After stating that the ECO mode throws out ice cold air rather than 77degree air, on a trip today in 90 degree temps I noticed that the A/C was not all that cold. I finally kicked off the ECO to cool down for a while. When I got to my destination and started back home I noticed that the light was off on the recirculation button. I kicked it back on and I noticed that the A/C was ice cold again.

I've never noticed this before and don't really know if it's related?


Another interesting thing, I had a truck cross center line on me and I went off the edge of the road onto the gravel and back onto the blacktop. Not really a problem but it kicked my A/C off????

 

I've been using the A/C in ECO -set to 74 degrees in Tucson...daytime highs have been 95+...

What I do, is start with recirc off (had it changed to allow manual control by the dealer). If i find that it is getting warm in the car, which it sometims does, I switch to recirc fora few minutes and it gets nice and cool right away, still in ECO.

 

Is there any advantages to leaving or taking out of recirculate?

 

I believe when the outside air is above 90 or 95, the recirc will have an easier time cooling the already cooled inside air, rather than trying to cool air that is 95 degrees at the intake. I prefer the outside air, rather than recirc, wheni can, as it is fresher smelling, and doesn't letthe cat start to smell stale inside. this may not apply in areas with high outside humidity, however.

 

Recirc is absolutely a big factor in A/C cooling performance. This is not just in the TCH, but any car. Even many American cars without a button called "recirc" use this method when Max A/C is selected. This way, the system is only cooling the air that has already been cooled and dehumidified before. The higher the outside temp and/or humidity, the more difference recirc vs. fresh will make. My comments earlier about the ice cold A/C output of the TCH were all with the system in recirc mode. I have not used it for an extended period in fresh mode.

 

My comments earlier about the ice cold A/C output of the TCH were all with the system in recirc mode. I have not used it for an extended period in fresh mode.

Well it was my first time out of recirc and I couldn't believe the difference. I know why many were complaining of the ECO not cooling well. I have not noticed any smell or feeling of "less fresh" air so I'll leave it in recirc AND ECO mode

 

The AC in my TCH is by far the best AC I have had in a car since the demise or R-12 freon. This is the first car I have had to turn the temp up becasue the AC was too cold. I run ECO mode with recirc on all the time temp set to 72 and it cools the car quick and is very comfortable after it cools it down. One thing I have found on all my cars is tinted windows helps dramatically in a car's ability to cool the cabin. Since moving to ATL 14 years ago every car I owned has been tinted and it makes a huge difference!

 

I run with the A/C in recirc during the day or when in traffic to prevent the exhaust fumes from other vehicles entering the cabin. About the only time I use outside air is in the early mornings traveling down the interstate or open road.

Still need the A/C on in the mornings here due to the high humidity even with the temperature in the mid seventys. I find the car stays comfortable and cools down quickly even in eco mode at 95+ degrees. Usually have my side set around 72 when the sun is out.

 

This has happened to me at least twice. The first time a piece of debris from a weed-eater flew up and hit my car somewhere low on the driver's side. As soon as it hit (and it wasn't anything big - maybe a small piece of mulch... just a light thunk) my A/C went off - at least I think it went off. I immediately noticed that it wasn't cooling and the air was coming out of the lower vents, the ones that are usually used with the heater. Second time this happened is when I hit a small bump in the road. Exact same thing happened.

 

I've been noticing this a lot lately. I think my AC has a mind of its own. Mine kicks off or changes the settings (recirculate, ECO mode, etc) with no reason -- i haven't noticed it happen when hitting bumps in the road. Also, yesterday I noticed that no matter how hard I tried I could not turn the ECO mode on. What gives???


It hasn't really been a problem yet, i don't like it to be too cold, but i would just like to know why it does what it does.