Maintenance of batteries and tires can prevent replacement

During October Car Care Month, AAA Colorado is reminding motorists to evaluate their batteries and tires before the onset of winter driving. Proper maintenance can often prevent more expensive replacement.

Recharging a Battery

Thousands of batteries are replaced needlessly each year when the problem could have been solved with a battery charge. Your battery is a lot like the gas tank: sometimes you just need to “fill it up.”

Newer vehicles have many electric components that can drain power from a battery even when the engine is off. Radios, CD players, clocks, amplifiers, interior lights and various components under the hood are just a few of the items that use battery power 24/7 whether you are driving or not, and all these small drains on the battery can add up fast.

A trained technician equipped with diagnostic tools can accurately test voltage and determine your battery’s condition. Possible results are:

• Good: The battery is within the manufacturer’s specifications for required Cold Cranking Amps and should reliably start the vehicle.
• Good/Recharge: The battery is in good condition, but the voltage or charge level is low. It’s time for a “fill-up” recharge.
• Replace Battery: While the vehicle may have started, there is an increasing likelihood that the battery will fail soon (particularly under extreme weather conditions). The battery should be replaced before it fails at an inopportune time.

Climate, driving habits and battery age can all have an impact on the lifespan of the battery. With proper maintenance, a battery in Colorado will typically last between three and five years.

Tires

The amount of traction between the tire and the roadway determines how well a vehicle accelerates, turns and stops. In cold, icy weather it’s essential to have good traction. Tires should be checked for pressure, tread, alignment and rotation needs.

• Pressure
  
  Air pressure in a tire goes down in cold weather, 1-2 psi for every 10 degrees of temperature change. Under-inflation can lead to unnecessary tire stress, irregular wear, loss of control and accidents. Also, under-inflated tires waste fuel. The right amount of air is specified by the vehicle manufacturer and is shown on the vehicle door edge, door post, glove box door or fuel door. It is also listed in the owner’s manual.
  
  When checking the air pressure, make sure the tires are cool, meaning they are not hot from driving even a mile. It is normal for tires to heat up and the air pressure inside to go up as the vehicle is driven.


• Tread
  
  Advanced and unusual wear can reduce the ability of tread to grip the road in snowy or icy conditions. Built-in tread-wear indicators, or wear bars, which look like narrow strips of smooth rubber across the tread, will appear on the tire when the tread is worn down to 1/16 of an inch. When these wear bars are visible, the tire should be replaced.
  
  Visually check tires for signs of uneven wear. High and low areas or unusually smooth areas indicate irregular tread-wear.


• Alignment
  
  A bad jolt from hitting a curb or pothole can throw your front end out of alignment and damage your tires. Misalignment of wheels in the front or rear can cause uneven and rapid tread-wear and should be corrected. Have alignment checked periodically as specified by the owner’s manual or whenever there is an indication of trouble, such as pulling or vibration.


• Rotation
  
  Regularly rotating the vehicle’s tires will help achieve more uniform wear. Consult the owner’s manual, the tire manufacturer or the tire dealer for the appropriate rotation pattern for the vehicle. If tires show uneven wear, correct any misalignment, imbalance or other mechanical problem involved before rotation.

AAA Colorado is an advocate for safety and security for all travelers and has more than 525,000 members in Colorado. As North America’s largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides nearly 51 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services, as well as member-exclusive savings. AAA can be visited on the Internet at www.AAA.com.