What to Do When Your Car Battery Is Dead

You’re sitting in a parking lot near Baton Rouge or Prairieville, Louisiana, with your trunk stuffed with bags and ready to bring them home. You try to start the car, and nothing happens. Could it be that your car battery is dead?

Let Jaguar Baton Rouge walk you through this unexpected scenario.

 
Signs That Your Car Battery Is Dying

Before we get into how to handle a dead car battery, let’s cover the various signs that indicate that your battery is dying. That way, when you spot these signs, you’ll be able to take action right away:

  • Battery warning light appears.
  • Clicking sound when you turn on the engine.
  • Dim or flickering lights.
  • Fluid leakage or corrosion around the battery.
  • Cracked or swollen battery.

In addition to dimming lights, your devices may not power up as quickly or show low power when you plug them in.

Some of these signs will be apparent when you use your car, while others such as the condition of the battery may be better detected by a service professional.

 
Actions to Take When a Car Battery Dies

If you possess jumper cables in the trunk of your car, all you need to do is find a willing participant to help. When you do find a helper, you’ll need to hook up the jumper cables between the cars.

Some car owners may own a portable battery charger, which doesn’t require another car or assistant. You can hook up the charger to your car and charge it on your own. If you’re out and about, you may not have access to your charger if you store it in your garage.

 
How to Jump-Start a Car

Gearing up to jump-start your car takes several steps that should be carefully followed.

Take your time, so that you can safely and successfully jump-start your car…

  1. Park cars across from each other: Your car and the other one should be at least 18 inches apart and not touching.
  2. Turn both cars off: Each car should be turned off and in the Neutral or Park gear.
  3. Attach red cables first: Open the hoods of both cars and locate the positive terminals of the battery. A plus sign should appear on the terminals. Attach the red clamps of each cable to a terminal.
  4. Attach black cables next: Attach the black clamp to the negative terminal of the working battery. Then attach the other black clamp to an unpainted metal part of the car with the dead battery. A clean engine nut may be a good place.
  5. Start the working car: Turn on the working car and let it run for a while. Depending on how long the battery has been dead or if it’s old, you may want to run it for a shorter or longer time.
  6. Start the non-working car now: Try the car with the dead battery. If it doesn’t start up right away, try it again.
 
Schedule Battery Service Today

If you jump-started your car near Baton Rouge or Prairieville, LA, and the battery didn’t pep up, it may be time for a battery replacement. Generally, car batteries live for about five years at the maximum. So, eventually, most cars will need more than one battery during their lifetime.

To schedule a battery replacement, contact Jaguar Baton Rouge today!

  CONTACT US
Jaguar of Baton Rouge 30.367753217318054, -91.02865298884512.