Front defroster in Model-3 not working

[tayzela]

I just took delivery of a new Model 3 in september. I live in seattle. I drove it out yesterday at night, in the cold and rain, and the front windshield got fogged up. Switching on the front windshield defroster did not have any affect. It was really dangerous driving at night with a front defroster not working.

Any body else having this problem?

 

[Big Earl]

If you press the defrost button once, it will turn blue and do cool air to the windshield. If you press it again, it will turn red and supply hot air to the windshield. Hot is more effective than cool.

Also make sure you don't have it on recirculate or have the air conditioning turned off. It can't dehumidify with the air conditioning off and recirculate will cause moisture to build up in the cabin. I've found automatic mode works very well for maintaining good visibility.

 

[R1Fast]

If you want to extend range and avoid AC, you can also just crack the window(s) with the heater on.

 

[Big Earl]

If you want to extend range and avoid AC, you can also just crack the window(s) with the heater on.

Considering how much air that sucks through the car and the additional heat it'll require, I don't think it's going to save much energy compared to the minimal consumption from the compressor. But it's certainly an option.

 

[coleAK]

I also find the front defroster dosnt work great. I have “fixed” it by leaving the “hot” defrost on all the time to try and prevent frosting in the first place.

Also I would guess that the heat uses more electricity than the AC but could be wrong. But I can say for sure not being able to see and crashing would limit range much more than running the AC or heat in order to see out.

 

[Big Earl]

I also find the front defroster dosnt work great. I have “fixed” it by leaving the “hot” defrost on all the time to try and prevent frosting in the first place.

Also I would guess that the heat uses more electricity than the AC but could be wrong. But I can say for sure not being able to see and crashing would limit range much more than running the AC or heat in order to see out.

Do you have problems with fogging in automatic climate mode?

Heat can use up to 6 kW, while air conditioning uses about 2-3 at max power. The system will adjust both automatically for best performance and comfort.

 

[coleAK]

Do you have problems with fogging in automatic climate mode?

Heat can use up to 6 kW, while air conditioning uses about 2-3 at max power. The system will adjust both automatically for best performance and comfort.

Over the last 2+weeks It’s been single digits (F) here most mornings when I leave the heated garage and 20-30F when I head home. I’ve sort of tried all the settings. What seems to work best is going in turn heat on to the defrosters and floor (arrows up and down) set to 72F. Then when I go home pre heat the car and turn just front defroster to heat. What I have found in messing with settings is I can get the front and rear but the side windows don’t defrost all that well. I think part of it is just the difference in how the heating system works in the EV compared to a ICE and I need to get used to the change.

I’ll try the auto to see if I was doing it correctly.

 

[Big Earl]

Over the last 2+weeks It’s been single digits (F) here most mornings when I leave the heated garage and 20-30F when I head home. I’ve sort of tried all the settings. What seems to work best is going in turn heat on to the defrosters and floor (arrows up and down) set to 72F. Then when I go home pre heat the car and turn just front defroster to heat. What I have found in messing with settings is I can get the front and rear but the side windows don’t defrost all that well. I think part of it is just the difference in how the heating system works in the EV compared to a ICE and I need to get used to the change.

I’ll try the auto to see if I was doing it correctly.

What fan speed(s) do you typically use?

In all but the most extreme conditions (which Alaska might qualify as), manual settings are often less effective than automatic.

 

[coleAK]

What fan speed(s) do you typically use?

In all but the most extreme conditions (which Alaska might qualify as), manual settings are often less effective than automatic.

Fan at ~5ish. Thanks for the advice I’ll give auto a try for the next few days. I feel like in general the model 3 dosn’t hold the heat in well.

 

[coleAK]

So I kept the climate on auto all day yesterday and it worked great! It wasn’t as cold though lowest I noticed was 17 and it got up to 32F. No fog on the windshield at all. Thanks for the tip.

 

[Cindil]

I just took delivery of a new Model 3 in september. I live in seattle. I drove it out yesterday at night, in the cold and rain, and the front windshield got fogged up. Switching on the front windshield defroster did not have any affect. It was really dangerous driving at night with a front defroster not working.

Any body else having this problem?

I live in Florida and have the same problem. I thought it was user error, that I just couldn't find the sweet spot to defrost my windshield. I will try some of these recommendations!