6 Things You Can Do to Check Your Car Battery in the Greater Houston, TX Area
A dead car battery is enough to ruin anyone's day, but did you know that there are some things that you can check yourself when battery problems are suspected? Our authorized Volkswagen service center has seen just about everything that could go wrong with the battery and the things that can cause a battery to go dead. Beyond basic things like checking the battery clamps for corrosion and a secure connection, there are a few things you can check with a multimeter. Below, we discuss six of these things.
If you're familiar with the electric diagnostic tool called a multimeter, and you have a good one, the following things can help you get to the bottom of why your battery is dead. However, if you're not comfortable with this tool or the various electrical components in your car, it's best to trust the authorized technicians at your local dealership service center like ours at Archer Volkswagen, serving the greater Houston, TX area.
6. Test Your Car Battery with a Multimeter -- Normal Output
The first thing to check is the battery's voltage with the vehicle off. It should be no lower than 12.4 volts. If it shows lower than that, the battery needs to be charged. It's important to start any testing with a fully-charged battery.
5. Testing a Battery Under Load with a Multimeter
Use the 'Min Max' function on a properly-equipped multimeter to test the battery under a load when starting the vehicle. This will offer an idea of what the battery is capable of when the starter motor is engaged. The lowest voltage that you should see under load is 9.6 volts. Any lower, and the battery likely needs to be replaced.
4. What Voltage Should a Car Battery Show With Engine Running?
Once the engine is running, you should see a voltage that's right around 14.5 volts. This indicates that the charging system and alternator are working properly. If the voltage is much higher or lower, even by a couple volts, it's likely that there's a problem with the charging system.
3. Is the Battery Physically Secured Under the Hood?
This is one that we often see in vehicles that haven't been maintained in an authorized service center. If the battery isn't properly secured in the vehicle, it can bounce around, become damaged, leak acid, or possibly even explode. If you can move the battery around with your hand, then it is not properly secured to the vehicle.
2. Look For Car Battery Corrosion
We mentioned this in the beginning, but it's a common enough problem that we think it deserves the #2 spot in this list. If you see buildup of a powdery substance around the battery terminals, this is an indication of corrosion. There may not be anything else wrong with the battery or related systems, but the corrosion can interrupt the battery connection to the car. That's why it's important to keep the battery terminals free of corrosion. Speak with an authorized service center for ways to prevent future battery corrosion.
1. How Can You Find a Parasitic Draw on Your Car Battery?
This is a problem that has frustrated drivers since the beginning. You let your car sit over the weekend or even overnight, and the battery goes dead. Once you've eliminated the basic things like leaving the headlights or dome light on, the prospect of finding what's draining your battery can be daunting. If you're especially confident with a multimeter and your vehicle's electric systems, you may be able to narrow down the cause of the problem.
What you'll want to do is measure the amperage of the battery when everything is off and all the doors are shut, just like the vehicle is when it's parked. Always start with a fully-charged battery. We recommend disconnecting the negative battery cable for this and attaching your leads to the disconnected negative battery cable and the connected positive cable. If you see more than 50 milliamps, then something is drawing too much power. Now, just start pulling fuses one by one until the amperage drops. That will tell you what circuit is responsible for drawing power from the battery when the vehicle is off. Once you find it, look at a wiring diagram for that circuit to further narrow down the cause of the problem.
If all this sounds a bit too complicated, we understand. That's why our service center is staffed with some of the best factory-trained technicians in the business to help you with car battery problems like this and anything else your vehicle may need at Archer Volkswagen.