My husband told me to "read my manual" when I asked him this one. He said it like he knew the answer but wants me to be well informed. I am against this on principle. I cook, therefore car answers should be delivered to me in a dumbed down version. So if anyone could please dumb this down for me I'd appreciate it... Does the remote A/C work the same in cold weather as it does in hot weather? It's pretty hot this summer, so I have the temperature set to a comfortable cool temp and the car is considerably cooler when I enter. So, in the winter, if I have the temperature set at a warm temp, will it heat for me while I am clearing snow off the windows? I do not have the remote start option, and am wondering if I will even need it. And if it does work this way, will it pick up defrost if I leave the car set to defrost before exiting? Please don't make me read the manual... I read through page 79 and then went to clean the toilets for fun.
My understanding is it will run at the last temperature setting you shut the car off with. If your in close proximity and hit the a/c button and the battery has enough juice it will rUn for 3 minutes. Let someone confirm
It will not work the other way around. It will not heat your car, only cool it. Try and turn it up to 80 and use the remote AC. It will not work.
I was teasing, Nora. Anyone knowing the answer is smarter than me in this. I would never insult them. I'm quite happy to have found this forum. Most people seen pretty happy and upbeat. I'll not make that mistake again.
Nora, I read the post and wasn't insulted in the least. Your use of the phrase "the rest of us" segregates forum newcomers from who? Time-pressed techies? Humorless tree huggers?
Remote AC is one thing, but there is a remote start option which can start the car when you are outside the car. It is about $600.
Sorry, Trina. I guess I was feeling crabby. Welcome to the forum, and I hope you enjoy your car! Nora Humorless Treehugger
Your AC is electric, so it can operate on battery power alone, which is what happens when you turn it on, remotely. When the bat runs low, the ac stops. It never turns on the engine. Heat, on the other hand, requires the engine. There is no electric heat in the Prius. The remote ac button will not work to provide heat.
Drive to northern canada and try it. Then let us know. Seems like no ones for sure. I have the remote and seems to me if the auto temp button is set it will either cool or warm the car. I havent had my car long enough to know.
+1 When I made the choice of what level Prius to buy, the automatic A/C option seemed nice, but once I learned that HEAT needs the motor, the remote starter for $800 (what I was charged) was a better deal than $1,500 or more for a trim level that gave me the lesser feature.
