Climate control: How cold is cold ?

Paddington · Aug 30, 2016

With this warmer weather had the climate control on the car set to LO. A pleasant breeze but certainly not cool so perhaps the system needs re gassing.
Looking on the net to see what interior temperature I should be getting seems a bit confusing, I have seen 5C mentioned ie fridge temperature, but a comment caught my eye regarding climate control in tractors where someone stated that the minimum temperature should be higher than that for cars as drivers spent longer in the cab and could experience "thermal shock" when leaving the cab.
Fact or fiction ?

Lincs Lass · Aug 30, 2016

Did read somewhere of a guy who had been in his tractor with the climate control ( air con )on full blast ,,he opened the door and the sudden rush of hot air knocked him out

Lincs Lass · Aug 30, 2016

Dont like air con on to hard in my truck ,,get a headache with it

# Robin · Aug 30, 2016

In low it's cycling on the freeze probe or pressure switch. Would expect air off on the evaporator core to be about 3 degrees. Depending on heat pick up in the duct you should have vent temperatures less than 10deg

two-cylinder · Aug 30, 2016

Lo is below 17c in my car.

Op: what temp is stated immediately above LO in your car?

Cowabunga · Aug 30, 2016

I believe that most climate control units are set to cool no lower than 17C these days. This is to avoid the real danger of the passengers getting temperature shock on leaving the cabin.
The system can probably lower the temperature out of the vents well below 17, but the sensors of the total cab environment will limit the cab to that or higher.

Remember that the sun direct on the skin will still feel very warm through glass even if the air is actually cool.

JohnDeere8530 · Aug 30, 2016

My aircon is bloody cold in the car at around 8c but wont cool cabin much below 14c

Paddington · Aug 30, 2016

My minimum temperature is 16C, then low, with an indicated ambient of 16C, the low setting is just like opening the window.

smcapstick · Aug 30, 2016

Mine goes to 16 degrees.

Irish NZ · Aug 30, 2016

What if you were working outside in sub zero temps and walked into a house with the heating going non stop for the past 2 weeks and fire lighting(like my folks in winter) wouldn't that have the same effect. Or going from inside into a nite club in the winter? Only time I've heard of terminal shock risk is when people get into trouble in snowy environment etc and get into a warm bath to warm up.. not saying it couldn't happen just sounds a little extreme.

Cowabunga · Aug 31, 2016

Irish NZ said:
What if you were working outside in sub zero temps and walked into a house with the heating going non stop for the past 2 weeks and fire lighting(like my folks in winter) wouldn't that have the same effect. Or going from inside into a nite club in the winter? Only time I've heard of terminal shock risk is when people get into trouble in snowy environment etc and get into a warm bath to warm up.. not saying it couldn't happen just sounds a little extreme.

It is apparently fairly common. And yes, it happens when going from heat to cold as well, which is what happens to so many people who get into difficulty in Summer when they go swimming in rivers. It can cause them to pass out or have heart failure.
Isuzu in the USA were once implicated in the media for an incident where a woman passenger came home from a long distance trip in a Trooper and went to open their yard gate. The sudden temperature change from the very efficient air conditioning to the extreme outside heat that day made her pass out so suddenly that she pivoted on her hips, her head hit the ground causing some damage, but more seriously, she broke her back.

That's just something I remember from the early 1990's

DeeGee · Aug 31, 2016

It's always puzzled me that climate control in cars just goes from 16 to LO with no temperature settings below 16? I thought the whole idea of this system was to be able to select any temperature and keep it there? Personally I prefer cool vehicle temperatures even in winter and would probably select about 12 in summer, so does anybody know why is there no provision for setting temps below 16?

Cowabunga · Aug 31, 2016

DeeGee said:
It's always puzzled me that climate control in cars just goes from 16 to LO with no temperature settings below 16? I thought the whole idea of this system was to be able to select any temperature and keep it there? Personally I prefer cool vehicle temperatures even in winter and would probably select about 12 in summer, so does anybody know why is there no provision for setting temps below 16?

Because causing death by temperature difference is known and they want you to survive to buy another of their cars.

The thing with climate control, as opposed to air con, is that the thing should be set at a comfortable level, say 20C, and shouldn't need changing even after entering a hot parked car. The system will automatically try and attain the set temperature as quickly as possible, so it's pointless altering the setting lower to try and speed things up. It's brain controls the air mixing valve, the compressor, the vents and blower. It also has sun detection sensor

JohnDeere8530 · Aug 31, 2016

unlikely to ever get thermal shock by aircon in a vehicle

Gong Farmer · Aug 31, 2016

When I bought a VW I was told the Germans had done research and found the most comfortable temperature in a car was 22 deg C, and I wasn't to change the climate control setting from that.

Never understood why people want to feel cold when it's hot outside, surely they just need to be cooled down to 'normal' and the climate control has to work hard enough to do that. My wife keeps reacting to hot weather by turning the fridge setting up. I've given up trying to explain.

Cowabunga · Aug 31, 2016

JohnDeere8530 said:
unlikely to ever get thermal shock by aircon in a vehicle

People don't. They get it when they emerge into the heat. Plus modern units don't allow the vehicle to get that cold any longer for precisely this reason, so it is indeed unlikely on anything built in the last two decades. The UK doesn't have too many days where it would ever be an issue. I can't recall any UK instances of it, but getting anywhere near that condition can't be too good for people.

India has had recent issues with some buildings being too cold. There have been warnings to increase the temperature to 20 to 22C inside air-conditioned buildings to avoid health issues to residents as well as visitors leaving the premises. Not sure when I read that, but its relatively recently.

Paddington · Aug 31, 2016

Perhaps mine would work better if I didn't keep leaving my cap on the dashboard covering the sun detector.

Cowabunga · Aug 31, 2016

Paddington said:
Perhaps mine would work better if I didn't keep leaving my cap on the dashboard covering the sun detector.

I bet that 8 out of ten people asked wouldn't know they had a sun detector.

Paddington · Aug 31, 2016

Cowabunga said:
I bet that 8 out of ten people asked wouldn't know they had a sun detector.

Including me till a few days ago, thought it was a detector for the alarm.

Poorbuthappy · Aug 31, 2016

I tend to set it around 17.5 in summer.
In winter I set it a degree or 2 lower as I tend to have winter clothing on. Old car wouldn't go below 17 or 17.5 and I found that too stuffy in winter. But then I'm not one for setting the central heating high either.

Climate control: How cold is cold ?

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

0 %

Up to 25%

25-50%

50-75%

75-100%

100% I’ve had enough of farming!

Share this page