Auto climate control question

[Baillie]

First car I've owned with automatic climate control and I'm still trying to get used to it/figure it out.. one question I do have, is there any way to increase the fan speed while on auto, without actually having to manually change the dial, if that makes sense?

 

Just feels like the auto option doesn't blow much out of the fans but I can feel it on my hands when I put them over the vents.

 

Thanks!

[norsko]

Thats the point. It just blow what you need to keep the correct temperature without making any draft.

Dial in whatever temperature you like and select Auto. Try to forget about it, and you will discover that it do the job well.

I have never understood why people has to adjust everything up and down. I sat mine at 21 degree C two years ago, and havent touch it since :-)

[Baillie]

1 hour ago, norsko said:

Thats the point. It just blow what you need to keep the correct temperature without making any draft.

Dial in whatever temperature you like and select Auto. Try to forget about it, and you will discover that it do the job well.

I have never understood why people has to adjust everything up and down. I sat mine at 21 degree C two years ago, and havent touch it since :-)

Thanks for the reply norsko! .. I'm just used to setting the fans at full blast to try and heat it up quicker- will let the auto do its thing and see how it goes!

[just music]

You can try setting the AC power higher - press the setup button on the fan dial, then choose the 'high' option from the choices. 

[Gabbo]

4 hours ago, Baillie said:

Thanks for the reply norsko! .. I'm just used to setting the fans at full blast to try and heat it up quicker- will let the auto do its thing and see how it goes!

 

The is also unecessary as this is what the "auto" part does.

If engine is cold then there is no hot air available so turning the blower on faster wont heat anything up quicker.

The climate control knows the temperature in the heat exchanger & increases the fan speed as heat becomes available.

It will also adjust which vents the air comes from so passengers shouldnt feel the air temperature différences.

It only starts to use the front vents once the temperature of the air is close to the cabin temperature so you dont get cold air in your face during the winter or redhot air in your face during summer before the AC kicks in.

 

However, If you want the feeling that air is blowing you can set "high" as JustMagic says.

It more agressively tries to follow the temperature.

This will use more the front vents so you can feel the air blowing & increases the initial fan speed slightly than on "comfort" which is the default setting.

 

[brettikivi]

you can also change the way it tries to deal with temperature.. it's in the menus somewhere, I can't remember the precise name. 

 

But to be honest? hit a temp and auto. Job done.

 

 - Bret

[Gabbo]

3 hours ago, brettikivi said:

you can also change the way it tries to deal with temperature.. it's in the menus somewhere, I can't remember the precise name. 

You press the "Setup" button on the AC controls to open the special climate menu. Here you can choose, Low, Comfort & High for the climate setting.

[megas]

I use auto but shut the a/c off since its winter. Am I doing it wrong? I am guessing a/c is for cooling only anyway.

1.5 TSI here btw from Croatia.

[SC03OTT]

It’s not just for cooling, no, and should remain on all the time. 

[megas]

Thanks for the info. Turning it on again.

[SWBoy]

1 hour ago, megas said:

I use auto but shut the a/c off since its winter. Am I doing it wrong? I am guessing a/c is for cooling only anyway.

A/C not only cools but also dehumidifies, so leaving the A/C on in Winter will make the windows demist faster.

 

Hence why A/C should always be left on.

 

[logiclee]

2 hours ago, megas said:

I use auto but shut the a/c off since its winter. Am I doing it wrong? I am guessing a/c is for cooling only anyway.

1.5 TSI here btw from Croatia.

 

As others have said air-conditioning dehumidifies so not only clears the windows quicker but gives the car a more comfortable air quality even when the cabin is being heated. The system incorporates a humidity sensors so the climate control only uses the A/C when it's needed. Just because the A/C button is lit up don't think the air conditioning system is in use constantly and using fuel because it is not. The Air con compressor is only on load when the Climate control needs it for cooling or humidity control.

 

Lee

[jtalep]

I asked exactly the same question when I first got a car with auto climate control!

 

But I can only echo the views of others, hit auto, set the temp and leave the A/C on.  I've only taken manual control on a few occasions, once in the summer when it was hot and I just wanted cold air blasted in my face full force and to hell with everything else  

 

It's funny, when I told my mum to use her A/C all year round she looked at me like I was crazy 'why would I use the A/C in the winter, the car will be cold enough!'.  It baffles me that so many people still think A/C is just for cold air!  A/C is just one of those things you should have on whenever you have the blowers on - above the practical reasons already mentioned it fundamentally keeps the lubricant in the gas flowing around the system so that you don't end up with cracked leaky seals!  Also helps to prevent any build ups of mould or the likes which causes the funky smells people get when they turn it on for the first time in months.

 

 

 

 

Edited 6 February, 2018 by jtalep

[SoupDragon]

I really like the auto climate control. Earlier versions of climate control in the Toyota I had used to turn the fan on full blast as soon as you moved off and this just caused a lot of noise without heat in the winter. The Octy version of climate control I have now in a 2018 car doesn't make any noise and it I think it avoids working too hard before the engine warms up, which is more important than warming up the cabin. I have not had the screen mist up either which I used to get big style, especially if you got into the car in a hurry and your hair was still wet after a quick shower in the morning. I have not turned the air con off. An important part of the whole system is that the engine warms up very quickly. I don't know if that is true of diesel versions, mine is petrol. I drove a diesel Yaris and that took ages before the engine got up to temperature. That is part of the diesel engine's efficiency.

[Baillie]

Thank you for all of your replies!  Very helpful.. the AC being on during the winter is confusing haha but makes sense now!  I'll leave it in auto and let it do its thing

[KevC_Derby]

Also make sure all of your vents are open for best performance. Climate Control assumes they are all open and doesn’t detect and compensate the airflow which can result in spurious performance.

[SurreyJohn]

Auto has two settings, tap it twice, the light switches from left to right and the fan runs one notch higher.

 

If you are only person in car then click the dual (so both temperatures same), makes it run more efficiently (otherwise get hot blasts one side and cool the other)

 

The system works best if all vents are fully open (depending on spec, may be some vents in back, in glovebox, in box between seats etc).  If any are closed on dashboard tends to provide uneven temperature.

 

Apart from occasionally using the windscreen mode for few minutes, I always leave it on auto.

 

If you turn off a/c for few weeks/months the seals will dry out (and eventually the gas will start leak out), should be left on for dehumidifying all year.

[logiclee]

47 minutes ago, SurreyJohn said:

Auto has two settings, tap it twice, the light switches from left to right and the fan runs one notch higher.

 

If you are only person in car then click the dual (so both temperatures same), makes it run more efficiently (otherwise get hot blasts one side and cool the other)

 

The system works best if all vents are fully open (depending on spec, may be some vents in back, in glovebox, in box between seats etc).  If any are closed on dashboard tends to provide uneven temperature.

 

Apart from occasionally using the windscreen mode for few minutes, I always leave it on auto.

 

If you turn off a/c for few weeks/months the seals will dry out (and eventually the gas will start leak out), should be left on for dehumidifying all year.

 

The Mk3 Octavia and the newer MQB chassis cars have a different system to the Yeti and older models.

 

The Auto button only has on/off but there are three different level settings in the infotainment settings.

 

Lee

[threadbear]

My Octavia is the first car I’ve had with A/C and I think it is one of its best features! Easier to demise and when set on auto normally at 20c the car is lovely and warm, no fans blowing, so nice and peaceful. 

[wyx087]

Related question:

 

How do I drive with Auto turned on but with also with recirculate forced on?

 

Having been driving an EV, I noticed just how dirty all other cars are (especially when following cold cars out of car park and sitting at traffic lights). I now force AC and recirculate to be permanently on so I don't get any exhaust into the cabin. The Nissan EV can have recirculate settings forced on and still retain auto fan speed and auto positional setting. Does Skoda VAG system do the same?

[PerArdua]

- as an aside to the 'leave ac on all the time' comments - a few years back Mrs PerArdua acquired a brand new Fiat 500 - the leap back to being a 2-car household after a few years after her career break for babies. One lovely warm early spring day I was a passenger in said little Fiat with Mrs PerArdua driving and as I was getting warm I turned the ac on.

"Why have you turned the winter mode on?"  she asked. Presumably the snowflake symbol on the button had confused her - she just thought it was there to help demist in winter...

 

Anyway - I recognize the question by the OP - I would like to have a feeling of the air moving around the cabin a bit more in auto mode. I've see the comments about the different sensitivities of the auto mode to be found in the setup menus, however I had a rummage around in the infotainment menus last night in my 2018 model year, post face-lift SE, and I can find no such setting. Am I looking in the right place?

[jtalep]

1 hour ago, wyx087 said:

Related question:

 

How do I drive with Auto turned on but with also with recirculate forced on?

 

Having been driving an EV, I noticed just how dirty all other cars are (especially when following cold cars out of car park and sitting at traffic lights). I now force AC and recirculate to be permanently on so I don't get any exhaust into the cabin. The Nissan EV can have recirculate settings forced on and still retain auto fan speed and auto positional setting. Does Skoda VAG system do the same?

 

Personally, I would never have recirculate mode on for more than a few minutes:

 

The nature of recirculated air means that its' already been breathed in and out by you and other occupants riding along with you. Thus, it's sapped of oxygen and filled with moisture. That combination can make you groggy, which can hinder your concentration and safe driving ability. Plus, in just the right - or wrong, rather - conditions, it also can fog up your windows, decreasing visibility.

 

In bumper to bumper traffic or if you're stuck behind a smokey diesel sure, but the rest of the time it's better to be bringing in oxygen into the car and letting the cabin filter do it's job rather than recirculating carbon dioxide constantly.  The only other time I use it is in summer to help cool the car down quicker, but again never for very long.

 

Edited 7 February, 2018 by jtalep

[Gabbo]

2 hours ago, PerArdua said:

- as an aside to the 'leave ac on all the time' comments - a few years back Mrs PerArdua acquired a brand new Fiat 500 - the leap back to being a 2-car household after a few years after her career break for babies. One lovely warm early spring day I was a passenger in said little Fiat with Mrs PerArdua driving and as I was getting warm I turned the ac on.

"Why have you turned the winter mode on?"  she asked. Presumably the snowflake symbol on the button had confused her - she just thought it was there to help demist in winter...

 

Anyway - I recognize the question by the OP - I would like to have a feeling of the air moving around the cabin a bit more in auto mode. I've see the comments about the different sensitivities of the auto mode to be found in the setup menus, however I had a rummage around in the infotainment menus last night in my 2018 model year, post face-lift SE, and I can find no such setting. Am I looking in the right place?

 

Press the physical setup button on the climate control just below the "auto" button.

This will bring up a climate control menu on the Entertainment unit which is not accesssable from the other menus on the touch screen.

[Gabbo]

14 hours ago, Baillie said:

Thank you for all of your replies!  Very helpful.. the AC being on during the winter is confusing haha but makes sense now!  I'll leave it in auto and let it do its thing

 

It also helps a lot long term with moisture, mould, smells in the cabin as the air Inside is not as humid so when leaving the car overnight theres less of an enivorment for bacteria & things to grow.

In the winter it wont run hard like in hot summer conditions so should have negligable affect on fuel economy.

[wyx087]

2 hours ago, jtalep said:

 

Personally, I would never have recirculate mode on for more than a few minutes:

 

The nature of recirculated air means that its' already been breathed in and out by you and other occupants riding along with you. Thus, it's sapped of oxygen and filled with moisture. That combination can make you groggy, which can hinder your concentration and safe driving ability. Plus, in just the right - or wrong, rather - conditions, it also can fog up your windows, decreasing visibility.

 

In bumper to bumper traffic or if you're stuck behind a smokey diesel sure, but the rest of the time it's better to be bringing in oxygen into the car and letting the cabin filter do it's job rather than recirculating carbon dioxide constantly.  The only other time I use it is in summer to help cool the car down quicker, but again never for very long.

 

I understand this concern and in long journey on faster roads I'd be okay not recirculating. Modern cars should also be smart enough to mix in fresh air when required.

 

I've become really sensitive to these smells. It's not only smokey diesels. I almost gagged by my own car when I had the engine running to use the 12v air pump on the tyres. All cars that have emission has a horrible smell, it ranges from noticeable to totally unbearable. It'd be far better to have recirculated air all the time and have the car mix in fresh air if so needed.

 

Having AC on will keep the windows from fogging up. It doesn't affect fuel economy in any way. According to energy usage meter on my Nissan EV, it uses <0.2 kW more compared to full auto: only heater and not recirculate.