Aerial view of a highway

How well and glitch-free a car runs depends on a bunch of things, such as the hydraulic brake system, the carburetor, etc. Among all the essential components of an automobile, the battery is perhaps the most crucial as it enables the engine to start. This means if a vehicle’s battery is not working as it should, the entire system will suffer a setback, rendering the wheels caput.

Despite being such a vital part of a car, the battery is often overlooked, and its health ignored, leading to grave overuse until it breaks down completely. Simply put, a car’s battery is generally not looked after as it should until it goes wonky and then stops working altogether. That said, like most electrical contraptions, a car battery comes with an expiration date that is moved up with poor maintenance and thoughtless missteps.

If drivers stay a bit mindful and avoid overexerting their car batteries, they can significantly increase battery life. To save you from becoming one such automobile owner, we decided to let you in on some pro-tips to boost a car’s battery life. Here are our top five tips to extend your car battery life.

Switch Of The Lights After Use

We know what you are thinking, who doesn’t turn off the car lights when they get off? Well, you’d be surprised to know many times drivers unknowingly leave their vehicle’s lights on, draining the battery. Obviously, nobody does it intentionally, but it can happen, so be sure to religiously check the beams of your wheels when you exist.

Turn Off Electronics When Idling

How often do you find yourself waiting in your car for, let’s say, your partner outside your apartment building while they are ostensibly getting dressed? Pretty often? We thought so too. So when you do that, do you turn on the AC or perhaps the radio to kill time? Guilty as charged, aren’t you?

Using electronics in a car while idling is a common practice, but it’s one that seriously damages the battery. If you want to extend your car battery life, don’t use electronics when waiting in the car.

Check For Corrosion Regularly

Corrosion on a battery’s terminals can impact its efficiency and shorten the lifespan significantly. To avoid that from happening, remember to check your car battery periodically and make sure your scrub off any rusty buildups on the terminals.

Try Driving For Extended Periods

Short drives are not the best for a vehicle’s battery as they don’t give it enough time to recharge. Meanwhile, if you take your wheels for longer trips, the battery gets ample time to charge. And it goes without saying that a battery has to be able to fully restore the drained power to function properly.

So, if you want to extend your pride and joy’s battery life, try to avoid quick treks around your block. However, that doesn’t mean you can (or should) never take your wheels for a short trip to the nearby drive-through for a late-night snack. You can surely do that, but try to limit those quick getaways just a little.  

Ending Note

Invest in your car battery’s upkeep to avoid getting stranded on the road. But if that still happens sometimes, remember to call a reliable towing company to your rescue.