I’ve heard that the car battery life for a Mercedes Benz is longer than that of a Toyota. One common factor that affects the original equipment manufacturer [OEM] car battery lifespan is where the manufacturer chooses to install it. For example, under the hood within the engine area.
Mercedes Benz guarantee a 5 year car battery health lifespan. Therefore, when you’re buying a new car battery for a Mercedes Benz, you will need to consult a certified distributor.
But this article won’t be focusing on gasoline car battery life only. It will also be focusing on factors that impact the electric car battery life.
Battery replacement is part of vehicle maintenance because parts of the electrical system also undergo some challenges. The vehicle’s electrical system is complicated and consists of a lot of components whose functionality depends on each other’s well being.
For example, the car’s battery charge system that’s made up of the alternator, wiring connections, car engine belt, fuses, amongst others. These components are the areas you investigate incase you’re having car electrical system problems.
Factors that impact the gasoline car battery life.
There are several things that contribute to your battery longevity. These ones determine if the battery warranty you have will help during battery replacement time. Because there are conditions that your warranty needs you to observe for its validity.
a]. Car battery age.
This is in relation to how long you have been using the car battery. Most car manufacturers ensure that battery failure won’t occur for up to 2 to 5 years. Therefore, if your car battery has been in use for such a long time, then, battery efficiency will deteriorate.
b]. Exposure to extreme temperature.
Since you personally had no direct impact on the weather conditions of where you live and drive, this factor is something you’ll have to bear with. Extreme heat or cold will directly impact the battery capacity.
Oh, and there is no positivity to this one. The impact of extreme temperature on battery performance is always a reduction. This is based on the fact that temperatures have an effect on the battery’s components and how battery voltage is produced.
Therefore some vehicle manufacturers do not place the car battery around the engine area. Because of the large amount of heat that comes from the engine.
c]. Car battery utilization.
Poor battery utilization includes long periods of vehicle idling, short trips that prevent proper battery recharge by the alternator. Further, not shutting off the vehicle’s electrical components like stereo and lights when the engine is off.
Battery charge is very important within the vehicle’s starting system. It gets used up when powering the accessories while the engine is off.
However, these vehicle electric components get power supply from the running car engine when it starts. Engine performance largely depends on the condition of the car battery. Because bad car battery technology will not provide sufficient voltage during an engine start.
Therefore causing the car not to start. Further it could cause engine misfire, engine stalling and damage to the spark plug.
d]. Car battery maintenance measures.
Some batteries are high maintenance while others are low maintenance. High maintenance batteries require regular battery acid top up. However, there are some good practices for you to perform when you want to have a longer car battery life.
Car battery maintenance tips
When you’re about to park your vehicle for a month or more, ensure that you disconnect the terminals.
Secondly, ensure that there is no corrosion on the car battery terminals by performing regular inspections. This will ensure that the battery re-charges properly after you use up some battery charge.
Further, perform regular inspection on the condition of the battery casing to ensure that it hasn’t assumed another shape due to the effects of extreme temperatures. This being one of the signs of a bad car battery that have an impact on the car battery life.
Battery testing regularly using a voltmeter to ensure that it is not loosing battery voltage. A normal car battery should have battery voltage of 12.6 volts.
Check the condition of the alternator to ensure that the battery is charging while the engine is running. Further, an alternator that is in a good condition ensures that power reaches the other vehicle’s electrical system components while the engine runs. Hence preventing the car’s battery charge from depletion.
Avoid car battery deep discharge because it can reduce the car battery lifespan. A deep discharge involves a complete drain of battery charge. It is caused by a number of reasons why the car battery dies. For example, parasitic drain.
e]. Vehicle electrical system issues.
The car battery is an essential part of the vehicle’s electrical system. Because most of the electric needs of the vehicle are initiated at the car battery level. For example, engine starting, air conditioning, lighting and accessory powering.
The battery lifespan can be highly affected incase there are problems within the vehicle’s electrical system. This is an issue that requires deep investigation into the electrical system before a problem and its solution can be identified.
Common electrical system problems.
Malfunctioning lights can affect the car battery lifespan whereby the lights will drain the battery charge up to a state of deep discharge. Hence leaving you with the only option to jumpstart your car battery. Therefore, this largely minimizes the car battery lifespan.
Faulty vehicle electric wire connections may affect the car battery lifespan. Whereby, the battery charge could be flowing at a point in time when it shouldn’t. Therefore, causing a reduction in total battery capacity.
Problematic alternator will not perform well in the process of recharging the car battery when the engine is running. Further, it will not generate sufficient voltage for powering other electric components.
Therefore, these ones will depend on the battery’s charge to power up. Hence depleting the car battery charge. Which reduces the car battery lifespan.
Faulty vehicle electrical system fuses could also affect a car battery lifespan. Whereby, the blown fuses will be unable to regulate the amount of voltage being transferred around the vehicle’s electrical system.
Therefore, this will cause the car battery to transfer more than enough electric current . Afterwards, the battery will be completely drained. The more times that this happens, the lower the battery lifespan.
Factors that impact the electric vehicle battery life.
I am going to give you some straightforward answers to this topic. That’s because some of the things that affect the gasoline vehicle battery lifespan also apply to electric vehicles. For example;
- Extreme temperatures.
- Battery quality.
- The character of your driving habits.
Some people confuse between electric vehicles [EV] and hybrid vehicles [HV]. There are a number of differences between the two.
For example; the electric vehicle is driven by a motor which is powered by a rechargeable battery. Alternatively, the hybrid vehicle gets power from both an internal combustion engine an electric motor powered by a battery.
Some of the factors that impact the electric vehicle battery lifespan are inclusive of the following.
a]. Electric battery charge cycle.
This refers to the duration it takes for the electric car battery to charge fully. Further it refers to the amount of time that it takes before the fully charged battery is used up. From empty to full and vise-versa.
It is important to ensure that the electric car battery charger is capable fulling it up completely. Further, ensure that you give the electric car battery sufficient time to charge fully before you unplug it.
Because a fully charged electric car battery will have fewer charge cycles. Meaning that it will take more time for you to completely use up a fully charged battery in comparison to a battery that’s not fully charged.
Avoid many charging cycles because they degrade your electric vehicle battery.
b]. Car battery discharge depth.
Every electric vehicle owner will choose a specific time to charge their electric car battery. The discharge depth refers to how much of the charge was available during a recharge.
Deep electric car battery discharge means that most of the battery charge is used up before you choose to recharge it. This highly impacts the electric vehicle battery lifespan.
For example, charging the electric car battery after it discharges to the lowest charge percentage will degrade it.
c]. Stressful battery charging habits.
This refers to situations where you expose your car battery to fast charging every time. Further, it means that during these charging cycles the battery isn’t necessarily at 0%.
Therefore, if it is at 35% you ensure that you fast charge it to 100%. Doing so regularly will negatively impact the battery lifespan.