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Mechanics at the local garage have insisted it's "no problem yet", but people here in Sierra Leone have different standards to me when it comes to car safety...

This is a pic of the positive terminal post on my car battery:

enter image description here

Looks to me like a crack, going from near the bottom at the front just left of centre, across the top in a reverse c shape, then down the other side. Whatever's under that cracked metal casing is visible through the crack.

It's hard (but not impossible) to attach the connector terminal - it feels like the post is maybe 0.5mm too wide and it takes some pushing to get it on.

I know any sort of crack to the battery casing is serious - but is something like this on a terminal post merely cosmetic, or is it terminal? (pun intended)

The battery works and can hold a charge, but discharges when not in use faster than I might expect.

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    It's made of soft lead so they will get a deformed look like that from getting a clamp tightened down on them. Looks OK. – DucatiKiller Jan 14 '16 at 15:43
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    As said ... this is not an issue. It looks like someone put a hard wire over the top of the terminal then put the clamp down over it. This would mean it's not a crack, just a deformation. I also wanted to say, thank you so much for the picture ... in this case it is worth about a billion words (not just the customary 1,000 :D) – Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2♦ Jan 14 '16 at 18:12
  • Depending on latitude and usage,modern batteries only last 2-5 years. Get as much use out of it as you can as-is. When it starts to fail, then replace it. – Criggie Dec 16 '17 at 1:16
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They are right. Its not a problem yet. There are no signs that battery fluid is escaping through the post. Keep an eye on it, though. :)

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