The car battery is what powers all the electrical components in the car. It is typically a 12-volt rechargeable lead-acid battery that powers the vehicle’s electrical system. This means that there are various chemicals in the battery that go into reaction when it is in use. When it is recharging, the chemical reactions are reversed.
Car battery components
The main components of the car battery is that it turns on the starter motor and the ignition system. The starter motor is basically an electric motor that starts the main gas engine. The ignition system is what ignites the gas-air mixture to produce the combustion the engine needs to keep it running.
Everyone knows that when the car battery dies, it can no longer be turned on. There can be many reasons why a car won’t start, but when you hear that clicking noise and it won’t turn on, the battery is likely dead. The clicking noise tells you that your starter motor is working, but it is not activating the battery. When the starter is dead, you won’t hear a click.
The car battery also powers the car’s electrical system. The main component of the electrical system are the lights. The headlights, interior lights, trunk light, and dash light are powered by this 12-volt battery. So when you leave the lights on, the battery drains and you can’t start the car.
So the next question is, how come the car battery drains so fast that you can’t start the car, when you leave the lights on, but you can turn the lights on for a seemingly unlimited amount of time while the engine is running? ? The first part of the answer is that it takes about a full 12 volts to start your car. So if your battery is at 11.2 volts, sorry, but you’re probably out of luck. The second part has to do with how it recharges while it works.
How to recharge
Your car has something called an alternator. This takes the mechanical movement of the engine, through the alternator belt, and produces electricity to recharge the battery. It’s like a give and take relationship. The car battery starts the engine, which in turn recharges it when it runs on gasoline. That’s why after starting a car, you should probably run it for a while before turning it off again.
There is a small computer attached to the alternator that tells you to charge or stop charging the battery. That’s a very good thing to have running because if you overcharge the battery it can create hydrogen and that can cause the battery to explode.
So why do you have to buy a new car battery every now and then? Well, because batteries tend not to hold a charge as long as time goes by. Most 12-volt batteries are actually close to 13 volts. A mechanic once told me they call it 12 volt batteries because 13 is an unfortunate number. I don’t know if that is an urban legend or not. But either way, it’s over 12 volts. Then over time it starts to fade. And when it can no longer hold more than 12 volts, it’s time to buy a new battery.