A dead battery can you leave you stranded. Fortunately, you can save yourself the stress of a dead battery by testing it regularly.
Whenever you test a car battery, you'll want to make sure your ignition is turned off, and check that all of your lights and the stereo are turned off. Connect a voltmeter to your battery. The red voltmeter lead connects to the positive terminal on your battery, and the black voltmeter lead connects to the negative terminal.
A good battery will have a reading above 12.4 volts. If your battery has a reading below 12 volts, or it's more than 4 years old, it's time for a new battery.
When disconnecting the voltmeter, remove the black terminal first. Clean your battery terminals with a brush and cleaning solution.
If you're in need of a new battery or want to leave battery testing to the professionals, make an appointment at Lithia Kia of Anchorage's Anchorage, AK service center.