You can find your car battery location in your owners handbook. Your car battery is usually situated under the bonnet of your car. However, there are some vehicle manufacturers that put the battery under the rear passenger seat or in the boot of the car; generally these positions are more common on large executive vehicle models. Vehicles like Mercedes, Porsche, Rolls Royce and Mitsubishi can sometimes have two batteries, generally where the engine size is large. Car batteries contain sulphuric acid (which is highly corrosive and must not come in contact with your skin or eyes), and therefore you must be very careful when handling them.

Most of currently fitted car batteries are maintenance free and carry a performance indicator, which will tell you in what condition your battery is. You must make sure that the terminal connections are tight and free of debris. Make sure the terminal connections are kept clean to avoid a build-up or dirt and grease and coat the terminal connectors with petroleum jelly to prevent corrosion. Over tightening can result in damage to the battery casing or lead posts and ultimately, premature battery failure. Beware of crossing or connecting the positive and negative terminals as this can result in an electric shock, irreversible damage to the battery cells and, in extreme cases, an explosion.

When you turn the key to start your car, the battery supplies power to the starter motor, this turns the engine over. Simultaneously power from the battery is supplied to the spark plugs in order to ignite the fuel and air mixture that has been compressed in the engine combustion cylinders. The battery power used during the starting up process is then replaced by the alternator, which supplies the bulk of electrical current to your car’s electrical systems, keeping your battery fully charged.

The battery strength or cranking amps is usually affected by the quantity of work it does and the conditions in which it has to work. What’s more, the increase of in-car technology such as air conditioning, digital music players, satellite navigation systems and other electronic gadgetry are placing greater strain on your car’s battery. All of these increase the demand on your car’s battery and charging system which can lead to early battery breakdown. As a result more recurrent checks are suggested so that your car battery maintains its best possible working level.

A regular battery check can help identify and prevent premature battery failure.