Do you use AC in winter?

[ozzz]

Hi I am in Australia and my air is on cooling on every trip in summer hot and high humidity, winter air need for screen cleaning, my dog wouldn’t get in car without air on and on low.

I don't have the AC on unless I need more cooling than the ambient air can provide (ha! not very often), or the car is steaming up (which again doesn't seem to happen too often).

Why burn those electrons cooling air only to warm it again if you don't need to? Plus having it on opens the front grill making the car less aerodynamic.

Why not circulate the air in car if hot using the ac ,tiz common in Oz

 

[mg4mc]

I do that to cool down quickly, but like I said it's not often AC is required.

 

[Bricktop X PWR]

Hmm wondering if my AC is not functioning properly. If I turn AC of my car immediately starts fogging up.

As a rule my AC stays on Auto, 24 degrees.

Only exception is if I haven't pre warmed the cabin
Then I set off having pressed both demist buttons on dash.
Only needed for a few hundred meters.

If your cars fogs up it is a sure sign you need the AC on.

 

[Matt x power]

I always run mine as it keeps the system in check, circulating the oil round the system

 

[JonnyG]

As avove my AC stary on at 25c all the time and with the fan set manually at Speed 3.

Only on very long motorway trips do I turn the AC off and put the HVAC on ECO as well as turning on "Energy Saving Mode" to maximise range. I do then get great range but suffer from moisture inside the windows with the AC off !! Can't win them all

 

[Bricktop X PWR]

If I am worried about range (rarely) I thought selecting the Eco driving mode automatically regulated the AC to be more efficient?
I really should rtfm but someone will know!
I wouldn't mind but I do actually have a hard copy of the manual!

 

[JonnyG]

If I am worried about range (rarely) I thought selecting the Eco driving mode automatically regulated the AC to be more efficient?
I really should rtfm but someone will know!
I wouldn't mind but I do actually have a hard copy of the manual!

It's not very clear what ECO mode does ... some think it just make the accelerator less responsive (i.e. changes the profile) but turning on "Energy Saving Mode" definitely saves on the AC and I suspect other things too from my experience

 

[Bricktop X PWR]

It's not very clear what ECO mode does ... some think it just make the accelerator less responsive (i.e. changes the profile) but turning on "Energy Saving Mode" definitely saves on the AC and I suspect other things too from my experience

Rtfm?
Me and you both m8

 

[CraigDM]

A/C on Auto 100% of the year.
Years ago I was told this was the best thing to do by an A/C expert as he handed me a £1000 bill for the work he had to do on my Alfa Romeo, where the A/C system was FUBAR due to the previous owner never using it.
So many people don't realise that A/C is a great dehumidifier in the winter as well as providing cool air in the summer.

 

[MartinSEsr]

Hmm wondering if my AC is not functioning properly. If I turn AC of my car immediately starts fogging up.

Why would you turn it off? The whole point is that in the winter it dehumidifies the air - so yes turning it off will lead to misting up. Mine is on all year, it takes virtually no power in the winter as it doesn't need to do any cooling.

if you leave it off for months, the seals dry out, the gas evaporates and it's a hugeley expensove repair. It's desigigned to be left on. Turn it on and forget it.

 

[JonnyG]

Rtfm?
Me and you both m8

"Eco Mode

The vehicle is in the state of low energy consumption, which is used for energy-saving driving."

Not much help from the manual but suggests it helps

 

[fnegroni]

If the HVAC’s ECO mode is similar to a regular ICE car’s eco mode, both heating and cooling will be reduced: obviously in a regular ICE vehicle (as opposed to hybrid) the heat comes from the radiator so it won’t be limited, but the a/c will dehumidify the air it just won’t cool it down much.
Essentially everything is working at a lower energy consumption level. The PTC heater in the MG4 will draw less current or run for less time (whichever they decided to do) and the a/c similarly will run less often and/or draw less power.
It will therefore take longer to cool down/heat up the cabin.

In energy saving mode, which is the additional toggle on the driving mode page, the heater and a/c are restricted even further and possibly completely disabled depending on the charge level.
This is explained in MG Winter tips for electric motorists - MG Motor Europe

• Every 100% electric MG has an Eco mode available, if extra range is urgently needed. Be aware that by applying this feature, it will override the climate control of the car (it will turn off/turn down the heater in the interior significantly).

 

[Kithmo]

FYI:
Electric AC is self contained, the motor is inside, so there are no shaft seals to dry out and leak if you don't use it and because of this it shouldn't need regassing every few years.
Having said that, there's no point turning it off when it uses so little energy most of the time and it keeps the air dry.
Generally AC doesn't work below 4 deg C anyway or the condenser would ice up, so although the button may be lit, if it's 4 deg C or less then it's not doing anything.

 

[Rolfe]

I haven't had my A/C turned on all winter and everything is fine. I get slight misting up on very wet days. Then I turn on the windscreen air flow, and it goes. It it's really bad I turn on the demister and possibly the rear screen heater for a few minutes, and all is well.

I have the air intake set to auto and it seems to be fine. I did 100 miles yesterday (it was quite dry) and didn't have to do much with the demisting, maybe once after the car had been parked. I had a CO2 meter in the car and when I got out after the long drive I saw it was reading under 500 ppm with two of us in the car, so decent air quality.

 

[CarbonEV]

Why would you turn it off? The whole point is that in the winter it dehumidifies the air - so yes turning it off will lead to misting up. Mine is on all year, it takes virtually no power in the winter as it doesn't need to do any cooling.

if you leave it off for months, the seals dry out, the gas evaporates and it's a hugeley expensove repair. It's desigigned to be left on. Turn it on and forget it.

Doesn’t having A/C on and also High Temperature conflict?

So you’re blowing out cold air and hot air together?

 

[siteguru]

Doesn’t having A/C on and also High Temperature conflict?

So you’re blowing out cold air and hot air together?

You're misunderstanding what AC stands for ... it is Air Conditioning not Air Cooling.

 

[CarbonEV]

You're misunderstanding what AC stands for ... it is Air Conditioning not Air Cooling.

AC has always been used for cold air,

Warm air is AC off, heater on,

?

 

[Rolfe]

I'm getting more and more impressed with the way the rear windscreen works. Literally the only time I think, where's the rear wiper, is when I'm initially turning on the wipers and always reach for a rear wiper switch that isn't there. I don't think I've ever looked out of the rear windscreen and thought, wish I had a wiper.

Today it was absolutely bucketing. Set of with the front wipers going and raindrops on the rear windscreen. But I could still see out OK. Then the rear windscreen seemed to mist up a bit and that, rather than any raindrops, was obscuring my vision a bit. So I turned on the rear windscreen demister.

Within a few minutes my rear view was completely clear. No misting, and no raindrops either, although it was still absolutely pouring and there was a lot of water on the road. I turned the demister off, and it stayed clear for the rest of my journey. And this was across the entire area of the windscreen, which is much better than with my Golf where I was constantly using screenwash and the wiper to keep a wee semicircle sort of clear and the rest of the rear windscreen was just covered in crud.

The front windscreen stayed clear the entire time, even though I didn't have the A/C on and I didn't have the windscreen air circulation turned on. I can't help feeling there's something wrong with the cars (in the other thread) where people are complaining that their windscreens/windows are running with water.

 

[ozzz]

AC is adjustable for comfort my AC fully ducted at home is thermostat controlled so we set it at 26c , same as car except car has to be lower as in low , the water removed in house is directed in to the gutter and car on to floor.

 

[Ian Key]

The car has climate control so swaps between heating and cooling by turning on and off either the heating element or the cooling system automatically depending on the temperature set by the user.
Leaving the AC selected has the advantage of having the air pass through the air dryer and if the air source comes from outside of the car instead of being recirculating it stops the windows misting up.