corroded battery terminals will greatly increase the chances that you’ll experience a roadside breakdown. If your car suddenly stops while driving, check on its battery terminals and contact a professional Chicago car towing company for assistance.
Aged Batteries
If your car battery is very old, it will likely need to be replaced. Car batteries often last about 5 years – and with lots of stress, they can expire after months. This depends on your driving style and how you maintain your car battery. Taking short trips, driving in extreme weather, and wrongly maintaining your car batteries can drastically lower their life. If your car batteries rapidly die even after being jump started, purchase a brand new one.
Constant Short Trips
The alternator charges your car’s battery as the car’s engine runs – but if you’re regularly taking short trips, the alternator won’t have enough time to recharge your car battery during the very short drives. Regular short trips will seriously lower the lifespan of your car battery – so try to combine errands in single drives – which can save you time and convenience as well.
Car Alternator Issues
If your car’s alternator isn’t working right, it won’t charge your car battery right – making it hard, or even impossible for you to start your car. So if your car won’t drive or start when you activate the engine, it’s possible your car’s alternator is broken. If this is the case, contact a licensed professional Chicago roadside assistance expert to tow your vehicle to a repair shop and have your alternator replaced.
