I'm trying to learn the AC and heat functionality. I assumed that if I set the desired temperature to, say, 72, that the car will be smart enough to add heat or add AC to the cabin to get to that temperature. Well, not in my car. Example, After 10 minutes of driving in 65 degree outdoor temperature, I set the cabin temp to 72, for my wife, and we both felt cold air come on and stay on. The AC function came on since we set the climate system to AUTO. We finally shut it off, or get freezed out. Weird. Anyways, any tips, cause the heating/cooling system aint logical. Oh, on the same note, Does the Prius tell us what the cabin temperature is, which I can use to set a higher or lower temperature?? Right now the only way I can get an idea of the cabin temperature is to change the desired temperature and watch the automatic fan speed. I noticed that the fan speeds up if the desired temp is farther away and slows down if the desired temp is close by. ZC1
You should have got heat. Either there is operator mis-understanding, or mine, or a problem with the car. I know of no way to directly read the current cabin temp from the MFD.
Toyota doesn't want us to have to much information, like cabin temp, or water temp, or voltage, or oil pressure, or tire pressure. They think we are idiots or something and can't use all that info.
Although the AC light is on, it does not mean that the AC compressor is running to cool you down, instead it may be used to dehumidify instead. I'd recommend buying a thermometer.
The A/C light indicates that the air conditioning compressor is enabled, not that it is running. When enabled, it will run as needed to cool or dehumidify. In auto mode the climate control works just as you would expect: it controls the vents, heat, and air conditioning to try and stay at your desired temperature setting. To do this it looks at cabin temperature, humidity, and the solar radiation sensor on the dash. You will find that you need to adjust the temperature setting up or down to your liking, as comfort is very personal. The actual temperature will hunt up and down a bit with changes in the sun and other perturbing factors. Don't worry about it. If you are cold, bump the setting a click or two. It's right there on the steering wheel. Tom
Did you try to crank the Auto Temp higher (like 78F) and see if hot air comes out? The ICE maybe not running long enough to have hot coolant for heating yet.....but it should be running (even when driving slower speed) whenever you crank up the heat setting.
If you go to max heat, the electric heaters will kick in. The suggestion to adjust the heat up and down is sound. You have to play with it a bit to get a feel for how it works. Sometimes I'm hot at 68°, sometimes I'm cold at 72°. Comfort is a funny thing, and it depends on a lot more than ambient air temperature. Radiant heat and humidity make a big contribution. As for the location of the cabin air temperature sensor, I don't know. We'll have to get someone with tech manuals to chime in on this one. Tom
As the owner of a new '08 Touring, I have one A/C gripe: You can adjust the temp on the steering wheel but you can't control the fan speed. In order to kick up the A/C (fan) you have to go into the "climate" screen....why?..or am I missing something?
The steering wheel controls are best suited for use with the auto a/c mode. In this mode you don't have to adjust the fan speed as it does this for you. Once you manually override the fan speed you're no longer in A/C mode. I leave mine in auto mode all the time (I'm also in Phoenix). Whether I'm in Phoenix or Flagstaff I just click the temp up or down a few degrees as needed and it will automagically adjust the fan speed appropriately. I usually have mine set between 68 and 72 degrees year round. BTW, a bit off topic but have fun in the 110 degree weather today. Summer has hit us with a vengeance.
Thx 4 the info, that makes sense to me & I'll give it a go. And boy do I hear ya' on the HOT weather issue...of course, we knew it was coming but...
What I started doing was turn off the A/C and just hit the fan speeds. If the temp setting is high enough I get warm air. Previously on Auto mode and 76 degree setting, I was getting warm air at my feet and cool air at my face, my wife wasn't too happy about that. So now, after advice in this thread, I'm going to go back to Auto mode and crank up the temp, then see what happens. Glad the AC compressor doesn't run even though the AC light is on. I think it would have been better if they called it Climate Control, not AC. ZC1
Yes, "climate control" may have been clearer for US customers and perhaps others. We tend to interpret "air conditioning" as "cooling".
I fully agree with this. In fact I'm still trying to convince my wife this is the case and she's owned a few "Auto A/C" vehicles over the last several years.
There is a way to fool the system (accidentally) into going to MAX COOL, but I can't remember the sequence that caused it in my 2004 several years ago. It was warm outside, and needed cooling, but not THAT much. I remembered my son's advice for computer-controlled malfunctions: "Power down for a minute or so, then power up again. The computers need to reboot to overcome various anomalies that confuse their control systems, sometimes." I did that, and the system worked perfectly through the rest of the time I owned it. I would have it reviewed for error codes by the dealer, if other responses in this thread haven't proved effective.
where are those heaters located? i did not know that prius has electric heater, i thought that only engine was providing heat.
I love the climate control function in the Prius. My previous car, an 05' Subaru Legacy, only knew two fan speeds, breeze and gale force. Even if the interior temperature was just a couple of degrees off, it would kick into high fan speed. It was a bit spastic, and I always ended up working it manually.
