Auto AC is weak when it is hot outside

[MakinDoForNow]

I do AC for a living, the 15-20F delta is true, but not to outside air. That number gets thrown around a lot and misunderstood. That's the delta from the intake on the blower. A proper running comfort cooling system will run space temp minus 15 to 20, depending on humidity, coming out the vents. But thats for buildings, not vehicles.

Automotive AC has a couple more nuances, its more a refrigerator than an air conditioner from my observations, and has to maintain that 15-20 cabin to supply delta with hot fresh air being introduced, so the math changes a bit. If you could measure the actual air temp entering the evap coil, It might be a 40-70F delta T on a vehicle. To achieve this they are massively oversized for the volume of air they move, which works well to cool down a hot car. A properly sized unit for a refer box or a house would take hours to do that on a space as hot as a car.

Many years ago I was told an automobile AC could cool a 1600-1800 square ft house. Never ran the numbers.....

Sponsored

 

[Cherokee]

Oh and the’Dual Zone’ climate thing is freakin hilarious.
I mean it’s the passenger seat right next to you.
Ummm In the SAME CABIN !

But guess that impresses the Youngers.
WTH

 

[Ryom]

Oh and the’Dual Zone’ climate thing is freakin hilarious.
I mean it’s the passenger seat right next to you.
Ummm In the SAME CABIN !

But guess that impresses the Youngers.
WTH

I had a co-worker with Raynaud's syndrome who would absolutely cook everyone out of the vehicle. Dual climate was a life-saver.

 

[Cherokee]

I tend to freeze people.
:’P

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Many years ago I was told an automobile AC could cool a 1600-1800 square ft house. Never ran the numbers.....

I cant find a good btu or kw rating for our truck, but I bet thats close.

 

[Dave O]

I live in Florida and the cabin temperature in my Maverick resembles a meat locker

 

[Backin15]

I drove across Texas in August in a black SUV with a glass roof. Driving at night became the preferred way to travel.

 

[HawRiverBtewer]

FWIW I live in a hot, mildly humid climate. It is regularly 90F and 75% humidity in the summer mornings, 100F and closer to 50-60% in the afternoon. My XL works great on auto mode, I usually use 2 bars on the auto but on the days less than 80 I do one bar. I'll need 3 bars for a few minutes after parking in the Texas sun all afternoon. I'm not some weirdo who likes it warm either, I like it cold. I sleep in a 68F refrigerated bedroom.

If you think your ac is lacking, try going from ECO to Normal. I found out early on that ECO and Texas summers do not mix. The hybrid AC royally sucks when set to ECO, temp still climbing on 3 bars and it feels terrible with the sun beating down on the truck.

I believe you are correct. I have a 24 Lariat hybrid and was quite dissatisfied with the AC performance. The dealer also told me that it was functioning normally. When in ECO mode it performs quite differently from normal mode.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

I believe you are correct. I have a 24 Lariat hybrid and was quite dissatisfied with the AC performance. The dealer also told me that it was functioning normally. When in ECO mode it performs quite differently from normal mode.

2-4 minutes on max cool (also initiates max fan) then turn max cool off returning to auto 2 or 3 speed auto setting.

Sponsored