Solar powered moonroof Impressions

My solar fans are working great - its the remote AC that I have yet to get to work. I've tried to engage it at a variety of distances from the car, but it doesn't go on. Is there more to it than just pressing the button on the fob?

 

Maggie, The manual says to "press and hold for .8 seconds". Try holding the button down a little longer. And 2 presses will turn OFF the AC. I'm still waiting for my car, so thats just "book learnin", I dont have any experience.

 

I have a sizeable electric cooler on the back seat. I put blue ice in it in the morning for my juices, lunch salads, and even canned food I don't want getting too hot. It's also great for bringing home frozen food from the market. So I don't want the interior of the car getting too hot and affecting my cooler, even though I keep a thick towel over it.

 

I got mine to work last Summer. had to hold the button down about a sec.

 

Check the manual as the remote aircon will not start if the battery is low, if the temp setting is minimum, the aircon is not already set to run ........

Also it does have a limited range for operation, about 40 seconds at the pace I walk and it stops as soon as I unlock the door or hatch.

And further mine always goes into recirc mode which I really hate. But at least the solar roof powered fan keeps running after the 3 minutes so any cooling air in the system seems to keep flowing for a bit longer. also the solar system and open moonroof do not stop it from activating.

Last weekend i used it several times as we were saying farewell before leaving ( one of those long drawn out farewells when people keep talking) and I just kept pressing the button every three minutes and went through about three cycles. When we got in the car it was very cool.

 

It REALLY REALLY works!

If you have the $$, and you live in a hot climate for a significant part of the year, then HECK YEAH it's worth it! I've driven my black moonroof solar paneled 2010 in tampa FLA since 10/10. The days are now 92 and I'm too forgetful to hit the remote a/c button 99 percent of the time. (the keyless entry system has me lazy now about digging keys out of my purse) And guess what?? No solar blast furnace when you open the door! EVER! Sure its warm, but not much different than the outside temp.

My friend and I were at the mall, and we threw some of the bags in the back seat of her car before riding to a restaurant in mine. She opened the door of her car, and it was like being punched in the face with a blast of heat. Instant sweating. When we were getting into mine, she opened the door and braced herself for the heat to come, and then sat down in the seat with a bewildered look on her face... she couldnt figure out what was missing, but knew something was weird. I innocently asked her "do you think this solar paneled cooling system works or is it just hype?" She was in disbelief. lol It was a black car on black pavement in full sun, for 4 hours, in 95 degree weather, about 70 percent humidity. :flameowered up the car, the a/c kicked on, and by the time we were at the stop light, the car was cool. The car was not but a couple of degrees more than the ambient air. I've never noticed anything close to a double digit difference. If there were, I'd be breaking out into a sweat when i get in the car, like everybody else does here in florida... Ive never had issues with ANYTHING being too hot to touch after letting it "bake" for hours at a time. MAKE SURE you keep the sliding door closed on the moonroof though. It's kinda unfair to expect the car to be very cool with a 4ft square ray of fla sunshine beating in on it...

I'm TOTALLY glad, nay, proud, i invested in this option. it REALLY REALLY works! And when the moonroof is open, people say it looks really cool. Affects the mpg tho- i drop by abt 8mpg. Because it's ON TOP of the roof rather than inside it, it acts like a giant wind sail. Small price to pay for such a nice, big, beautifully functioning moonroof.

(and, truth be told, i'm relieved it works... i bought it on faith alone- not really much hard evidence on the blogs when i ordered it. and my friends were VERY skeptical! now, when we drive, they like to ride in my car during the hot weather, because they know they wont be sweating their butt off when we get back in the car from wherever we go!) :rockon:

ps- turning the a/c on max cold before you exit it will help the car cool down if you want to use the remote a/c. it only turns on to your last temperature settings.

 

Re: It REALLY REALLY works!

I couldn't agree with you more, I love this featrue, especially now that it is starting to turn hot in our area. The only problem is they need to improve the on-off switch since I find it hard to know when it is on or off.

 

Re: It REALLY REALLY works!

What I did to make that easier was take a small piece of yellow label tape and stick it to the bottom of the switch opening so it shows when the switch is in (on) and doesn't show when it's out (off). It makes it obvious now whether it's on or off.

 

I probably wont use the sunroof that much. However, in the Atlanta summer heat, the solar fan makes a huge difference.

 

One thing to keep in mind pictone, if you open the moon roof (vent option) and turn the solar vent option, that may help the cooling I wold still search out any shade if available...

 

I do not know... solar roof on a black car versus getting a white or silver car w/o the solar roof might be a wash. I own a silver car with 3m Crystalline window tint (highest UV and IR protection) plus I use the form-fitting HeatShield windshield sun shade and my car interior stays comfortable here in Atlanta. And I have to park in a zero-shade area.

I don't argue that I'd like to have the solar roof if it was more affordable but for the money that Toyota wants for it I think its cheaper and equally effective to just get a lighter colored car and great window tint.

 

I wonder how much difference the car color makes if you get the solar option, since the roof is not the car color with the solar roof package, except a very narrow strip where the radio antenna is and above the window on the liftgate. The whole rest of the roof is glass, either moonroof or solar panel, and the same color on all cars. I doubt the color difference on the rest of the car (hood, doors, bumpers) makes as much difference on the interior temp. The roof color and the glass area are the bigger factors, I'd think. Incidentally, I got the Winter Grey, and the solar roof is almost a stealth option with this color, the solar roof color almost matches the paint color. The solar and moonroof are very obvious on a Blizzard Pearl car, but almost invisible on Winter Grey.

I've got the solar option, but it's too early in the summer to really know how effective it will be (I didn't have the car last summer). I haven't seen enough hot weather yet this year. I have had the solar fan on though, and it's very noticeable, both the air from the vents if I get in the car, and you can even hear the fan running from outside the car without opening the car, around the air inlet by the passenger side wiper. It seems like it's going to be effective enough that I'll be glad I bought it.

Without the solar option, I think the car color will make more difference, but there's still a lot of glass area that will collect heat with any paint color.

 

Re: It REALLY REALLY works!

Totally agree about the remote A/C being useless if you are not using it since you either don't remember or can't fish out your remote in time to make it worth while.

However I do think, rather I know, that the indoor temp is hotter than you think. I placed a indoor/outdoor thermometer in mine that records the both the highest and lowest temps recorded over 24hr cycles. I've seen as high as 125f over the winter here in south Texas.

I'm not saying this is a worthy feature because I do think and feel that it does work but I know it doesn't keep indoor temps at ambient air or even just a few degrees above. But the diff between 125f and say 150f or higher would feel HUGE to humans. The later is what they say can and does kill us when trapped in a car.

FWIW

 

I don't have a solar sunroof, but would like to ask if MPGs are higher because of the solar roof? My impression is that the a/c would not cycle on as much.

 

The solar sunroof could reduce the initial cooling load by starting at a lower temperature. It would be a small gain, offset somewhat by the higher weight and reduced aerodynamics of the PV array.

Tom

 

Tom, Thanks. I assumed a driver could keep the a/c off using only the solar fan and roof venting, but I did not considered the additional roof weight and aerodynamics. Of course, the solar fan would probably not be enough for extrememly hot, humid days. Just thinking of MPG opportunities. I think I regret not having this option.

 

I could be mistaken, but I believe the solar fan will not operate when the vehicle is running. It is only for parked ventilation.

Tom

 

Tom,
You are correct. The solar fan stops once you are in the car and press the power start button. You also have to turn the solar fan button on prior to pressing the power start to off to have the fan come on once you leave the car. As you probably already know the fan only uses the power from the solar panel.

 

I just moved to southern CA from Ft Lauderdale, Fl and I think the Solar panel is invaluable.
Besides the limited comfort value it offers while your car is parked in the sun on a hot day here is the difference. By helping the interior not become as hot as it would have otherwise, the life of the dashboard, upholstery, and other cabin components are extended. This alone probably makes up for the added cost of this feature.
The remote AC, once you get into the habit of remembering to use it,combined with the solar panel, makes a striking difference entering the car once it has been baking in the sun on a hot day. You can actually grab the steering wheel without grimacing in pain.
To me the Moon roof is just icing on the cake. A really cool feature on a moonlit night and not to mention the added resale it brings to the car.