A/C defaults to recirculate?

Search ALL forums for the term "recirc" and it will bring up several previous threads on the topic. I did not read all, but in what I just saw, there was no definitive solution to re-program the A/C system to do what you want.

 

Recirc does bring in fresh air. It's not 100% recirc, it's more like 80%.

 

No that is not an option that can be changed.

Push ONE button. Really inconvenient. ?????

 

Guessing there is a nicer way to say it.

 

Is there a way, if the system's off, to turn it back on with whatever settings you had previously? I think not, but not sure.

With our previous Honda, if you pushed the fan speed up or down, it'd "wake it up" with previous settings restored.

IIRC with our 3rd gen doing that just puts it in auto mode with fan speed locked, not that useful.

 

I think that's exactly what it does.

 

No, 2 buttons.

The problem for circulating most of the air within the cabin is that I have already started to smell rancid air from the vent. After some researching, it looks to me that the human perspiration will condense inside the A/C ducts and cause rancid smell. Fresh air from the outside can prevent it.

No way. I've tried that. The computer always recalculate to recirculate the air to save a drop or two gasoline.

 

"Nice" is over-rated.

Mine has ONE button that controls re-circulation.
Push-ON; push-off.
What other button do you think is necessary ??

Well I'll be. Learn something new every day.
What self appointed Internet expert came up with that earth shattering research ??

I think it is MUCH more likely to be mold spores growing on the evaporator and drain tray, which stays moist almost all the time.
Using fresh air will help some but not much.

Turning the A/C OFF and turning the recirc OFF and leaving the vent fan ON before turning the car off will help a lot more; but to be effective that has to be done maybe 5 to 10 minutes before stopping.......and it gets downright uncomfortable in that time.

 

My car is just the opposite. Is the Prime different from the regular Prius that most of us drive? In my gas-guzzling old fashion 2016 model, I like using the Recirc button so as to not be sucking in so much dust & dirt. I leave it on constantly.

But every time I start the car, it reverts back to the "open vents" mode. Using "auto" doesn't change that. So I have to waste a whole 1.5 seconds, and reach over and hit the Recirc button. 1.5 SECONDS that I will never get back! GONE.

 

"Climate" then the recirculating icon

 

Interesting theory. That's a lonely despairing road.

 

So, there is no "on with previous settings" button. Your sole recourse if the system's off, is to push "Auto", and accordingly dismiss any and all overrides.

Seems a little odd, and Toyota's not alone in this, that such a fundamental option is not available. Something for @Prius Team ?

Again, with Honda's, at least our last, if the system's off and you push fan speed up (or down, I believe), it turns things on with your previous settings. Even this seems quirky, a sort of obscure Easter Egg function.

 

Oops. Sorry. Forgot about the "touch screen" controls.
But those icons are really close together, right ?

No it isn't.
A really lot of people fully understand that everything doesn't have to be sugar coated.
And not everybody has to feel like "a winner" all the time either.

Just out of curiosity, how old are you ?
My bet is under 35.

In general, you should NOT use recirc when heat is required.
That can often make the windows fog over.......really bad and really quickly.

 

That's true, but in Colorado it's only humid enough for that to happen about 5% of the time I need heat. The rest of the time, recirc provides enough fresh air to keep the windows clear.

 

Sure but that 5% can be really annoying.

I learned that lesson the hard way when the temp was about 10 F and the outside of the windows were heavily frosted over.

Started the car, turned the blower on high, set it to heat and recirc.
Took the scraper and attacked the windows.
By the time that was done, ALL of the inside windows were now frosted over........except tiny little patches by the defroster vents.

 

Auto AC defaults to recirc to bring the temp down quickly when it's first turned on. My problem with recirc is it gets stuffy in the car really fast with so little fresh air. I only use recirc for short bursts - like when I'm getting coal-rolled or a truck is spewing heavy black diesel exhaust. But then I never use Auto AC and I'm also in an old outdated 2014 regular Prius....

What irritates me is the AC turning on when I use the super cabin pollen filtration. After I hunt around to find that button on that infernal flying butt-ress, I have to then search for the AC button. Very distracting when driving... I put little self-adhesive rubber bumpers on each button to make them easier to find without looking. But as I get older, I forget which button is which.

 

And yet, I had it on recirc for my entire 1,450 mile trip with four people in the car last week, without noticing any air quality problems.

 

Hmmm, wonder if something isn't quite right in one of our cars. After a few minutes on recirc, I notice a distinct increase in breathing difficulty. Like High CO2 or low O2. and the humidity jumps up too. But maybe it's just me, I can't be in the house when the wife lights one of those smelly candles. Airwick freshener? Worse than waterboarding.