A/C seems wimpy

My experience has been like Jim's - the A/C is very effective even on very hot days (high 90's)

 

Mine seemed to be whimpy at first but I discovered the button on the dash in which the light must be off (supposedly provides more AC towards the rear seats). Also only use the upper vents in your selection and recirculate only. Make sure the vents are pointed properly so you can feel the AC.

Maybe mine got better the more I used it but it seems to be fine after 3 months

 

Definitely something wrong, it's 28C (82F) ambient here today, probably +40C (104F) inside the car and I set mine to 21C (70F) and on "fast" the car was cooled within a couple of minutes, and the fan slowed down to

-40F !, crikey frostbite or what. Should be around +25F (-4C) at the vents

 

It is a little slow on both of mine to cool down a hot car but those are my expectations with a hybrid so I do not consider this a serious issue yet. Still evaluating the AC at this time.

eco mode only!

 

Tilde (~) often used online to express that the following value is approximate, but depending on font, size, and eyesight could be misconstrued as a negative sign. The statement was that the air leaving the vent should be somewhere around +40°F.

The S-Flow button, which has an icon with a boxed X, indicates that the air flow is being directed mainly to the driver or front passengers. I've found that the fan speed in this mode is severely limited even with a hot interior. I got better response when it was off, even when leaving eco on. The reverse, turning eco off but leaving s-flow on, wasn't as comfortable.

 

Coolness is something which can be a bit subjective, and preferences personal or by habit or opinion. In my Dad's car he'd have 2 middle and RH airvents pointed at his face - with only one other vent (Mum's) pointing at her in the front passenger's seat. Which probably suited her as she'd have a cardigan on anyway. And when Dad got cool enough after his Arctic blast, he'd flick the A/C onto low fan or off.

But I'd get in to drive it, and, while the driver's face was COLD, the car itself was actually quite hot. So I'd turn both middle vents toward the back, and put the direction split to both face and feet, turn the fan on full, and the cool air would penetrate right through the cabin - slower than freezing the driver's face under Dad's regime, but I felt much more comfortable overall. And much better if there were more people in the car.

We had a warmer day today (80F) so when I got into it parked in the sun, I had the A/C on for the first time seriously. I had S-FLOW set to only the Driver's face - it cooled my face down fairly well, but I ended up turning it to both my face and feet which was more comfortable overall.

I'd be interested to see if overall it felt more comfortable to have S-FLOW set to blow to all positions in the car rather than just the driver on HOT summer days.

 

Maximizing the flow to the rear seat area is what I did. Light on the button needs to be off all the time.

 

If you direct the two centre vents up towards the temp sensor near the front interior light, the fan slows, fools the car into thinking it's cooler than it is (pointless I know).

 

I never use the "Auto Cool" button. I prefer to adjust my own fan speed & temp. I also keep the vents on face/floor so some cool air will get back to the hybrid battery vent. There's 2 air tubes under the passenger seat. I'm careful to not block them with stuff.

I guess my Prius gets cool enough. But not "Arctic" like my Camry.

 

I'll have to try the A/C if it ever gets hot enough.

 

The key is allowing flow to the rear seats. It might seem counterintuitive, but it works. Every day when I leave work it's 100 degrees, usually more. With the driver priority on, I'll get sweaty. Allowing AC to all the vents cools the car down quickly and keeps it comfortable.

 

I've now changed my mind about the AC in the Prius after a week with it on, and relatively high temperatures here in the UK (between 75F and 90F) - originally, I also felt it was wimpy compared to previous cars I've owned.

However, it actually does a rather splendid job of keeping the interior and occupants cooled down, even on the hottest days.

 

Good to know. I point my vents straight back and slightly towards the passengers.

 

My car (and house) thermometer showed 92 yesterday. And over 100 a few days ago. I'm melting. I hate driving with the windows down because of all the noise and dust coming in. I paid $27K for that Prius, so I'm darn sure gonna use the AC.

 

Shop it goes. Eh!

 

Has anyone actually measured the temp coming out of the vents? If the temp is really 65, as indicated, I'll eat my hat!

I wonder how "cooled seats" would feel... Like 2 eggs in the refrigerator?

 

I measured the temperature with a household thermometer (and got frostbite for my troubles.)
With the A/C control set to 15C (59F) I measured the air coming out of the vent at 11.2C (52F).

Enjoy your meal!

 

Impossible! If my AC was really putting out 52 degrees, I'd have icicles on my bald head!

 

You need to take it to the dealer Monday and see how long they can keep it. The Lemon law is 10 Days for the same issue in Fl.

Then they can give you one that the AC works.

 

What was the ambient temperature at the time? And temperature inside the car (or were the doors open?