Cold mornings and weak batteries: what we’re seeing this week
The first frosty mornings find every weak battery in the county. A five-minute test now beats a tow later.
Every year the first morning below freezing fills our phones with the same call: it clicked and wouldn’t start.
Why it happens
Cold slows the chemistry inside a battery, so it puts out less power just when your engine needs more to turn over thick oil. A battery that’s three to five years old and tired in summer can fail at 25 degrees.
What to do now
Bring the car by and we’ll test the battery and the charging system for free, any time we’re open. It takes about ten minutes and you don’t need an appointment. We’ll tell you plainly if it’s fine, and we’ll show you the test result if it isn’t.
If the battery is still good, we won’t sell you a new one.
Saturday mornings
Through November 21 we’re also checking tire pressure for free on Saturdays from 8 to noon. Cold air drops tire pressure about a pound for every ten degrees, and the warning light usually comes on the first cold morning.