3

I've had my Mazda 3 2013 since 2016. This winter in Massachusetts it's died on an almost daily basis in the morning, and sometimes at night if it's particularly cold out.

I mostly drive to school, work, and to a friend's house, each commute only taking about 30, 8, and 10 minutes respectively for distances at most 12 miles. So I'm aware that I drive short distances and use a lot of amperage to get it started in the cold.

How do I know whether or not I need to completely replace the battery or just give it a good charge? I have an external jump starter (one of those small battery packs) and I typically only need to leave it connected for 30 seconds-2 minutes before I can jump start my car. The battery indicator in the dash is also not lit, and my leads don't have corrosion.

Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2
  • 165,084
  • 32
  • 259
  • 508
Otanan
  • 133
  • 1
  • 4

1 Answers1

2

Typically, an automotive battery lasts about five years at the longest. If you still have the original equipment battery in your vehicle, there is a very high likelihood it needs to be replaced. Considering a battery usually lasts that long, anything past five years is bonus, so consider yourself lucky.

As for how to tell, what you're suggesting of needing to jump start the vehicle every morning is a good indication the battery is most likely toast. In cold weather, the battery suffers from reserve energy loss, as it can only muster about (depending on the temp) ~50% of the full charge, and that's any battery, not just an old one. If you go to utilize it when its cold, its reserve capacity is way down, doesn't want to let the car start, and there you go. When this consistently happens you need to check the voltage of the battery before you jump it and before you try to use it. If it's below 12vdc, it's a candidate for replacement. If it does show above 12vdc, try to start the car. If it doesn't start, check the battery again and I'll bet it's now below 12v, more than likely by quite a bit.

When you get this far, take the battery to a parts retailer and have them test it. They should have a device which can tell you what the reserve capacity of the battery is, or basically tell you what kind of shape it's in. Like I said earlier, if it's over five years old, you've gotten full use of the battery.

Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2
  • 165,084
  • 32
  • 259
  • 508