How good is the air conditioning really?

[Catbiscuits]

So we are in our new Model Y and I can’t say the AC is *that* good. It’s only 80 out but it’s sunny and I’m feeling pretty warm. This may be because my wife likes it hotter than me, but we do have the AC set to 63 on her side and lo on my side, fan set to 8. This should be pretty chilly, but it doesn’t feel like it. Any thoughts?

 

[Raiders]

I went through the same thing a few days ago. It was a little warmer here in California as it was 97 degrees. My AC was blowing lukewarm air and my temperature gauge on my app was jumping all over the place. I did the hard reboot (hold down the brake pedal and press down both scroll wheels until the system completely rebooted). After that my AC has been normal and very effective.....your results may vary, but this worked for me.

 

[MY-Y]

I thought the AC in the MY I test drove last week was a little weak. I had to have it set to 60 with the fan on 8 to feel comfortable and it was only in the mid 80's.

 

[rxlawdude]

I wonder if this is related to the noise in the heat pump attributed to air in the system. Could that decrease the heat pump's efficiency?

 

[PatinCT]

Picked mine up yesterday. Was set to low and I had to figure out how to turn it up (humid in the mid 80's) because I was getting cold. Humid and heat wave coming here. Will report back.

 

[rxlawdude]

Picked mine up yesterday. Was set to low and I had to figure out how to turn it up (humid in the mid 80's) because I was getting cold. Humid and heat wave coming here. Will report back.

Good to know. Not hearing from any folks in the hot regions, the issue of underperforming heat pumps seems to not be widespread. Also, heat pumps thrive on the temperature differential between outside and inside.

I suppose that if the sun is beating down hard on the car but ambient outside temp is 75, it may be hard to get as much cooling compared to a traditional AC. Disclaimer: I've never experienced a heat pump.

 

[Catbiscuits]

WHOA! I should have RTFM and I just did. When you are in the climate control interface you can drag the airflow around to direct it. This has a huge effect, we went from being angry at each other to being much happier.

 

[MY-Y]

Good to know. Not hearing from any folks in the hot regions, the issue of underperforming heat pumps seems to not be widespread. Also, heat pumps thrive on the temperature differential between outside and inside.

I suppose that if the sun is beating down hard on the car but ambient outside temp is 75, it may be hard to get as much cooling compared to a traditional AC. Disclaimer: I've never experienced a heat pump.

In general, a heat pump and an AC are the same thing when running AC. The only difference between the two is a reversing valve that allows the system swap the evaporator (cold) and condenser (hot) functions.

 

[rxlawdude]

In general, a heat pump and an AC are the same thing when running AC. The only difference between the two is a reversing valve that allows the system swap the evaporator (cold) and condenser (hot) functions.

Thanks. And glad @Catbiscuits above found it was just the airflow, not the temp.

 

[Graffi]

So we are in our new Model Y and I can’t say the AC is *that* good. It’s only 80 out but it’s sunny and I’m feeling pretty warm. This may be because my wife likes it hotter than me, but we do have the AC set to 63 on her side and lo on my side, fan set to 8. This should be pretty chilly, but it doesn’t feel like it. Any thoughts?

When we first got our MS we went through the same think. We were used to ICE A/C that blows out 40*f air until the inside cools down. On our first visit to the Service Center I told the service tech that something is wrong with A/C. He told me that it only cools down to the temp I set it for, so does not blow out 40*f air, only 72*f air when that is what I set it for. Maybe this is what you are feeling with the MY. Just a thought.

 

[Dennisis]

Good to know. Not hearing from any folks in the hot regions, the issue of underperforming heat pumps seems to not be widespread. Also, heat pumps thrive on the temperature differential between outside and inside.

I suppose that if the sun is beating down hard on the car but ambient outside temp is 75, it may be hard to get as much cooling compared to a traditional AC. Disclaimer: I've never experienced a heat pump.

I'm in Tucson, temps over 100 and the AC works great, no issues - my wife has me direct it so it doesn't blow directly on her in fact. I had my windows and roof tinted of course, which definitely helps. Without any tint the AC would have a tougher job...

 

[Matsayz]

Seems like the OP figured it out, didn’t realize he/she could control the air direction via the fan button.

I will say that here in Las Vegas our Model Y has been pretty dang good in these triple digit temps lately. These cars (both 3 & Y) get very loud (outside of the car) when the A/C is doing work, don’t be concerned. I will say adding quality tint on all the windows will
make a world of a difference too. We might add some to the roof glass soon.

 

[Georgia_Y]

When we first got our MS we went through the same think. We were used to ICE A/C that blows out 40*f air until the inside cools down. On our first visit to the Service Center I told the service tech that something is wrong with A/C. He told me that it only cools down to the temp I set it for, so does not blow out 40*f air, only 72*f air when that is what I set it for. Maybe this is what you are feeling with the MY. Just a thought.

I would call bs on that as that violates the laws of thermodynamics.

Also, this is what the air temp is for mine with it being 90F outside and the AC set to 72F. It took roughly 3 minutes for it start blowing air this cold.

 

[eladts]

So we are in our new Model Y and I can’t say the AC is *that* good. It’s only 80 out but it’s sunny and I’m feeling pretty warm. This may be because my wife likes it hotter than me, but we do have the AC set to 63 on her side and lo on my side, fan set to 8. This should be pretty chilly, but it doesn’t feel like it. Any thoughts?

Don't try to outsmart the system. Set the temperature you want (I use 20°C / 68℉ year round) and set the climate control to auto. If its is very hot or very cold outside, use the app to precondition the car for several minutes before you enter it.

 

[LasVegas2019]

I went through the same thing a few days ago. It was a little warmer here in California as it was 97 degrees. My AC was blowing lukewarm air and my temperature gauge on my app was jumping all over the place. I did the hard reboot (hold down the brake pedal and press down both scroll wheels until the system completely rebooted). After that my AC has been normal and very effective.....your results may vary, but this worked for me.

What is difference between hard and soft reboot. Does a hard erase all your driver settings?

 

[Matsayz]

What is difference between hard and soft reboot. Does a hard erase all your driver settings?

Pretty sure the soft vs hard reboot was debunked. The brake pedal is not needed from what I read. Just press and hold the steering wheel buttons until the screen goes black then release them

 

[empiredown]

It’s already quite warm in central Texas and our HVAC has worked without a glitch since day one. You’ll definitely be more comfy if you direct the air and just set the temp you want and let Auto do the rest.

We found covering up the roof with a shade and hunting out the shade in the p-lots really making a difference. It’s fine while driving (Climate set to 72 for us), but when static you can only fight Mom Nature so much...

Except in the extremes, which you’re only going to find in the extreme places, the heat pump (if working as designed) is going to perform great. Just buy in...

ß

 

[qdeathstar]

I would call bs on that as that violates the laws of thermodynamics.

Also, this is what the air temp is for mine with it being 90F outside and the AC set to 72F. It took roughly 3 minutes for it start blowing air this cold.

View attachment 554016

ok science guy.

 

[Catbiscuits]

I would call bs on that as that violates the laws of thermodynamics.

Also, this is what the air temp is for mine with it being 90F outside and the AC set to 72F. It took roughly 3 minutes for it start blowing air this cold.

View attachment 554016

Since I created that thread, I will derail it completely now. How good is that thermometer, how high does it go, and who makes it? I had one that I used for cooking pizza on the Big Green Egg (up to 850F) but I left it outside in a rainstorm and it's trashed now. I need a new one and with all the false reviews on Amazon am having a hard time finding one. It's got to be able to read HOT readings though, ideally to 1000F or at least 900F.

 

[Georgia_Y]

It ranges from 50F to 1050F and has a distance to spot ratio of 12:1 (12” distance measures 1” area). Not sure how accurate it is at the top end as I’ve used it mostly for hvac and electronics.