So I had an issue with the battery a few days ago and it looked like it was a bad cell... so I replaced the battery and everything's been fine... now i left the car in the garage for a couple of days (cold weather -7) and it had a bit of trouble starting this morning... then i drive out of the garage and the left light flickers and says left dipped headlight, this had occured once with the old battery and so i turned the light off and back on and everything was fine...
now lastly... and this might be unrelated, every time i start the car, i can't change the fan speed for the air for the first 2-3 mins, so i press + and nothing happens finally after 2 mins it'll work and it goes to the max settings even though i only pressed it a couple of times... could this be related to the other issues?

 

If your battery was not one with larger CCA (Cold Crank Amps) it will struggle when it is really cold out. Usually if there are 2 batteries offered the more expensive one will have more CCA. Not sure about the air.

 

what battery did you replace the original with? i only use OEM parts.

as for the head lamp dipping..not sure. check with the dealership.

the air conditioning won't blow cold air if you want it hot. it takes a while for the engine to heat up before it will start blowing warmer air at you. it's automatically controlled unless you turn off "Auto".

 

I did have the same problem LH headlight dipped for a while now,it drives me nuts trying to figure it out.i took off the leveling control unit from the control arm and cleaned it and the plug and then put it back together then when i turn the headlights on they started to move down and then up.i took it to the dealer and they put their computer on it and clear the headlight contol code and everything was good.(NO DIPPED HEADLIGHT CODE)
for your battery check to see if the car is charging at idle and up above then go from there.

 

Car Battery Reviews and Buying Guide:

The majority of car batteries are created by 3 manufacturers - JCI, East Penn, Exide and Johnson Controls Industries (they bought out Delphi). Delphi makes some EverStart models sold in Walmart and ACDelco. Johnson Control Industries makes Duralast seen in Autozone stores, Diehard - sold in Sears, Kirkland - the Costco brand, Motorcraft - which Ford sells, some of the EverStarts, and Interstate. Exide makes Exide batteries, Champion, Napa and even a % of the EverStart batteries. A car battery is one of the few things that you will most likely have to replace if you own a car more than about 3 years. Most other parts and accessories will last longer, but the battery in a car needs replacing every 3 years or so. If you need to get a new battery installed, go to Goodyear, Sears, Firestone or Pep Boys. All these car stores carry large inventories and can install your battery onsite. Other retailers like Target, Kmart, and Walmart might offer cheaper prices for their batteries, but rarely do they install them.

 

what is the minimum CCA for the battery...think my factory says 630 but see autozone and others have 730 cca.

 

that's what i mean. i've tinkered with batteries before and i was lucky to start my car a few times. the current has to match, otherwise you end up frying something or you don't get enough.

 

Ok, here's a very simple rundown of what's going on with your electrical system.

A battery is *ONLY* used to start your car and power things while the engine is off.

The Alternator is used to power EVERYTHING when the engine is running.
What this means is that if your car is running, you can quite literally remove the battery completely and everything will continue to run.

 

I just bought my first electric car with a Ni-MH 1800 mAh battery. Does anybody have some good instructions on the charging how long, can I charge teh battery when they are not fully discharged, how long is the charge going to last etc. for this type of battery ??? THANKS

 

I disagree. The higher the better if it is offered for the car. I could get away in FL with a 600 series but as soon as the cold hit when I moved to Ohio. Poof. biggest 700 series or better will keep your car alive in cold winters as long as the alternator is ok. You won't fry anything as it is rated for your car.