SHE SAYS...

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31058, 13 May 1966, Page 11

SHE SAYS...

. . . how embarrassing it is to try unsuccessfully to start a car and then to have a male get into it and start the engine at the first touch of the button. One can almost hear him say “These women!” under his breath as he gives an arrogant smile! The fault, however, is often in the car, and not in the woman’s method of trying to start it. This sort of thing happened to me last week, when my car, which had been outside in the frost all night, resolutely refused to start. I checked the usual trouble spots, found nothing wrong, and so telephoned a garage for expert assistance. The mechanic arrived much later in the day, and started the car instantly! He found no cause for concern. The same thing happened the next morning, only this time I managed to start the car myself later in the day. The trouble was eventually traced to a worn-out battery, something of which nobody seemed to have thought. Once it was discovered, however, I recalled how the car had proved difficult to start on cold mornings for some time —male friends, in their wisdom, had put this down to my incorrect operation of the choke! It Seems that when the engine was cold and the oil thick, there was sufficient charge in the failing battery to turn the starter motor, but not enough to provide a spark as well. Later in the day when the outside temperature had risen and the oil had

thinned a little, there was just enough charge to both turn the engine and provide a spark.

The fault was verified when the garage carried out a battery test, a job which takes only a few moments using a special meter. If you are having starting problems these cold mornings, battery trouble could be a cause. It is preferable to have a battery test done by your garage than to discover the battery has failed at some most inconvenient time.