Are your battery, starter and alternator ready for winter?

Tic, tic, tic, tic, tic – no, that’s not the sound of a clock; that’s the sound of someone trying to start a car with an almost-dead battery. Instead of turning the engine over and initiating the chain reaction known as internal combustion, a nearly dead battery falls short and, when this happens, all you’ll often hear is a discouraging tic, tic, tic sound.

Imagine you were out doing holiday shopping at the mall. It’s closing time and the parking lot is almost empty. It’s also frigid outside. This is no time to discover you can’t start the car. Earlier, you might have asked someone if they had jumper cables but, now, there’s no one around to ask.

Assuming your cell phone is charged, you can call someone to come help – a friend, family member of a motor club. And then you can sit and wait – alone – in the dark – in the cold.

Rather than chance the scenario above, or some similar outcome, you can be proactive now and all but avoid that as a possible outcome. The key is to make sure your battery and charging system are ready for winter before winter comes along.

Here are some questions to ask:
• How old is your battery? If it’s more than four-and-a-half-years old, it’s almost certainly time to replace it.
• Does your alternator produce sufficient energy to run the car and charge the battery?
• Does the starter draw too much electricity to turn over the engine?
• Is your charging and starting system otherwise operating correctly?

These questions are largely put to rest when a skilled auto repair technician checks a car’s charging and starting system. If there is a problem, you can take care of it at your convenience rather than at some random moment when the car no longer cooperates. Additionally, once you’ve had it checked, you can drive all winter with peace of mind knowing your car will almost certainly start any time and any place.

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