It is probably the hottest part of the year for us northern hemisphere residents and this is prime time for heat related stress on our cars.

Besides the usual engine cooling and A/C checkups be sure to get a good look at the electrolyte level in your battery. I just topped mine off last night and over the six cells managed to use up almost a half gallon (US) of distilled water.

I had been experiencing a few gremlins, notably responses from the remote for unlock and boot release operation, so this should hopefully extend the battery life as well.

A bottle of distilled water and 10 minutes of your time is way cheaper than a new battery or tow truck bill!

 

I check all of our vehicles' battery cells at least quarterly, and more frequently than that during our hot summer months. Among our three vehicles, I always wind up adding at least 10 to 12 ounces of water each time. Check those cells, folks. It's simple and quick, and you will likely extend your battery life for years by doing so....

 

Can you still do this on the likes of Varta or Bosch 'maintenance-free' batteries? I thought they were sealed?

 

I have never run across a battery that is truly "sealed". Every battery I've ever owned could be opened for cell water replenishment, including those that were sold as "maintenance-free"....

 

What About A Dry Cell?

 

Don't know - but our cars are designed for wet, vented ones. They charge specially to suit them, too.

 

Bumpity-bump! Annual hot weather battery maintenance reminder.

 

I also use a battery tender when I don't use it for an extended time…it really seems to extend the life of my batteries in all my cars that aren't used to much. I have a very low miles 2000 S Type…bought it with 17k miles from an 80 year old woman a few years back, she already had the battery tender set up…I now only just turned 50k miles.