Why is fan running when car is parked both in garage and outside?

[MSP2023]

I live in SoFl and I don't have a dog.

Lately, I noticed when my car is parked in the driveway and I approach it to drive I hear the fan running. I did not hear it turn on as I approached it. I didn't think much of it at the time.

On another occasion, I went in the garage, no BT key in hand or phone, I hear the fan running.

Does anyone know if this is set by default to clear the ac system of stagnant air to eliminate the moisture build up? I remember there were some complaints about this and there was talk that they would keep the fan running for a while after car is parked.

I wonder if this is a "feature" in one of the recent updates since I don't recall this occuring before.

Thanks for any feedback.

 

[Resist]

Like with all modern vehicles, there are systems that will occasionally run when conditions dictate it. But in your case how do you know it was the AC fan that was running? Did you check the app to see? The car will run the pump to cool or heat the battery pack when it senses certain temperatures.

 

[MSP2023]

Good point Resist. I did not consider to check if it was the ac or not. But, I do recall the fan running when the car was in the garage and it was not driven recent to that instance so if it was cooling the battery I wonder why.

 

[Matsayz]

As the other person said, the car will cool itself when needed. If the battery is too warm it’ll cool off. If you’ve got Cabin over-heat protection turned on the car will run the A/C when the interior temp reaches 105*F (doesn’t happen if the battery is 20% or lower). Don’t worry about it draining the battery too much or try to stop it which I don’t think you’d be able to anyway.

You live in South Florida...it’s hot as balls so yeah the car is gonna run the fans to usually keep the battery within spec. Luckily, EV’s generally prefer a warmer temp than cooler so you’re good to go

 

[MSP2023]

As the other person said, the car will cool itself when needed. If the battery is too warm it’ll cool off. If you’ve got Cabin over-heat protection turned on the car will run the A/C when the interior temp reaches 105*F (doesn’t happen if the battery is 20% or lower). Don’t worry about it draining the battery too much or try to stop it which I don’t think you’d be able to anyway.

You live in South Florida...it’s hot as balls so yeah the car is gonna run the fans to usually keep the battery within spec. Luckily, EV’s generally prefer a warmer temp than cooler so you’re good to go

Thanks 4d FYI Matsayz

 

[Jefferson5436]

Certainly related to this post: is there a climate threshold where it’s too hot to be good for the battery? I live in TX and we’re planning on purchasing a Tesla (probably similar heat conditions as OP). Summers in TX can be atrocious as I’m sure they are in Florida. Our garage is not insulated and doesn’t have AC, it’s not a well ventilated garage so it can get toasty for about 5+ months of TX summer. Would this be a bad environment for a Tesla? Would you suggest just leaving the garage door open to let in some air? As in the case of the OP, I’d imagine that the fans would be running constantly in the summer if it were in the garage (but I have no way of knowing).

 

[pl8dlikafiddle]

Two things:

Cabin over heat protection as others have said (highly likely when it’s parked under the sun). Tesla also added measures to dry the HVAC evaporator coil after being driven.

Mine is garaged, and it runs the fan after a drive even when it is 65F. Usually starts 15-30min after the drive.

 

[Matsayz]

Certainly related to this post: is there a climate threshold where it’s too hot to be good for the battery? I live in TX and we’re planning on purchasing a Tesla (probably similar heat conditions as OP). Summers in TX can be atrocious as I’m sure they are in Florida. Our garage is not insulated and doesn’t have AC, it’s not a well ventilated garage so it can get toasty for about 5+ months of TX summer. Would this be a bad environment for a Tesla? Would you suggest just leaving the garage door open to let in some air? As in the case of the OP, I’d imagine that the fans would be running constantly in the summer if it were in the garage (but I have no way of knowing).

Id have to read the manual but just as regular gas cars are tested in extreme temps hot/cold so are EV’s. I live in Vegas and everything’s been fine.

 

[KG M3]

Tesla also added measures to dry the HVAC evaporator coil after being driven.[/QUOTE]

This is most likely what you are hearing in the couple of hours after a drive. Tesla did a good job in reducing the humidity in the AC evaporator (after driving) to eliminate the musty odors that can develop.

 

[Rico275]

Has anyone had issues with climate control since latest 2020.12.11software update..no heat and climate control failure when pre heating/cooling?

 

[SlimJim]

Tesla also added measures to dry the HVAC evaporator coil after being driven.

Awesome. No other car manufacture can solve a problem via OTA.

 

[CertLive]

Awesome. No other car manufacture can solve a problem via OTA.

Yes and it is still like that 8 years on.. ahead of the game.

 

[Jdcorbitt3]

My 3 is doing this now. Garage temperature 85° F, and the outside fan was running. It seems the only to stop it is to pen the door, or plug it in. I feel my electric bill has gone up considerably over the past 6 months. During which time, we sold our S and are driving the 3 less.

 

[pl8dlikafiddle]

My 3 is doing this now. Garage temperature 85° F, and the outside fan was running. It seems the only to stop it is to pen the door, or plug it in. I feel my electric bill has gone up considerably over the past 6 months. During which time, we sold our S and are driving the 3 less.

Let it run its course. If you stop it by opening the door and causing the AC to run, it’ll cycle again after a few minutes.

To be honest, the power draw from running the hvac blower fan is no greater than a couple of ceiling fans. The compressor isn’t running during the evaporator coil drying cycle after a drive.

Our power bill is up as well routinely by 20-25%. It’s strictly the heat and the home AC not being set back during the day (compared to pre-COVID) since I’m now working from home.

Car is only taking in 100-125 kWh per month more versus approximately 450 kWh per month.

 

[Gasaraki]

Certainly related to this post: is there a climate threshold where it’s too hot to be good for the battery? I live in TX and we’re planning on purchasing a Tesla (probably similar heat conditions as OP). Summers in TX can be atrocious as I’m sure they are in Florida. Our garage is not insulated and doesn’t have AC, it’s not a well ventilated garage so it can get toasty for about 5+ months of TX summer. Would this be a bad environment for a Tesla? Would you suggest just leaving the garage door open to let in some air? As in the case of the OP, I’d imagine that the fans would be running constantly in the summer if it were in the garage (but I have no way of knowing).

120F+ ambient temp maybe? If your garage is over 120F+, you might want to vent it a little... You add the hot ambient and then the temp increase from the batteries, the Tesla will just throttle the speed. Some idiot drove his Model X in death valley on 130F+ day and it throttled his speed to 68 mph.

 

[Les236]

I am on 2021.4.12. Since 2021.4.3 I have had a lot of vampire drain. In Feb, I went from 90% to 55% in 16 days. In March from 70 to 50 in 10 days. The ambient temperature in my garage is 70 degrees, and when I go out to the garage I often hear the fan running, sometimes it's the A/C and I know this when I open the car door and it is cool inside, so I turned the A/C off. Cabin Overheat is off, Sentry mode is off, Summon is off, A/C is off and I even use the "Power Off" to turn it off, yet the fan keeps coming on doing something and of course causing major vampire drain. It does go off after a while, but I am not sure why it keeps coming on. I have had some versions of the software where the drain was very low, and others with it very high. I am not driving but every few days, and the key is not near the car or on me when I go to the garage, so not sure why this is happening. Any ideas? Anyone else having this issue?

 

[deskofjk]

I have a similar experience. I've found the fan running inside the car while parked, both in my garage and out on the street. This has happened in warm weather and in mild temps (70F ish). I park the car with the windows down in the garage and can reach my hand in feel air blowing inside the cabin. This can't be good for battery life. Why is it doing this?

 

[Matsayz]

I have a similar experience. I've found the fan running inside the car while parked, both in my garage and out on the street. This has happened in warm weather and in mild temps (70F ish). I park the car with the windows down in the garage and can reach my hand in feel air blowing inside the cabin. This can't be good for battery life. Why is it doing this?

Completely normal. The air it's pushing inside the cabin is either the Cabin Overheat Protection (if you've got it turned on), this is an ambient air thing to keep temps below 105F(or 110F?) or if you found the air blowing shortly after parking it's to get rid of the moisture build up from running the air conditioning.

And btw the cabin overheat protection is for people and your comfort when getting into the car, the screen and interior bits can totes handle high temps without this "feature" so no worries there either.