How To Replace A Car Battery

It’s fall and that means the weather will be changing. With that said, it is a good time to go a little maintenance on your car.

One of the easiest things you can do to help maintain your vehicle in excellent running condition is replacing your battery. How easy is car battery replacement?

In most cases, anyone who owns a screwdriver most likely has the ability to change their car battery.

Let’s go through a very basic step by step on how to do this on your own.

1) Make sure you get the proper battery for your vehicle. Speak with one of our service advisors here at DePaula Chevrolet. They will be able to help you determine the best battery for the make and model of your vehicle.

2) Safety first! Make sure your engine is off and open up the hood. Find the battery and remove the negative battery cable. This will be the black cable. Be careful using a screwdriver. Sometimes you can damage the connector. Once you have loosened it, twist and pull up on the end of the cable. DO NOT FORCE THE CABLE OFF! You can damage the cable and that will be extra expenses. If you are worried about damaging the cable, you can purchase a battery terminal puller to help you do the job.

3) Do the same thing for the positive terminal. Yup, you guessed it. That would be the red cable. Remember, do not force this. Doing so can turn a simple job into more expensive and a big headache.

4) Take the battery out of the car. Usually, these batteries will sit in a tray or some form of “holder”. Car batteries can be quite heavy. We recommend that you grab the battery from the bottom. If you are lucky, the battery will have a handle. Definitely, use that if you can.

5) This is a create time to do some preventative maintenance. Battery corrosion can be very troublesome. Clean all the corrosion you can. You can purchase a special battery cleaning solution or use the old standby, baking soda and water mixture. Clean all the corrosion you can from the entire area including the cable and trays.

6) Clean the battery cable connectors with a wire brush. You will find that the heaviest corrosion will be found on the connectors. Sometimes cleaning them is not a enough.

7) At this point, go ahead and place the new battery in the tray. Secure the battery with the hold-down clamp if your vehicle has one.

8) Now is another great time for some preventative maintenance. Spray both terminal ends with the anti-corrosion solution.

9) Now, you can re-attach the cables. Start with the red cable…followed by the black cable.

10) Do a final check and make sure everything is secure and tight.

Congrats! You have successfully and properly finished a typical car battery replacement procedure.

Crack open a “cold one” and enjoy your new battery!