Today’s modern vehicles and efficient engines draw a larger load from a battery. With such vehicles, you can face problem with starting your vehicle, especially in cold temperatures. To avoid that, you should buy your battery with a good Cold Cranking Amp (CCA) Rating. Now the question arises, what is CCA Rating?
It is the type of rating standard in the automotive industry to define the ability of a battery to start and generate power in cold temperatures. It is the amount of current a battery can provide at 0 °F (−18 °C), for 30 seconds until the battery voltage drops to unusable levels. For Example, a 12V battery with a rating of 600 CCA means the battery will provide 600 amps for 30 seconds at 0 degrees before the voltage falls to 7.20 V. The higher the CCA rating, the better will be the battery’s ability to crank the engine.
While replacing a battery, you should always check the CCA rating of the battery. How much CCA rating your battery must have, depends on your vehicle and also on the climatic conditions of the place where you live. If you live in cold temperatures, you require high CCA rating battery compared to hotter climates. In colder temperature, the engine requires more power to get started. Also, the chemical reaction in the battery that generates power is less efficient.
Factors that affect CCA requirements:
1. Cylinder head compression ratio is a measure of fluid and gas pressure inside the engine cylinders, to crank the engine. The higher the compression ratio, the more force will be required to crank the engine, which results in higher CCA requirements.
2. The size of the engine is the greatest determining factor of CCA requirement. The larger the engine, the more power it will require to get started. Hence more CCA is required from the battery.
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