So, uh, what do you do when it's so cold your car won't start?

[I AM MOBIUS]

Passports in the UK are only valid for 10 years

[Lorizael]

That... is bad. My 2007 Mazda 3 had absolutely no problems whatsoever starting up in 10F weather.

I have a 2009 Mazda 3.

[Imran Siddiqui]

You must have been really sucky on it . But you need to get that checked out... it shouldn't be acting that way.

Btw, my Mazda also has only 65,000 miles on it (HA! )

[ColdWizard]

Try to jump it, fail, wait for towtruck guy, have him jump it immediately, follow him to his shop, wait around while he checks it out, be told it was just the battery, be relieved it wasn't something more serious, pay him, and go back home.

[ricketyclik]

Listen to him; he's the Cold Wizard

[pchang]

You should still move as soon as you get the chance.

[Lorizael]

Car won't start again this morning, except today it's 28 F, which is downright balmy compared to the last time it wouldn't start. So, yeah, I need to get a jump. And sure, maybe my battery shouldn't be performing this poorly after only 6 years. But is my basic solution here to replace the battery?

[self biased]

Pretty much.

[Lorizael]

Also some googling tells me that car batteries usually last something on the order of 3-5 years. So what's this **** about how Lori's battery shouldn't be dead yet?

[Ming]

And sure, maybe my battery shouldn't be performing this poorly after only 6 years.

6 years old... Yeah, time for a new battery. Not a lot of choice here.

[I AM MOBIUS]

Batteries cost next to nothing - you should have simply replaced it at the first opportunity. My battery issue is different seeing as it IS brand new but still went flat as there was a draw from my car stereo even when the car wasn't being used. That supposedly got fixed, but I had problems the other week when it was flat again and I dared not use my breakdown coverage for the nth flat battery call out in the last year or so. So I got a battery charger for my garage - problem solved!

I am now an expert on car batteries.

[Lorizael]

Batteries cost next to nothing - you should have simply replaced it at the first opportunity.

A new battery is relatively cheap as far as car things go, yes, but I'm a jobless bum/poor college student. For the price of a car battery, I could instead buy ~100 liters of Mountain Dew.

[Lorizael]

Also I'm missing class.

[I AM MOBIUS]

Getting a new battery and not buying Mountain Dew - how is this not a win win?

[Sava]

If you don't get a high quality brand, batteries can be dead in that amount of time. It depends on a variety of factors. If you had the resources or ability to DIY, I would suggest checking your alternator as well. My advice would be to look into a higher quality battery (saying this from a standpoint of complete ignorance regarding what kind you currently have). It can be worth the added expense... but you'd have to run the numbers for yourself.

source? I worked on car audio systems for a few years and have built my own as a hobby.

but I wouldn't consider myself an authority... just an intermediate user with some good experience