North Wells Service Center

In today’s North Wells Service Center auto care blog, we are focusing on battery maintenance. Eventually your car battery will fail and you will need to replace it. In fact, 70% don’t even make it four years. There are some things Fort Wayne drivers can do, however, to make their battery last a little longer.

It’s all about the flow of electrical power. When you start your automobile, the battery uses power to get your engine cranking. As your engine runs, your alternator generates electricity to run all your electrical systems: like lights, a half dozen computers, anti-lock brake system, traction control, power windows, electronic fuel injectors, stability control, air conditioning, transmission servos – the list goes on. Any leftover electricity goes to recharge your automobile battery. Then you turn on your radio and seat heaters; maybe plug in your cell phone and computer; the kids watch a DVD and pretty soon there isn’t much extra electricity to go back into the battery.

Now, if you were on a long IN road trip, no sweat – you’d have plenty of time to fully recharge your battery. But not if you’re making stops around Fort Wayne. Every time you start your automobile engine, your battery takes that big hit again. Multiple starts – multiple hits. By the time you get home, you have less than a full charge.

When the battery is continuously in a discharged state, it loses its ability to fully recharge. This starts a downward spiral in your battery life. Now when your battery is on its way to getting this bad, your alternator is working overtime trying to keep it charged – which causes the alternator to wear out prematurely. A lot of experienced Fort Wayne technicians suggest replacing your battery after five years, even though it hasn’t yet failed, as a maintenance item to extend alternator life.

Now, there is something you can do to help your battery last longer by hooking up a battery charger once a month in the summer and every three months in winter. This will ensure your automobile battery routinely has a full charge. You can do this less often in the winter because the electrochemical process slows down when it’s colder and less damage is done when your battery is low. Computerized battery chargers are real easy to use because they monitor and control the charging rate to keep the battery from overheating while it’s charging.

We recommend that you ask your friendly,honest North Wells Service Center advisor to test your battery so you know how much life is left. If it’s good but needs a maintenance service, he’ll have it cleaned up and make sure the connections and cables are good. If it’s looking like you ought to replace it, he’ll help you with a battery that’s right for your automobile and driving needs.

Give us a call

North Wells Service Center
260.483.4438
522 Wallywood Dr
Fort Wayne, IN 46808

At North Wells Service Center in Fort Wayne IN (46808) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 260.483.4438. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Car batteries wear out just like any other battery and need to be replaced. There are a couple of things Fort Wayne automobile owners should know when looking for a new car battery: one is cold cranking amps and the other is reserve capacity.

Let’s start with cold cranking amps. This can be thought of as the power output used to start a cold automobile engine. The number of cold cranking amps you need depends on your vehicle and where you live around Fort Wayne, specifically how cold it is where you live. The two factors are that the colder an engine is, the more power it takes to turn the automobile engine over to get it started. It has all that cold, sluggish oil to contend with. The other factor is that the chemical reaction in the battery that creates electrical energy is less efficient in the cold.

So the colder it gets in Fort Wayne, more power is needed, but the available power drops.

If you live where it’s cold, you need a battery with more cold cranking amps than you do where it’s moderate or hot. You should always get at least as many cold cranking amps as the manufacturer recommends, but may want to upgrade at North Wells Service Center if you live where it gets real cold.

An important note: Batteries may also list the Cranking Amps – CA – number. It is the Cold Cranking Amps – or CCA – that is the important number here. CCA is the number to use in your comparisons.

Now with all this talk of cold temperatures in Fort Wayne, it’s important to note that heat is the real enemy of long battery life. In other words, the damage that’s done over the hot summer months in Fort Wayne shows up with the increased demands on the automobile battery when the weather turns cold.

Now on to reserve capacity: It’s a measurement of the number of minutes of reserve power the battery has at a given load. The number is more important these days because of parasitic drain. Parasitic drain is the battery energy that’s used when the key is off. So the power drawn by the automobile security system, the remote start system, even the power the automobile computers require to maintain their memory.

Reserves are also needed when you make very short trips around Fort Wayne. You’re not driving long enough for the battery to recover the energy it used to start the automobile engine.

So go with the minimum recommended by your manufacturer and upgrade if you need more. Talk with your friendly,honest North Wells Service Center service advisor about options. If you need more from your battery, a larger capacity battery may be called for.

Batteries are a big ticket item for most Fort Wayne motorists, so the warranty gives peace of mind. Be sure to ask about the car battery warranty at North Wells Service Center so you know what you’re getting. At North Wells Service Center, we have been providing quality auto service in Fort Wayne for 53 years.

Give us a call

North Wells Service Center
522 Wallywood Dr
Fort Wayne, IN 46808

At North Wells Service Center in Fort Wayne IN (46808) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 260.483.4438. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

Today’s Fort Wayne vehicles have more electrical components and do-dads than ever before. This really strains your electrical system, making it hard for the battery to keep up. Think about it: electric seats, seat heaters, power locks, windows and sun roofs. And then we have all the power outlets for our cell phones, computers, and DVD players. We also have navigation systems and powerful stereos.

Plus there are all the automobile engine and transmission computers, traction control, stability control, anti-lock brakes, sensors and on and on. Even the security system is running off the battery while the car is turned off. And of course, summer heat can take a real toll on battery life.

Fortunately, battery technology has given Fort Wayne drivers resilient batteries that are able to meet these strenuous requirements. But the fact is; automobile batteries just wear out over time. Eventually, every battery gets to the point where it cannot hold enough of a charge to start your car. Sometimes batteries need to be replaced because they have developed a leak.

Replacement batteries come in all shapes and sizes. Some Fort Wayne cars have limited space that requires a specially shaped battery to fit. Larger automobile engines require more powerful batteries to get them started. If you live in a cold climate you will need a more powerful battery because engines are harder to start when it is cold.

In IN, batteries come in “good”, “better”, and “best” grades. More expensive batteries may have a longer warranty and are guaranteed to last longer. As with most things Fort Wayne auto owners need to purchase to keep their cars in good condition, paying a little more up front saves money in the long run. Ask your friendly,honest North Wells Service Center service advisor to test your battery and advise you on how much life it has left.

At North Wells Service Center, we also offer brakes, transmission service and oil change.

Give us a call

North Wells Service Center
522 Wallywood Dr
Fort Wayne, IN zip code 46808

At North Wells Service Center in Fort Wayne IN (46808) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 260.483.4438. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

The following Battery video is presented by North Wells Service Center:

The following Battery animation is presented by North Wells Service Center:

Batteries are a huge part of modern life in Fort Wayne IN. I mean, how many battery chargers do you have?

Of course, our purpose here is to talk about your car battery. When people come into our Fort Wayne IN service center and need a new battery, they’re really not that happy about having to spend the money. But the fact is that 70 percent of batteries don’t make it for 4 years.

There are some things that you can do to extend the life of your battery. First, keep it clean. If you see it getting dirty or greasy, let us know at North Wells Service Center and we can clean it off. A dirty battery runs hotter and that shortens its life. If your battery terminals are corroded, let us take a look at that too. We can clean them, and if the corrosion has gotten into the battery cables, we can replace them.

Also running your battery way down is bad for it: Things like running the headlights or watching a DVD player with the car turned off can deeply deplete your battery. The typical battery can only take about 10 of those deep cycle depletions before it gives up the ghost.

Because we often take short trips around Fort Wayne with lots of stops for errands, our batteries can end up not getting fully recharged just by driving around. That also shortens battery life. You can hook up a good quality automatic battery charger at home from time to time. We recommend charging once a month during hot months and every three months during cold months.

Now when it’s finally time to get a new battery, we can help you find the right replacement. We’ll always make sure to meet your manufacturer’s recommendations. Now if you have special needs – like live in a very cold climate or run a lot of electrical accessories, we can look at an upgrade that’ll give you the power you need.

North Wells Service Center
522 Wallywood Dr
Fort Wayne, IN 46808
260.483.4438

At North Wells Service Center in Fort Wayne IN we install quality NAPA replacement parts. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.