Back in the early 1970’s in Michigan, a high school friend’s father claimed that in order to ensure your car would start more reliably in the cold temperatures that it was a good idea to “wake up” your battery by first turning on the headlights for a few seconds, then, after shutting the headlights off, start your car. Is this sound advice, or just a way to discourage young men from trying to visit your teenage daughter, after their car would fail to start in the cold weather because they tried this trick? Thanks!
It is not an old dad’s tale. It actually does work.
A battery makes electricity from a chemical reaction and giving it a bit of a current drain warms up the battery rather than “wakes” it up.