Motorists risk beginning 2021 with a flat battery if they do not take action now to reduce the risk.
The RAC is warning that millions of drivers could find themselves unable to start their cars on the first working day of the New Year.
Coronavirus restrictions on travel, combined with predicted below-average temperatures, could cause a perfect storm for drained batteries.
New Year, old problem
The first working day of 2020, 2 January, demonstrated the problems drivers can face. The RAC attended a substantial 25 percent more breakdowns than on a typical January day.
Research conducted by the RAC found that some 58 percent of post-Christmas flat batteries were due to a lack of use.
For 2021, coronavirus rules mean that far fewer journeys will have been made this festive period.
Less use means the chances of a battery draining to become completely flat increases substantially.
Even electric car owners could get a shock
According to the RAC’s patrol of the year, Ben Aldous, regular use of a car is the best way to ensure the battery remains fully charged.
Ben notes that going for a “proper drive” rather than just “starting a car up for a minute or two and then stopping it again”, is the answer. The latter can in fact drain the battery further, and should be avoided.
Surprisingly, even electric car owners still need to keep care of their batteries. Many EVs still rely on a regular 12-volt battery to start the main lithium-ion battery pack for the electric motor.
Letting it run flat can prevent an EV from starting.
Top tips to keep your battery healthy
The RAC has tips for all on how to avoid a flat battery this New Year, encouraging drivers to act now:
- Ensure everything in your car is switched off and unplugged when you park it up. This includes disconnecting dash-cams and sat-nav units from 12v sockets, which can drain the battery.
- Take your car for a decent journey before you need to rely on it to get you to work. A drive of at least 20 minutes is typically recommended to ensure the battery starts gaining charge.
- Do not turn your car on, then switch it off, just to check the battery works. This will cause the battery to drain more.
- If you have more than one car, try using the vehicle with an older or weaker battery more often.
- If your battery is more than four years old, consider getting a garage to check and test it is still in top health.
There are multiple options for buying a replacement battery, including the ability to have a new one fitted at home.
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The use of a battery tender is a great idea, they keep expensive batteries topped up. Battery Tenders sell for a low price of $20-$30 USD…I use one on my 2002 Harley Davidson XL 1200C….The batteries are expensive, but will last many many years, I recently replaced the battery on my Harley after 12 years, it is ALWAYS on the tender.