How To Measure A Car Battery

How Do You Check A Car Battery’s Life? Measure The Car Battery!

Many drivers out there are worried about not being able to start their vehicles when they need to go off somewhere, but at the same time, they do not know how to tell if their car’s battery is having issues or not and what the lifespan remaining on it is.

Do you measure the voltage to tell if a battery is good?

And if so, how many volts in order to determine if this battery is still in good condition?

Also, when do you measure since the car battery’s voltage will vary according to when it was last driven (assuming the car’s alternator is working well and charging it while it was being driven). The battery will show a high voltage just after you have switched off the engine as it has been just charged and this can show 14V and above, does this mean it is a good battery?

The answer may surprise you, “No”.

Isn’t A Car Battery A 12 Volt Battery?

Yes, it is rated at 12 volts but this goes up to 14.x volts when you measure the car battery just  after the charging stops (when the engine is just turned off), however, this does not mean the battery is in good health and will last a long time.

There is one other critical factor to look at when you measure a battery to determine its condition and that is the CCA or cold cranking amps.

The CCA is defined as: “the number of amps a 12 volt battery can send to your car’s starter at 0°F for 30 seconds while maintaining a voltage of at least 7.2 volts”

In simple terms, this is called the starting power of the battery and it is a rating that you want to look at when changing your car’s battery.

Obviously, the higher the CCA rating the better is the battery. And here is a tip if you don’t like to get stuck when your car cannot start, or at least make it happen less often.

Voltage is an unreliable indicator of good battery health – it simply shows the state of charge, which can be full, but the capacity of the battery has fallen.

When You Buy A New Car Battery, The Greater The CCA The Better

The higher the rated CCA above the minimum required amps for starting the car, the longer the battery will last.

Why?

Over the lifespan of the car battery, it will start to deteriorate as it ages and the CCA will fall below what the CCA was when new.

When does the car battery fail to crank start your car? When this CCA value falls below the minimum value that is required to start your car.

So the more it is above the minimum CCA of your car the better, it will take a longer time before the age of the battery causes it to fall till a level that cannot start the car.

Is it possible to measure the CCA of the new car battery you are buying? Yes! By using a professional battery meter like the one pictured above. A reliable battery brand such as Amaron will have a higher CCA than the value shown on the box when new!

In any situation, choose the largest CCA rating that will fit into your car for the longest lasting battery life if your main concern is longevity and convenience.

Note that a car battery with larger CCA is likely to be larger in size too, so there will be a limit as to what CCA battery you can buy for a given car model. However, if you are anxious about the added weight of a larger battery, you can choose to stay with the manufacturer’s recommended size or the original battery size that was used in your car.

If you have any queries about battery replacement, feel free to call Fastfix at 81145500.