I was wondering if anybody else has run into this.

A couple weeks ago I noticed my car was starting to sound weaker and weaker every time a cranked it up like the battery was going dead. Well, today it barely cranked so I started looking into the problem.
This is the first import I have owned and I had no idea that it had a battery that isn't maintainence free. Well sure nuf, I looked at the water levels in my battery cells and 2 were empty and the others were all low. I filled them all up to the line and went and drove my car around town to try and charge the battery back up.

Well I guess that was my problem because now it fires right up with no problem and it even seems to drive a lot better and doesn't feel as sluggish!

Anybody else have to do this? How often?

 

Usually have to add water to the cells once a year. You should use distilled water. This battery will last longer than a "maintaince free" and are more able to come back to life after a complete discharge. Just keep your eye on the water level and you should be fine, but be careful not to go about the water max. line.

 

I meant to include this in my original post,

Does anybody know what the water actually does in a battery?

 

chemists do...

I don't...

-Tom Z.

 

Water is a good conductor or electricity

I'm not a chemists so don't quote me

 

That is what I originally thought but then I remembered reading somewhere that distilled water doesn't conduct electricity because it doesn't have the metal impurities that tap water does. Maybe it does. I'm sure not going to go and test it out or anything!

 

Perfectly distilled water doesn't conduct, i believe....

Don't quote me on that :-) i'm a physicist, and had the worst high school chem teacher ever

-Tom Z.