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Can cold weather kill a car battery?
I’m heading to Alaska for a new job, and my friend keeps telling me I should make sure I get a place with a garage or else I’ll be constantly buying new batteries for my car. Can cold weather actually kill a car battery, or is that just an old wives’ tale?
Sarah Gray · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Sometimes, the old wives are right, and this is one of those times. Yes, cold weather can kill a car battery.
Cold weather slows the chemical reactions that occur within a battery to keep it, well, alive. And in Alaska, you’re going to have a lot of cold weather. In addition to decreasing your battery’s capacity, the cold weather is also going to
- thicken your engine oil, which means your battery will need more power to turn it over
- reduce your recharge rate, so even when you get your car started, it won’t be as receptive to powering back up as it would be in warm weather
- increase the load you place on the battery by using the heater, defroster, windshield wipers, and other features that deplete your battery as it tries to recharge while your car’s running.
Parking in an enclosed garage will help. If that’s not an option, consider buying a relatively cheap battery blanket to help keep your battery cozy in the cold. And to make sure you’re protected if your battery does succumb to the cold, make sure you’ve got
towing and labor coverage
added to your car insurance
policy.To make sure you have all the coverage you need at the best price, download the
Jerry
app. Just answer a couple questions, and you’ll have customized quotes that include roadside assistance in under two minutes!The best part—customers save an average of $887 a year by switching with Jerry!
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- Gregory R.
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Jerry partners with more than 50 insurance companies, but our content is independently researched, written, and fact-checked by our team of editors and agents. We aren’t paid for reviews or other content.
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