Starting your car on these cold days can be a real problem especially if you have not been taking good care of your vehicle’s battery.
The Canadian Automobile Association says last winter it had a 13 percent increase in calls for service for batteries in the Atlantic region.
CAA’s Gary Howard tells our newsroom there are ways to prevent a dead battery that you don’t need a mechanic to do.
” At the end of the day, turn off your radio and windshield wipers and everything so when you start your car not all these devices are making demands on the electrical system,” says Howard.
You can also buy a battery blanket which keeps the fluids in your battery from freezing.
Now if you do find yourself in a dead battery type situation, Howard says you should not try to boost it yourself
” You can easily damage the computer systems and electrical systems in your vehicle not to mention it can be dangerous to you as well,” stated Howard.
The CAA recommends you have your battery checked as part of your pre-winter maintenance check-up by your mechanic.
