My car is nearly 4 months old and its done just under 2000 miles in that time...mainly shortish journeys. Now, as we move into the cold weather I'm a little concerned that the first time I know that the battery needs some attention is when the car wont start! How do I check the state of the battery...or will the car somehow give me a warning to get it charged up?

Many thanks.

Mike.

A good Indicator would be the Battery Voltage, which in a good battery is around ~12.50V (do not go by this number alone) even after 24hrs of no charging (drive), but keep in mind this is not a sure shot one. Batteries have shown to give out a good level of voltage at one instant and fail the very next, and without any warning too! So, if you are expecting some kind of warning before the Battery goes bust, just don't.

However, a lot of times there are signs that Battery is giving in, some of which could be:

1.) Hard/Slow Cranking

2.) Low Battery Voltage even after a long drive

3.) Voltage Battery Level falls rather quickly when the engine is not running and battery is under load with lights, Music System being used, etc.

4.) etc.

You will need to do a "Load Test" to actually determine the proper health of a Battery, usually not done at home as it involves some load testing equipment, best done in Battery workshops/garages.

Google for "Battery Health Check", you would get tons of Information there.

A good Indicator would be the Battery Voltage, which in a good battery is around ~12.50V (do not go by this number alone) even after 24hrs of no charging (drive), but keep in mind this is not a sure shot one. Batteries have shown to give out a good level of voltage at one instant and fail the very next, and without any warning too! So, if you are expecting some kind of warning before the Battery goes bust, just don't.

However, a lot of times there are signs that Battery is giving in, some of which could be:

1.) Hard/Slow Cranking

2.) Low Battery Voltage even after a long drive

3.) Voltage Battery Level falls rather quickly when the engine is not running and battery is under load with lights, Music System being used, etc.

4.) etc.

You will need to do a "Load Test" to actually determine the proper health of a Battery, usually not done at home as it involves some load testing equipment, best done in Battery workshops/garages.

Google for "Battery Health Check", you would get tons of Information there.

Thank you for taking the time to write this. I'm afraid its rather technical for me though so a trip to the local garage seems the answer. I take it the car will not provide any type of warning then?

Halfrauds have a Bosch battery scanner that they will test your battery for free although by prepared for them to try and sell you a replacement anyway

at 4 months old you would really have to be abusing the battery to have trouble or a catastrophic failure which would give no warning ( unlikely) in order to be let down, in which case you should have SKODA cover to three years I wouldn't loose any sleep just enjoy

Gday, my experience with my Superb battery losing power might help. I originally thought that my battery was sealed and had no access to cells to add fluid but by removing the thin plastic covering on top of each section you can access. I had 2 jump starts by road assistance crew and 2 auto electricians check but nobody checked the fluid levels. The battery was draining under a week and has now held charge for 3 weeks since top up of fluid. The battery is nearly 4 years old and I thought this was causing the power loss. As a back up I have a new battery on standby but sometimes the old maintenance checks are the simplest. I have also had success using INOX battery conditioner in previous batteries. This helps to prevent scaling(calcification )in battery cells .