Can you help me with my car?
Asked by
Trillian (
21153
)
April 5th, 2012
Two questions actually. When I had my car in for an oil change, tire rotation and diagnostic, the guy came back at one point and told me that I had the beginnings of corrosion on my battery posts and they’d be happy to clean it for me for the low low price of twenty eight and some change. This seemed ridiculous so I told him hell no, get back in that garage and just do what I asked you to do. When I want your input I’ll beat it out of you. (politely) Actually, I just said no thank you and was the soul of courtesy the entire time. But I thought they were a bunch of scammers who took one look at me and said “Oh look, a girl. Bet we can just make shit up and she’ll fall for it. Let’s draw something out of the hopper. Whaddya got Mike? Battery posts, yeah. She’ll fall for that one”
Really? Thirty bucks to clean a battery post? Does it call for a hazmat suit and respirator? Do we need like, a team of specialists with lab coats and clip boards? (Actual question now) 1. Can’t I clean my own battery posts with a wire brush in about a minute? And;
2. What, if anything, can I buy to lessen the look of a couple places where the paint has been scratched – not all the way through? I love my car and want him to look nice, and the two imperfections are right near the driver side door handle.
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12 Answers
$28 is ridiculous. You can clean them easily. Loosen the clamps and clean everything well with the brush and then retighten them. Clean the insides of the clamps too. Use a wooden handled brush and never touch both sides of the terminals at the same time with anything metal. You will never forget your first battery explosion. Avoid any sparks around the battery for the same reason. Try some buffing compound on the scratches, or clean the metal really well and apply touch up paint. Available at most auto parts stores.
Hehehehehe! Awwww, my first explosion. My skin burned for moths! We took lots of pictures to mark the occasion.
Baking soda. Take off the clamps, and scrub with a mixture of baking soda and water. Use a toothbrush (this is useful for if you’re mad at your S/O!) I don’t know if it needs to set a while and work on the corrosion or what, but…do that. Clean the insides of the clamp too.
@Adirondackwannabe “You’ll never forget your first battery explosion.”? You mean you had a battery explode on you and it’s happened more than once??
More than once! HAHAHAHAHAHA! That one got by me, I was so stuck on baby’s first steps!
@Trillian Funny :) If you hadn’t done it before I was giving you the basics.
@Dutchess_III Two times. One no idea why. The other one while jumpstarting a car. The 4th cable wasn’t on the battery but to the ground.
@Adirondackwannabe I haven’t, in fact. I used to be quite handy under the hood, but I quit doing stuff to my own car when I turned 40. I also stopped mowing the lawn. But this… this, this is no good. Oh HELL no, thirty dollars. I’ll damn well do it myself.
Change mechanics for sure, my mechanic did that for free when he changed the oil. These guys are out to rob you.
@Trillian Haha, well..keep any pet food in your garage sealed. I had a mouse stuff my AC with cracked corn and then it got caught in the fan. My mechanic was nice enough to not charge me for removing the mouse parts and farm feed. lol
Batteries being as well sealed as they normally are these days, I have to ask how long that battery has been in the vehicle. It may be time to replace it outright.
You might forget your first dead battery, but you shouldn’t.
Cleaning the posts and clamps is cheaper and easier than replacing the battery. A lot of garages will just say “the battery’s dead, buy a new one” without even attempting to clean the contacts. se if she cleans it and performance doesn’t improve then maybe it’s time to replace it.
For minor scratches and scuffs in the paintwork, get a coloured wax to match the colour of the car. It might take several coats but as long as it’s not scratched all the way through it should be fine.
Well? Well? Hows yer posts doing?
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