Annoying climate control behavior on MG S5 (Auto AC & Recirculation overrides)

[bbela]

Hi everyone,

I recently got an MG S5 and I'm really struggling with how the climate control behaves in manual mode. It seems like the system constantly overrides my settings, which is getting quite frustrating. I'm experiencing two main issues:

1. AC turns on automatically: Even when I have the AC explicitly turned off, if I try to adjust the fan speed or change the temperature, the system automatically turns the AC back on. I just want to adjust the blowing air without the compressor kicking in every single time.
2. Fresh air switches to recirculation: When I set the air intake to fresh air (outside air) and then lower the fan speed, the system often automatically switches back to internal air recirculation.

I understand that modern cars try to be "smart" to prevent window fogging or to cool the cabin efficiently, but I would really prefer to have full manual control over these basic functions.

Has anyone else experienced this exact behavior on the S5 (or maybe the MG4)? Is there any hidden setting, or perhaps a software update that allows you to disable these automatic overrides and keep the climate control truly manual?

Thanks in advance for any tips!

 

[Porsche944]

Nope, when I bought mine it was lashing down with rain. It misted up 30 seconds away from the dealers. We stopped, found the Auto button and that's been it in 4 months & 2200 miles. I tweak the temp button by a few degrees but that's it. I never understand why people buy cars with climate & never use it.

 

[bbela]

Nope, when I bought mine it was lashing down with rain. It misted up 30 seconds away from the dealers. We stopped, found the Auto button and that's been it in 4 months & 2200 miles. I tweak the temp button by a few degrees but that's it. I never understand why people buy cars with climate & never use it.

Thanks for the input. I totally get that 'Auto' mode is very convenient, especially in the rain to prevent misting up.

However, my point isn't about never using the climate control. In mild weather, I often prefer to just have fresh outside air blowing in without the AC compressor running unnecessarily. This avoids overly dry cabin air and saves some energy.

My issue is strictly with the software behavior: if I explicitly choose to switch to manual mode and turn the AC off, or select fresh air, the car shouldn't override my manual inputs just because I changed the fan speed. I'm just looking to see if anyone has found a software workaround or setting to stop the system from second-guessing manual adjustments.

 

[PeterHR2]

I don't know if there's much/any difference between the S5 and S6, but in the S6 when I bring up the Climate tile I can turn off the A/C and change fan speed without the car turning A/C back on or changing from external to internal circulation. I'll post a video when I get home this afternoon if you think it might be helpful.

 

[Alb]

When you reduce fan speed, the lowest setting is actually OFF.
Doing this does automatically set RECIRC.

 

[PeterHR2]

I'm not with the car at the mo. Will try that out later.

 

[PeterHR2]

In the S6, the slider on the Climate tile goes down to 1 (out of 11) and the internal recirculation does not kick in if setting is to draw from outside. When hitting the separate 'OFF' button below the infotainment screen the fan does then go off and the air circulation icon changes to internal. Using the physical button to switch back on sets the fan to the previous level before switching off and internal reverts to what was set when turned off, i.e. external. So I'm guessing from what's been written that there are slight differences between the S5 and S6.

 

[Alb]

I always use the physical button to operate the fan on my S5 so it's in that context my statement was made. Not so sure about operating it from the screen because I never use that mode.

 

[PeterHR2]

I always use the physical button to operate the fan on my S5 so it's in that context my statement was made. Not so sure about operating it from the screen because I never use that mode.

Ah, yes. Operates in the same way as S5 then. The rocker switch goes right down to 'off' and the (re)circulation icon goes to internal at the off position. On restarting the fan with the rocker switch the (re)circulation icon goes from internal to external (or presumably the state it was prior to switch off) the mo the fan speed hits '1'.

Video of setting fan independent of A/C (on S6)

 

[MG Clive]

Video of setting fan independent of A/C (on S6)

Access denied mate, I've requested access, but maybe you can set it for everybody to view?

 

[PeterHR2]

Access denied mate, I've requested access, but maybe you can set it for everybody to view?

Ha! Shared now!!

 

[bbela]

I don't know if there's much/any difference between the S5 and S6, but in the S6 when I bring up the Climate tile I can turn off the A/C and change fan speed without the car turning A/C back on or changing from external to internal circulation. I'll post a video when I get home this afternoon if you think it might be helpful.

Thanks, I'll try that first, I haven't looked at that to be honest.

Video of setting fan independent of A/C (on S6)

Well that's fantastic, I think it will work because everything is exactly like this on the S5. Thanks again