Changing A Car Battery? It’s Important To Get It Right – Here’s How!
If your car battery needs replacing then it’s worth getting it done sooner rather than later. A car with a weak battery could easily leave you stranded, with no way of getting home. If the battery fails, the car won’t start – end of story. Don’t put yourself at risk by putting off changing the battery. It’s really easy to do it yourself; you just need to follow our helpful guide:
Get an old rag that you can use for handling the battery and keep it to hand. You might want to wear some gloves too as you can pick up a lot of dirt from under the bonnet. Have the new battery to hand so that it is ready to install, and grab a screwdriver. Make sure you are working in a clean and tidy space, free from clutter that you could trip over.
Firstly, making sure the engine is switched off, open the bonnet and make sure it is safely propped up. Next, take off the wires from the battery port. You will need to have a look at your car’s manual to see if it has a negative or a positive ground – if it’s positive then take the positive clip off first, and if it’s negative then take the negative one off first. The reason for this is that you will lower your risk of getting a shock, or any sparks flying out. If the battery is held in place with screws, then carefully unscrew them to free it up, being careful not to drop them! Take the battery out and put it safely to one side.
If the area where the battery is to go is looking a bit grubby, then give it a scrub with warm water mixed with baking soda. This should eliminate most of the dirt. Pop the new battery in, and screw it into place using the screws that you saved from removing the old battery. Going back to the positive or negative ground issue, make sure that this time if your car has a negative ground then you attach the positive cable first, and vice versa. Pull the bonnet back down again, making sure it has shut properly.
Then it’s just a case of jumping into the driving seat, firing up the engine and heading off! You should try and give your battery a really good charge on its first use by taking it for a relatively long drive – this will help the alternator charge it up properly.
Changing a battery is really easy once you know what you are doing. So without further ado, get your brand new battery installed in your car and drive off, safe in the knowledge that you won’t get stuck or breakdown. A new battery is great for feeling reassured when you are driving. You may be able to get a bit of money for the old battery if you are lucky, as some places reuse and recycle them. Happy motoring!
The author of this post, John Willy, is a frequent blogger who works at Hyundai motors in Calgary. He has a lot of interest in cars and his passion can be seen through his blog posts. He likes to share his knowledge and views about cars.
Preparation
Get an old rag that you can use for handling the battery and keep it to hand. You might want to wear some gloves too as you can pick up a lot of dirt from under the bonnet. Have the new battery to hand so that it is ready to install, and grab a screwdriver. Make sure you are working in a clean and tidy space, free from clutter that you could trip over.
Out with the Old
Firstly, making sure the engine is switched off, open the bonnet and make sure it is safely propped up. Next, take off the wires from the battery port. You will need to have a look at your car’s manual to see if it has a negative or a positive ground – if it’s positive then take the positive clip off first, and if it’s negative then take the negative one off first. The reason for this is that you will lower your risk of getting a shock, or any sparks flying out. If the battery is held in place with screws, then carefully unscrew them to free it up, being careful not to drop them! Take the battery out and put it safely to one side.
And In With the New!
If the area where the battery is to go is looking a bit grubby, then give it a scrub with warm water mixed with baking soda. This should eliminate most of the dirt. Pop the new battery in, and screw it into place using the screws that you saved from removing the old battery. Going back to the positive or negative ground issue, make sure that this time if your car has a negative ground then you attach the positive cable first, and vice versa. Pull the bonnet back down again, making sure it has shut properly.
Ready, Steady, Go!
Then it’s just a case of jumping into the driving seat, firing up the engine and heading off! You should try and give your battery a really good charge on its first use by taking it for a relatively long drive – this will help the alternator charge it up properly.
Changing a battery is really easy once you know what you are doing. So without further ado, get your brand new battery installed in your car and drive off, safe in the knowledge that you won’t get stuck or breakdown. A new battery is great for feeling reassured when you are driving. You may be able to get a bit of money for the old battery if you are lucky, as some places reuse and recycle them. Happy motoring!
The author of this post, John Willy, is a frequent blogger who works at Hyundai motors in Calgary. He has a lot of interest in cars and his passion can be seen through his blog posts. He likes to share his knowledge and views about cars.