How to use an old battery to ensure your car can start in freezing weather
- October 19, 2023
- 0
The next cold season is just around the corner and soon some car owners will be faced with the question of how to reliably start the engine after
The next cold season is just around the corner and soon some car owners will be faced with the question of how to reliably start the engine after a freezing night. Smart drivers have long ago figured out how to protect themselves from unpleasant morning surprises from this series.
The sad sound of a barely starting starter is probably familiar to many car owners. The characteristic faint ‘moan’ coming from under the hood makes you mentally pray and beg the car: please start it now! A bad start can have various causes: from engine oil that has become too thick due to cold and dirty spark plugs to a “sinking” starter. But most often the cause of a bad start is the battery. Or rather, its failure.
It ‘dies’ gradually: as a result of a whole series of physical and chemical processes, the battery capacity decreases. This is a normal course of events. The colder weather outside comes on top of the natural aging of the ‘battery’ and at a certain point we get the familiar ‘sniffing, whining, whining – and it won’t start’. Usually at this stage the car owner is finally ready to purchase a new starter battery. And the old one is sent to the nearest recycling point.
It often happens that a car, especially a second-hand one, has defects in the electrical system, or shortcomings, let’s call it that, that occur as a result of car repairs or during the installation of additional electrical equipment. This creates leakage currents, which continuously discharge the battery, even when parked. As long as the battery is fresh, this is sufficient to cope with “electrical parasites” and to start the engine even in cold weather.
But over time, we repeat, its capacity decreases and the car owner sends the battery to the scrapyard, although in fact it could still work – in a car with working electricity. Knowing this nuance, experienced car owners proceed as follows. They don’t wait for the moment when the older ‘power bank’ under the hood finally stops carrying its responsibilities. A new “battery” is purchased at the first symptoms of the impending death of the “old man”.
A new battery replaces it in its original location. And the ‘veteran’ doesn’t go to the dump, but to the trunk. Where previously the electrical power wire was run from the standard positive terminal of the battery under the hood. There, in the trunk, a wire with a different terminal is attached to a metal part of the body – negative. And they connect the old battery to it. It turns out that the new and old energy storage devices are connected in parallel.
And the remaining, but far from zero, capacity of the latter is added to the capacity of the new “battery”. This creates a greater energy supply, which will be sufficient to start the engine in the event of frost – even if the car’s high-voltage electronics fail or the oil in the crankcase becomes thicker than normal!
photo globallookpress.com
The sad sound of a barely starting starter is probably familiar to many car owners. The characteristic faint ‘moan’ coming from under the hood makes you mentally pray and beg the car: please start it now! A bad start can have various causes: from engine oil that has become too thick due to cold and dirty spark plugs to a “sinking” starter. But most often the cause of a bad start is the battery. Or rather, its failure.
It ‘dies’ gradually: as a result of a whole series of physical and chemical processes, the battery capacity decreases. This is a normal course of events. The cold weather outside adds to the natural aging of the “battery” and at some point we get the familiar “whee-whee-whee – and it won’t start”. Usually at this stage the car owner is finally ready to purchase a new starter battery. And the old one is sent to the nearest recycling point.
It often happens that a car, especially a second-hand one, has defects in the electrical system, or shortcomings, let’s call it that, that occur as a result of car repairs or during the installation of additional electrical equipment. This creates leakage currents, which continuously discharge the battery, even when parked. As long as the battery is fresh, this is sufficient to cope with “electrical parasites” and to start the engine even in cold weather.
But over time, we repeat, its capacity decreases and the car owner sends the battery to the scrapyard, although in fact it could still work – in a car with working electricity. Knowing this nuance, experienced car owners proceed as follows. They don’t wait for the moment when the older ‘power bank’ under the hood finally stops carrying its responsibilities. A new “battery” is purchased at the first symptoms of the impending death of the “old man”.
A new battery replaces it in its original location. And the ‘veteran’ doesn’t go to the dump, but to the trunk. Where previously the electrical power wire was run from the standard positive terminal of the battery under the hood. There, in the trunk, a wire with a different terminal is attached to a metal part of the body – negative. And they connect the old battery to it. It turns out that the new and old energy storage devices are connected in parallel.
And the remaining, but far from zero, capacity of the latter is added to the capacity of the new “battery”. This creates a greater energy supply, which will be sufficient to start the engine in the event of frost – even if the car’s high-voltage electronics fail or the oil in the crankcase becomes thicker than normal!
Source: Avto Vzglyad
Donald Salinas is an experienced automobile journalist and writer for Div Bracket. He brings his readers the latest news and developments from the world of automobiles, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the latest trends and innovations in the automotive industry.
