car batteries pack away a LOT of energy!

 

very interesting, FAST, battery swap station that moves trucking along far quicker than filling diesel tanks!

I have some serious good advice, that might seriously prevent a really bad day, or minimize it a LOT, based on my experience today with a dead car battery.

my car battery zonked out today, it just didn't have enough juice to get the commuter to turn on. 

So, here's what I learned... 

Hyundai didn't put in a monitor for the battery to tell the driver if the battery is charging, of the battery's state of charge.. nothing to warn me (or any driver) that the battery is near dead, not enough voltage to keep the car going. 

And there was NO warning. Yesterday it was fine, today, not enough voltage to kick over the engine. 

So, here's what I learned, and give as great advice:

try and change your battery right now, when it's not an emergency. 

You'll find if it takes tools that you BETTER carry in your car or truck from now on, because every 4 or 5 years, the battery will simply be used up. My first in this car lasted 5 years, this lasted 4 (the blue decal at the bottom of the photo shows 4/20) 

so, it's 200 bucks for a battery, basically, and since when they are used up there's no point in jumping the dead battery, you must replace it. 

So, 200 dollars, roughly, and a couple of tools, in my case, a 12 inch extension to remove the foot that locks the battery in place, and a 1/2 inch socket, a socket wrench, and the battery cables tighten to the battery posts with nuts that are 10mm... but all I had was a small channel lock. 

Follow up, I went through my tools, and selected a 1/4 inch drive, a 12 inch extention, a 1/2 inch 6 point socket, and a 10mm socket. That's exactly the least amount of tools I can swap out the battery with, so now those are in my glove box