Riverside summers regularly push past 100°F, and under the hood it gets far hotter than that. Heat is hard on lead-acid batteries. It speeds up the chemical reactions inside, which wears out the plates faster and evaporates the water in the electrolyte.
The damage shows up later
A battery weakened by summer heat can keep working while it's warm, because warm batteries deliver power more easily. Then the first cool morning arrives, the engine needs more power to crank, and the battery that seemed fine in August can't do it. That's why heat is often the real cause of a no-start that happens in fall.
How long batteries last here
Battery life varies with the battery, the car, and how you drive, but in hot climates many batteries last around three years, often less than the same battery would in a mild climate. If yours is past its third summer, it's worth testing before it strands you.
What helps
- Park in shade or a garage when you can
- Keep the terminals clean and tight
- Drive long enough to recharge. Lots of short trips keep a battery partly drained
- Get a load test before summer ends, not after the first failure
We test batteries at your home or work across Riverside. See battery testing and replacement.
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