Battery

adminonMay 4, 2022February 11, 2022Leave a Comment

The battery is the number one cause of breakdowns. Especially in winter, the energy supplier often breaks down, because the power consumption is much higher: lights, fan and rear window heating simply need more energy. If other power-hungry devices such as seat heating or a sound system are also in use, the car may consume more power than the alternator of the car battery can recharge during the drive.

Even in a car, energy is not available for free

Due to the increased power requirements, the fuel consumption of your vehicle also increases in winter. Because if the alternator has to supply more power to the battery, the engine has to use more power as well. 100 watts mean an additional consumption of 0.1 liter per 100 kilometers. That is, at 500 watts, consumption increases by half a liter!

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the biggest power guzzler is the fan

The blower consumes up to 170 watts in winter. A sound system that is turned up all the way also requires a similar amount of power. At moderate volume, the car radio only consumes 20 watts of power. The low beam needs about 125 watts, the fog lights need 110 watts. The heated rear window consumes around 120 watts of power from the battery. And the seat heater also needs 100 watts.

Remember to switch off power guzzlers such as seat heaters or rear window heaters when you no longer need them. Otherwise, your battery may die even while you’re driving.

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How to get through the winter in good shape

According to the German Automobile Association (ADAC), electrical, electronic and battery faults are the main cause of vehicle breakdowns. Most often, breakdown services have to be called out because cars can’t get going in the first place. Almost one in three vehicles required jump-starting assistance due to a weak or defective battery.

stressed power storage

Heating and air conditioning are the number one power guzzlers in the car. Nowadays, more and more vehicles are equipped with both air conditioning and heated seats. That’s why newer cars also have an enormously high power requirement. This in turn leads to a heavy load on the battery. You can, however, save the battery by switching off all unnecessary consumers before starting the car. However, if your battery is completely discharged, it will be irreparably damaged in most cases. This can happen, for example, if the dipped headlights have been left on overnight or if a vehicle has not been driven for a long time. With a jumper cable or a jump-start kit, the engine can usually be restarted quickly, but in most cases the battery will no longer deliver full power. In minus temperatures, this can mean that the battery lacks the power to start the cold engine. Replacement is then unavoidable.

Always take your old battery to a recycling station so that it can be disposed of properly and no pollutants can be released into the environment.

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What you should bear in mind when installing and removing the battery

Some car radios or alarm systems need to be initialized with a code after reconnection. Before removing the battery, be sure to check the operating instructions and make a note of the identification number. After the change radio or alarm system must then be reset.

Treat the battery terminals with acid-free grease before installation. You can also apply a protective varnish after you have connected the battery. Both serve to protect the metal poles against corrosion and prevent contact resistance between the poles and the terminals.

How to check and maintain the battery

The service life of a car battery is between four and five years. For the performance of a car battery, the current state of charge and the storage capacity is decisive. While the state of charge can still be checked relatively easily by means of the acid density with a so-called acid lifter, statements about the actual capacity are only possible with special measuring devices.

Equally important is the correct acid level in the battery. In the case of simple and older batteries, you can still check and compensate for this yourself. To do this, unscrew the battery cap – through the opening you can clearly see the marking on the inner rim. If the acid level is below the line, simply refill with distilled water.

the battery housing itself should be kept clean to avoid leakage currents. You can preserve the poles and terminals with acid protection grease.

top 5: overview of the best route planners - falk, google maps, map24 and co.

even though navigation devices are now available in many cars and almost all smartphones also offer navigation apps, the most common route for route planning still leads to the free online map services. We show the top 5 providers at a glance: route planners from falk, google maps, map24 and co.

The advantage over conventional city map and atlas navigation is obvious: the computer calculates the fastest route, explains the steps to turn at the (ideally) right corners and estimates how long the journey will take. The best way to do this is to print it out and take it with you, ideally accompanied by a passenger who can give you directions without you having to concentrate on the printout at the wheel. For occasional travelers who need a route planner only a few times a year, the online services are often sufficient. Here are the five best route planners at a glance.

Top 5: online route planner

1. Google maps route planner

where the search engine dominates the market, the first step in route planning often leads to google maps – even if it’s only to briefly estimate how long a trip will take or how many kilometers have to be covered. the data specialist google can also convince in terms of content: tested in the independent site’s test.december 2010 google maps took the first place among route planners. in the print view of google maps you can also show a map for each individual driving instruction if you wish. thanks to the interface, websites can also implement their own route planners tailored to their needs with google maps.

Alt="download height="" />to the google maps route planner

Alt="falk route planner" width="481" height="" />

2. Falk route planner

the patented city map specialist falk also offers a free route planner. in addition to the basic functions such as route and travel time, you can also calculate travel costs (with a flat rate) and fuel costs (depending on consumption) here. In addition, the falk route planner also offers some additional functions such as hotel bookings and information on places of interest.

Alt="download" height="" />falk route planner

3. Navteq map24

the map24 route planner accesses navteq data just like its falk counterpart, but arranges the data in a more conventional way. for the display we do not use bing maps (as with falk.De), but its own navteq interface.

Very fancy: map24 also offers a 3D route flight, which lets you run through the route from a three-dimensional perspective. If you have a good memory, you may be able to remember the route and do without the printout:

Alt="download" height="" />to the route planner from NAVTEQ map24

Alt="klicktel route planner" width="480" height="" />

4. clicktel route planner

the online business and phone directory klicktel already had a street map and a route planner integrated some years ago. You can see that a little bit in the offer, which looks a bit dusty and doesn’t offer too many additional options. at least traffic jam warnings and road works are shown at a glance. Solid.

alt="download" height="" />clicktel route planner

5. Via michelin route planner

Alt="michelin route" height="" />
besides falk, viamichelin is the second route planner in our list that comes from the "old" map and travel guide business. the offer is also based on quality and offers the "most interesting" and "most economical" route as a selection, as well as tourist stops at the edge of the route – and of course culinary restaurant recommendations. also good: motorcyclists and cyclists are offered their own routes.

Alt="download" height="" />viamichelin route planner

Route planner – the conclusion

It doesn’t always have to be google maps: viamichelin and falk route planners in particular offer some nice additional functions. Much is also a matter of habit and a question of whether you are interested in more options, or just want to get to the goal somehow. Anyway, we wish you a good and safe trip.

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vehicle architecture electric cars: brave new design world

An electric drive takes up less space than an internal combustion engine. Giving new scope for design. Some are going all out in terms of design, but the majority are going for the tried-and-true.

Companies on the topic

New powertrain, new design: designers can act more freely with e-vehicles than with vehicles with internal combustion engines.

The e-drive gives car designers great freedom of design. The stromer still looks very much like a classic combustion engine, but that is slowly changing. At the moment, e-car design is in an evolutionary phase – at least according to volvo chief designer robin page. The Briton has just accompanied the market launch of the electric XC40 Recharge and the compact crossover C40 – cars whose new drive can be recognized at most by the lack of cooling air openings on the front grille.

The technical basis of both models is essentially an internal combustion engine platform, so there must also be room for diesel, gasoline or plug-in hybrid drives.

Multipurpose platforms frequently used

So-called multi-purpose platforms like those used by volvo are currently being used on a large proportion of new e-car releases. But they can’t fully exploit the space-saving advantages of an electric architecture, since they have to reserve space for the burner, auxiliary units, hydraulic lines, cardan shafts and exhaust system. This is not necessary for pure e-car platforms. Here, the space under the sheet metal is much more to the benefit of the passengers. Only the electric motor and battery need to be accommodated.

Some manufacturers give the e-versions special add-on parts, trim elements or special paints. Page has dispensed with this on the C40, instead even making aesthetic reference to the pre-electric past. The P1800 from the 1960s was one of the inspiration models for the crossover coupe.

Volvo's chief designer Robin Page borrows from the classic P1800 for the XC40 Recharge

The Cruise Origin robo-shuttle comes in a typical box design

The Citroen Ami adapts the box design for private mobility

"when using the heritage of a design icon as a source of ideas for designing a new, forward-looking model, it’s important that we don’t simply create a modernized reissue of a retro vehicle," explains page. "customer tastes and needs change over time, so we need to carry the dna into a new age."

More creative with an independent platform

where volvo has a more contemporary future in mind, other automakers are already going a step further. just how much the new technical freedoms can affect the appearance of a car is currently demonstrated most clearly by the mercedes EQS, which is the brand’s first car to stand on a special Stromer platform. "thanks to the new architecture We were able to break away from the classic design language of the luxury class and create something radically new" says design chief gorden wagener, explaining the unusual proportions with the short hood, the dome-shaped passenger compartment and the round hatchback.

At least one or two conservative S-Class buyers will have to nibble at the avant-garde design. But wagener does not want to scare him away completely. The EQS at least has a residual engine hood, even if it no longer has any real function and cannot be opened. "i think it’s more beautiful formally; the hood gives the vehicle more balance," says wagener. A verdict that, in his eyes, also applies to the near future of electric vehicles.

There are safety limits to creativity

Apart from visual considerations, there are other reasons for the restrained design. So even a futuristic car has to meet the same crash requirements as its conventional contemporaries. Crumple zones and comparatively soft impact surfaces for pedestrians make a residual engine hood sensible.

The basis for the Koreans' e-offensive is the new E-GMP electric platform

But there are also other practical considerations: if the hood were to be dispensed with completely, the windshield would have to span the space gained, which would increase its surface area and cause the interior to heat up considerably when exposed to sunlight. The temperature would then have to be reduced with a high energy input, which would be at the expense of the range.

Robotaxis are the most eye-catching

The most extreme form of e-car design is therefore currently to be found in a niche market: in robotic shuttles. There, the boxy shape copied from the omnibus has established itself. The drive and batteries are housed in a skateboard-like base plate, on top of which sits a space-efficiently optimized box body. Because the shuttles will drive autonomously, at least in the future, and only at low speeds, the crash safety requirements are less stringent.

So far, however, such models – such as the origin from cruise or the VW sedric – have only been used in test drives at best. The two-seater citroen ami, on the other hand, is already on sale, having adapted the space-saving and spacious box design for the private customer market. The result is not a beautiful city car in the classic sense, but at least an eye-catching.

Nevertheless, most private customers will probably not want to buy an unadorned cube in the future. The design of the next generation of electric cars must therefore find a good compromise between a generous sense of space and a pleasing shape. Volvo designer page is confident that this will work out. "the coming all-electric vehicle generations will give us an idea of what will be possible in the future".