I have an 09 Octavia Elegance with the Climatronic heating and ventilation system which has seemed to work well since I bought the car in May 11.

This is my first winter with the car and since this cod snap started I have found that it takes absolutely ages for the heating to become effective. My daily commute is about 7 miles through light traffic and takes about 20 minutes. By the time I get to work the heating has barely kicked in and the engine temperature gauge has only risen to about half the normal reading.

Can anyone advise?

I have an 09 Octavia Elegance with the Climatronic heating and ventilation system which has seemed to work well since I bought the car in May 11.

This is my first winter with the car and since this cod snap started I have found that it takes absolutely ages for the heating to become effective. My daily commute is about 7 miles through light traffic and takes about 20 minutes. By the time I get to work the heating has barely kicked in and the engine temperature gauge has only risen to about half the normal reading.

Can anyone advise?

Is your car a diesel by any chance?

Sounds right for a diesel, I know with the works vehicles I cane the Hell out of them and it still takes at least 25mins to get luke warm air coming out lol

That is correct, I had a Octavia diesel for 6 years.

The heating unit should have a electronic heat unit to help on cold days and when the engine has reached normal temperature, the engine heat takes over the work.

But because diesel engine is so effective on using all energy, it does not give much heat to start with.

Both my old diesels would take miles and miles to warm up in cold weather, typically with my now sold Superb it would not reach 90 on the temperature gauge until around 9 miles into a journey at 60mph, and heat would take around 1.5 miles before anything reasonable would come out of the vents.

Diesels are more thermally efficient and take longer to warm up in the cold weather, and leaving it idling outside will do nothing either as its unlikely to even warm up at all in the current conditions.

I think there must be another explanation. Mine is petrol and takes ages to warm up too. Diesels are more efficient but lets face it still chuck away well over half the fuel energy as heat; for even a 70Kw engine that is an awful lot of heat.

I suspect it has more to do with how efficiently the heat is sent out down the exhaust system and how the cooling system works than it does the actual thermal efficiency of the engine?

Both my old diesels would take miles and miles to warm up in cold weather, typically with my now sold Superb it would not reach 90 on the temperature gauge until around 9 miles into a journey at 60mph, and heat would take around 1.5 miles before anything reasonable would come out of the vents.

Diesels are more thermally efficient and take longer to warm up in the cold weather, and leaving it idling outside will do nothing either as its unlikely to even warm up at all in the current conditions.

get yourself one of these

Heko grill cover looks drastic but does work.

They even do the cover for the lower part of the grill on the bumper

Edited 11 February, 201214 yr by MRFIXIT