I don’t claim to be a great sage, just that I’ve had similar situations to @Dag_Otto in the past where the battery died, but I should have known it was coming, and did in fact make that mental note that I should get it checked or replaced. I was lucky in that the last time, the difficulty in starting was so dramatic that after it started, I called work saying I was going to be late, and drove straight to Costco and replaced the battery right then and there (it was a 4 year old battery, which is pretty decent considering some Colorado Winters, even when overnighting in the garage).
If an in-situ car battery is depleted or dead, “jumping” is always Plan B. Plan A is always to charge the depleted/dead battery using a battery charger. (And when doing so, it’s best to electrically isolate the battery from the vehicle.) Plan B should only be performed if Plan A is not feasible.
Fun Battery Story: Someone was giving away a Jeep a few years ago. Lord only knows how long it was sitting there.
I towed it home (no keys), got it started up with the battery that was in it. Fired right up! Now, for the last 4-5 years, its been sitting outside my place. Hot in the summer, cold in the winter. I start it up maybe every 6 months.
Same battery that came with it. Always fires right up. It amazes me, every time!
It’s an Interstate battery, by the way. A ringing endorsement!
Appreciate the input. Do you know about the battery sensor? I’m getting conflicting info from the internet. I won’t be able to replace until I get back.
A couple people have mentioned Honda CR-Vs and so I’ll toss in some info that may help someone.
Many Hondas (including most CR-Vs) have two charging states: high-charge and low-charge. If, like me, you have a voltmeter connected to your car (mine is built into a USB charger that is plugged into my lighter socket), you may be deceived into thinking that your battery is not charging even though everything is fine.
In my case, my battery died suddenly after being parked. A person nearby happened to have a battery jump starter unit. I bought a new battery and installed it, but I noticed that the (charging) voltage was around 12.2 volts as I drove away. This is lower than it should be. I actually made an appointment to have the car go into a shop for testing the next day. In the meantime, I did some research and found out that the car switches between low-charge and high-charge based on a number of factors. If you’re cruising along with low demand and a good battery, the voltage will be about 12.2 volts. But it will periodically jump to more than 13 volts, which is a more normal charging voltage. There was nothing at all wrong with my charging system or charging management. Completely normal. Just a bad battery.
I’m sorry you had a bad experience with them. Mine have worked fantastic for several years.
I would suggest getting a good quality one, even if you have to pay more for it. I got mine at the Farm & Fleet. I keep one in all my vehicles. I also keep a code reader in all my vehicles. If the engine light goes on I want to know immediately what’s going on!