How to choose a battery for a car - tips for motorists
A car battery is a source of autonomous power supply, which is a very important component of any car. Battery life, on average, is 3-5 years, it depends on the operating conditions and the correctness of its maintenance. Therefore, if you did not buy a new car, or after buying your new car it was quite a long time, then soon you will have to buy a new battery. In this publication, we want to give you advice on buying a car battery, to consider specific brands, and also give some tips on how to properly care for the battery.
How to choose the right battery
How to choose the battery
When you need to change the battery in the car
For a start, it is worth saying a few words about when it is necessary to buy a new battery for cars. So, the replacement of the battery is necessary in the event that it stops to fully keep its charge. That is, when you come to the garage or parking lot behind a car, you try to start it, and on the instrument panel the indicator informs you that the battery has a low charge, or is completely discharged, although yesterday it was fully charged.
Reason two: the battery simply does not charge. That is, you want to charge the battery, charge it, and it does not charge. Most often this is affected by batteries, when you make short short trips by car, especially in winter. The battery simply does not have time to charge and because of the constant discharge it loses its capacity.
Well, the last reason: technical damage to the battery. For example, the battery is cracked, leaking or on it there are other damages that technically do not allow it to operate further.
Try to restore the old battery
Here we want to give some recommendations. If in the third case, with a mechanical damage to the battery, it is no longer possible to operate it, then in the first and second cases you can try to restore the battery if you have a serviced battery. This can be done by filling a new high-density electrolyte, distilled water and a desulfurizing additive to the electrolyte, then "chasing" the battery by charging and discharging. Thanks to such actions, you may be able to reincarnate your battery, and it will serve you a little more. Please note that this procedure must be carried out with a certain amount of knowledge, since you will work with acid - this time, and you will also have to face certain physical and chemical processes, and if you do not do the right things, you can have negative consequences - these are two. If you want to try to "save" your battery, then read the instructions and advice on this issue, and only after you receive a certain amount of knowledge begin to act.
Battery selection
First of all, before choosing and buying a battery, you need to know the following information:
Battery capacity
First you need to know what is the capacity of your battery. This can be learned by looking at the label of an old battery, or by reading the operating instructions for your vehicle. In addition, you can find out the capacity of your battery on the site-community of car owners of your car model. The capacity of the battery is measured in Ampere / Hours.
Take into account, the capacity of the battery should be strictly equal to the capacity set by the car manufacturer, neither more nor less. If the capacity of the battery is higher than necessary, the generator simply will not have time to charge the battery, as a result of which it will always be in a state of undercharging. If the capacity of the battery is less than acceptable, it is also bad, because the battery will be constantly recharged, there is a possibility of failure. Therefore, choose a battery of an exclusively installed capacity. Sometimes the manufacturer of the car recommends an interval value of capacity, for example: 60-65 A / h or 55-60 A / h.
Battery terminals location
The second important point is the location of the battery terminals, that is, from which side should there be a "+" plus, and with what "-" minus. This is necessary so that the length of the regular power wires is enough to connect them to the battery. That is, the length of the regular wires is enough to match them to the corresponding polarity of the terminal. If your battery is supposed to have a "+" on the left and "-" on the right, then by purchasing a battery with the reverse terminal arrangement, you simply can not connect the vehicle's regular power wires to the terminal of the desired polarity.
Notice how the battery is located. In some models of cars it is installed backwards, and keep this in mind. The front part of the battery is where the terminals are located.
Battery dimensions
Armed with a tape measure, measure: the length, width and height of the battery. The new battery should be just this size, otherwise it might just not go into its place.
Battery release date
An important issue when choosing a battery is the date of its release. As already mentioned above, the average battery life is 3-5 years, and therefore, the newer the battery, the more likely it will last you much longer. It should be noted that the battery life begins to be calculated not from the moment of its installation in the car, but from the moment when the plant was filled with electrolyte.
Battery category
All car batteries are divided into three categories:
Serviced batteries
Serviced lead-antimony batteries are the oldest type of rechargeable batteries. They can be distinguished by unscrewing caps on top. Serviced batteries, also called demountable batteries, allow access inward. For example, with a short circuit between the plates, you can change this block of plates. The advantage of such batteries is low price.
Regarding the shortcomings, this is primarily a need for constant monitoring of the electrolyte level and water. If their value has dropped, then the liquid must be added, along with distilled water. If the electrolyte boils away and will not be dosed in time, your battery will not order you to live long. Well, one more significant drawback: the life of such batteries is very small, after 2 years, such batteries lose up to 50% of their capacity.
Low-maintenance batteries
Low-maintenance lead-low-antimony batteries are the average type of batteries, between serviced and unattended. In principle, this type of battery also requires special maintenance, but it is not as demanding as the previous one. Of the advantages, we note the low cost and high reliability.
Speaking about the shortcomings of low-maintenance batteries, we again note the need for its control and refueling, although this is to a lesser extent, but, nevertheless, it is required. Also, such batteries can not boast of their work, in 3 years you can already start to raise funds for a new battery, since it is 3 years "live" such batteries.
Maintenance-free accumulators
Maintenance-free lead-calcium batteries are the most current type of batteries. Batteries of this type do not require maintenance in the form of monitoring the electrolyte level and water in the banks, since the banks themselves are sealed and you will not have access to them. Having bought such a battery, you only need to monitor the level of its charge, and, if necessary, recharge. The service life of such a battery is 4-5 years.
The disadvantages include the high cost of such batteries, they are on average twice as expensive. Well, for some, it may be a drawback that they will not have access to banks, this is more true of representatives of the "old school", for young drivers this type of batteries is ideal.
How to check the car battery when buying
When you select a battery for your car, be sure to check its performance. To do this, you first need to connect the load plug to the battery, if within 5 minutes the indicator of the device does not show a value below 9 Volts, the battery can be safely purchased. Every serious shop should have such a test device. Very often, especially in the market, working capacity is checked by a normal 12 Volt bulb, but this is not an indicator of battery serviceability.
In principle, this and all the important nuances about how to choose a battery. Now let's talk more specifically about choosing a company and a battery model.
Which battery to choose
Which company to choose the battery for the car? To do this, let's pay attention to the rating of car batteries.
Rating of batteries for cars
One of the most high-quality, and at the same time relatively expensive, batteries are the company Bosch. Bosch is a German company that was founded in 1886.The company specializes in the production of automotive, household and industrial equipment, as well as in the production of power tools. This company is world famous and is famous for the quality of its products. The battery for Bosch auto has good characteristics: high starting current, silver coating of internal plates, easy maintenance. These batteries are produced in China, but this does not affect their quality.
The second most popular are Varta batteries. This German company was founded in 1887.The battery for the car Varta is also famous for its quality, but compared with the previous analogue is somewhat cheaper. Most of the polls in car forums show that the best battery for cars, according to car owners, is a Varta battery. As for the assembly, the Varta batteries are assembled in many countries, most often on the shelves you can find the "Warta" of Russian production, and less often Czech. Batteries are famous for their quality and reliability, as well as an acceptable price. Cheap analogs of "Warta" are Ukrainian batteries ISTA.
Batteries Mutlu took the third line of the rating of the best batteries. These batteries are manufactured in Turkey. The company Mutlu was established in 1945.Motorists note the quality of these batteries, as well as the fact that it behaves well in frosty weather. Also you can not fail to note the relatively low price of the battery.
This - as for the three leaders. The fourth line of the battery rating is shared by two companies: Titan and Tyumen. These battery companies belong, let's say, to the social segment, because they are popular because of their relatively low cost. Titan batteries are produced in Ukraine, and Tyumen batteries are in Russia. These batteries are serviceable, and like the drivers of the "old temper" and those who do not plan a large waste on the battery.
Where to buy a battery for the car
It is very important and the place of purchase of the battery. Immediately want to discourage you from buying a battery on the market, for a number of reasons: in the case of marriage, it will be more difficult for you to replace the battery, and besides, it is possible to buy low-quality products.
Buy through the online store is better than the market, but there is some risk. Firstly, with any problem, it will be more difficult for you to solve it, because the Internet store is far away. Secondly, the answers of the seller-consultant on the Internet, will never replace the personal inspection of the battery and its verification.
We recommend purchasing a battery in a large specialized store( auto parts or electrical products).It is better to overpay several hundred rubles and buy a battery in a respectable store, where you will be sure that they have an authentic product in their assortment, and in case of his marriage, you will be replaced without any problems with a battery. When buying a battery, check that the warranty card is filled in correctly and that the check is correct.
How to properly care for the battery
In order for your new battery to last as long as possible - control the level of its charge. If you often and for a long time drive, then, as a rule, recharging is not needed. If you leave your car for a long time, let alone disconnect the power wires, then you need to check the battery charge at least once a month.
We also recommend to buy a quality device for recharging the battery. On how to choose the charger for a car battery, we described in a previous article. With a long undercharge, the battery may begin to lose its capacity. Try to avoid a full discharge of the battery, as this also negatively affects its performance.