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Replacing a dead car battery is often the easiest replacement to do in vehicles, and, the most neglected part in maintenance and servicing. Why? Because to most, it is like just like replacing dry cell batteries in a toy. Take out the old ones then put in the new ones! Sorry, but it should not be as simple as that. Let us first go through the possible locations of a vehicles battery.

In most cars, pick-ups and SUVs, the battery is located under the hood on one side. For large diesel trucks, most have two 12-volt batteries, in series, on one side behind the truck's cab. These trucks often have 24 volt system and the batteries have a higher rating making them larger thus heavier. Wherever these batteries are located, they are held in place with a bracket or frame. Clamps or wing-nuts are used to tighten them down. So those would be the basics, knowing where the batteries are located and how they are held down.

Dead or old batteries will still have sulfuric acid its cells. In older type batteries that need maintenance, you will know weak batteries by simply shorting the positive and negative terminals with a thick copper wire or cable (Please don't try this at home). Knowledgeable or expert car mechanics would only know the extent of time to short the batteries. If the cells show bubbles, it means the cells are dead. This is aside from testing batteries on-board with the headlights "On" or honking the horn. If it gets weaker in a short time, it may be concluded that it needs recharging or it is about to go dead. New maitenance free batteries could not be tested this way. While sealed or no maintenance batteries might have some cracks where acid or gases could escape. Before undoing the hold-down bracket or frame it is best to inspect the surroundings of the battery holder. If there are signs of heavy corrosion, some acid could be leaking. You will need to take precaution from lifting out the battery out of the holder. Use protective gloves. If none, you could use a pair of plastic bags with your hands inside. With some batteries that have carrying handles, test the handles if they are still strong enough and will not break with the weight. For batteries without handles, you will need to carry them out from the bottom, preferably from both ends of its length. This will give better balance in handling the battery from its carriage. By this time you would have worn a protective apron. This would be a protection for your clothes in case

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