A flat battery is the most common reason a car won’t start. That’s why it’s really important to know what to do should you ever come back to your vehicle and on the turn of the key, its dreaded red battery warning light (a rectangular box with positive and negative ion symbols) is showing.
Recharge your vehicle’s battery
If your vehicle battery isn’t totally depleted, for example from having left the headlights on overnight which might have severely drained but not exhausted the battery, take matters into your own hands and recharge the battery from the mains supply.
Autoparts has a range of vehicle charging products including the Streetwize 12-volt 7-amp fully automatic battery charger, which works on lead acid batteries to restore their charge, and has safety-conscious features like reverse polarity protection and overload/overheating protection.
Give your car the boost it needs with this great piece of kit.
Jump-start your vehicle
If your vehicle’s battery is totally exhausted, a charge won’t work – it will need a jump start.
By connecting the jump-starter pack to your vehicle, or to connect jump leads to another ‘donor’ vehicle, and starting the second vehicle’s ignition, you’ll give your own vehicle’s battery a welcome boost, which should be enough to get you back on the road again.
Complete with 230-volt mains charger, the Draper 12- and 24-volt charging pack will allow you to give your car a jolt into action, with ease. Find it in Autoparts’ extensive products range.
And for an economical way to restart your car’s battery, these jump leads from Bluecol, two sets of 2.5-metre cables, for jump-starting or boosting batteries, will be ideal.
All that needs to be done is to connect the correct cable to the correct electrode on your own, and also the ‘donor’ vehicle’s batteries (there will be positive ‘+’ and minus ‘-‘ symbols on both cables and batteries) – start the donor car’s engine and your own and this should be enough for your to be able to drive away, vehicle battery replenished!
Replacing a battery
Car batteries in fossil fuelled vehicles typically need to be replaced every 3-5 years. Bear in mind too that recharging or jump-starting a battery can reduce its lifespan in the long run.
Not sure which battery best suits your vehicle? Use Autoparts’ registration tool which allows you to find the perfect parts for your vehicle’s make and model.
Not everyone is mechanically minded, so if you aren't confident replacing a battery yourself, seek professional help and advice from a garage which is accredited to do the work.
