Does car Air Con vary in hotter climates?
Discussion
Isn't part of the issue that modern a/c uses variable output compressors to provide just the right amount of cooling.
It's not just a case of on/off but as it warms up the output is higher. This explains the observation of someone earlier who noted the cold air stream got colder as they drove south to the Alps.
Having said that in Europe never been in the situation eencountered Fort Lauderdale where the a/c on a Hertz Escort
was so cold and the outside humidity so high that got condensation on the outside of the windows.
It's not just a case of on/off but as it warms up the output is higher. This explains the observation of someone earlier who noted the cold air stream got colder as they drove south to the Alps.
Having said that in Europe never been in the situation eencountered Fort Lauderdale where the a/c on a Hertz Escort
was so cold and the outside humidity so high that got condensation on the outside of the windows. HTP99 said:
Yes different countries have different spec A/C; the manufacturer that I work for if you tap in the chassis number or reg number into their system it will come up with the full spec breakdown of that car including which region A/C system is fitted.
My mistake it doesn't come up with the region however I think what I have highlighted tells you what you want to know; if I could upload an image as the damn photo upload isn't working however one of the spec headings is "WITHOUT HOT COUNTRIES AIR CONDITIONING CONTROL"TheEnd said:
There's options tucked away in BMWs to switch on a "hot climate" aircon setting.
That's good because the air-con on my F30 makes a real meal of anything much over 30°C. I can't imagine how it would cope with the 40+ commonly experienced in the Middle East or Australia, for example.I thought I'd provided a pretty comprehensive explanation to this and yet people still seem to be speculating and guessing as to what the explanation is here as well as suggesting the absolute absurd! Is it that people like to ignore me, don't read my posts or simply like the opportunity to talk complete b
ks based on no actual fact? I simply couldn't say, but frankly, it is rather frustrating!
As for variable compressors, it is far from a new thing, for a long time piston compressors have used a control valve to vary the angle of the plate that the pistons run on. What is reasonably recent is the Valeo and Denso compressors where the angle of the plate is controlled by an ECU. In my experience the systems they are fitted to are far from the coolest as well as failing at a reasonably low mileage and causing a whole load of other problems.
ks based on no actual fact? I simply couldn't say, but frankly, it is rather frustrating! As for variable compressors, it is far from a new thing, for a long time piston compressors have used a control valve to vary the angle of the plate that the pistons run on. What is reasonably recent is the Valeo and Denso compressors where the angle of the plate is controlled by an ECU. In my experience the systems they are fitted to are far from the coolest as well as failing at a reasonably low mileage and causing a whole load of other problems.
jeebus said:
a domestic fridge is hermetically sealed, a vehicle AC system is semi hermetic and will lose a certain amount of refrigerant over time and therefore will benefit from servicing.
How so? In each case there is a compressor which has to contain seals - either driven by an electric motor or driven by a drive belt. What's the difference?Qwert1e said:
How so? In each case there is a compressor which has to contain seals - either driven by an electric motor or driven by a drive belt. What's the difference?
A car air conditioning compressor is driven by an external shaft connection.A fridge can have the motor inside the compressor arrangement - hence no shaft interface to leak.
Sheepshanks said:
I've had it from new and it's always been the same. It's a common complaint on Mercs that the a/c is never "icy" cold. It's adequate for the UK, I just struggle to believe the same system would be effective in places where towards 40C isn't unusual.
What model of C Class do you own?A friend of mine owned a W203 years ago that I used occasionally and one of the things that stood out was the powerful aircon.
BrownBottle said:
Sheepshanks said:
I've had it from new and it's always been the same. It's a common complaint on Mercs that the a/c is never "icy" cold. It's adequate for the UK, I just struggle to believe the same system would be effective in places where towards 40C isn't unusual.
What model of C Class do you own?A friend of mine owned a W203 years ago that I used occasionally and one of the things that stood out was the powerful aircon.
Don't get me wrong, it copes, but it always seems a bit marginal and it seems to deal with hotter weather by increasing the fan speed rather than making the air colder, so I don't buy the "self-adjusting" type of suggestions that some posters have made.
996TT02 said:
Pothole said:
also aircon should be serviced every two years and regassed every 5 at least. Hire cars are usually less than 2 years old so their systems will be in tip top condition. Unless you're comparing them with brand new or nearly new cars in UK, you're not comparing like with like, I'd have thought...
My '92 Landcruiser is probably on it's original gas and I have never ever done anything to it for as long as I have had it, and it still freezes your socks off. I use the aircon for around 4-5 mths a year.There is not much that is serviceable except any blower filters which aren't technically part of the a/c system but shared with the heating/ventilation system. If the gas needs topping up, you have a leak, and that needs fixing. Anything else is fixing what is broken, and can't be prevented by "servicing".
Home aircon is the same, I have split units in almost every room and if you are sucker enough to pay for a "service" all they do is clean the filters, a simple DIY affair. We even had a unit from the '80s at a house we owned and it never needed anything else doing. On occasion startup capacitors fail on older units, but as previous, this is fixing what is broken. Never ever regassed any unit either.
earlier I said:
I guess everyone's MMV but a regas to my 1998 S90's system brought the icy draught back...
Limpet said:
That's good because the air-con on my F30 makes a real meal of anything much over 30°C. I can't imagine how it would cope with the 40+ commonly experienced in the Middle East or Australia, for example.
Put you vin number in here http://www.bmwarchive.org/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.htmlit will tell you if you have Hot-climate version
I've been led to believe this is standard for UK spec
I have a Ozzie Monaro that has a very good climate control system. It always puts out ice cold air, and seems 'colder' than the system on my 07 Mondeo. It does seem to sweat a lot though when you park it up after a run when the aircon on. Whilst I was parked up at a service station in Germany, I had a German driver come up to the car and wildly gesticulate that ‘ze car is leaking!!!’ My reply was simply ‘air-conditioning - condenser’. I don’t know why the Monaro does this, my 07 Mondeo doesn't.
Sheepshanks said:
BrownBottle said:
Sheepshanks said:
I've had it from new and it's always been the same. It's a common complaint on Mercs that the a/c is never "icy" cold. It's adequate for the UK, I just struggle to believe the same system would be effective in places where towards 40C isn't unusual.
What model of C Class do you own?A friend of mine owned a W203 years ago that I used occasionally and one of the things that stood out was the powerful aircon.
Don't get me wrong, it copes, but it always seems a bit marginal and it seems to deal with hotter weather by increasing the fan speed rather than making the air colder, so I don't buy the "self-adjusting" type of suggestions that some posters have made.
Crosswise said:
I thought I'd provided a pretty comprehensive explanation to this and yet people still seem to be speculating and guessing as to what the explanation is here as well as suggesting the absolute absurd! Is it that people like to ignore me, don't read my posts or simply like the opportunity to talk complete bks based on no actual fact? I simply couldn't say, but frankly, it is rather frustrating!
As for variable compressors, it is far from a new thing, for a long time piston compressors have used a control valve to vary the angle of the plate that the pistons run on. What is reasonably recent is the Valeo and Denso compressors where the angle of the plate is controlled by an ECU. In my experience the systems they are fitted to are far from the coolest as well as failing at a reasonably low mileage and causing a whole load of other problems.
I'm afraid they want to ignore you. Even though you are right. I agree, R12 was a much better refridgerant. Shame it got so poisonous when exposed to extreme heat!ks based on no actual fact? I simply couldn't say, but frankly, it is rather frustrating! As for variable compressors, it is far from a new thing, for a long time piston compressors have used a control valve to vary the angle of the plate that the pistons run on. What is reasonably recent is the Valeo and Denso compressors where the angle of the plate is controlled by an ECU. In my experience the systems they are fitted to are far from the coolest as well as failing at a reasonably low mileage and causing a whole load of other problems.
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