Idiggplants

hi folks... a couple things have me curious about the heater in my 2006. its the fancy one with auto option... first question... when i click auto... it almost always turns on the a/c... is that normal? even if it is 50° in the truck and the temp is set for 72°... ... a/c comes on when i move from any other mode into auto.

second question on heat output... i like the idea of just keeping it on auto temp... but is it like a thermostat in your house? if it is 30° outside and i start the truck with it set to 72°, will it blow full on hot air till it gets close to 72°? or would the cab warm up faster if i set it to max temp, and then turn it back down to 72°?

basically im so used to the simple dial controls... get in the car cold, turn everything to max.

i also miss the days when cars werent "smarter" than you and know when you do and dont want recirculation on. new cars dont let you defrost with recirc on, cause defrost is apparently only for condensation. those of us in cold states know that recirc and defrost melts ice a lot faster. ohh well.

elricfate

Yes, that's normal. Auto should take a minute to calibrate and read the internal temp, once it's done that it will then create a "heating" or "cooling" plan for the cabin.

Additionally, on cold startups (especially during the winter), it will take a minute or two before it will blow hot as the engine warms. Basically once your engine goes to a normal idle, the heat should start blowing. It will update the fan speed so that it heats the cab within ten minutes. You can, instead, set it manually on high and recirculate, but it expects you to let the truck warm up before you start using it, when set to auto.

Idiggplants

ok cool. so just to be clear, if im cruising along with the heat on feet for a while, and switch it to auto... although it says a/c, it will switch it off after it comes up with the plan?

but for cold starts, if i want warmth to the cabin quickly, its best to override auto because it prioritizes the engine over the cabin temp?

and i edited my first post... i dont have dual zone... but i have a fancier version than a standard would have.

elricfate

Yea, it will still say A/C even if it's spitting out heat in Auto.

You might get a little bit of heat by manually setting it in the morning when you turn on a cold truck, but I don't think you're going to get immediate hot air. It doesn't take long for it to generate a heating or cooling curve based on the internal cabin temp.

Idiggplants

but it is definitely not using the a/c? unless it actually needs to cool the cabin, which it shouldnt if it is cold out.

i know that i wont get hot air if the heater core isnt warmed up, and i know engine needs to warm up enough to get the coolant flowing past the thermostat, etc etc... but really, im just wondering if you have it set to auto at say 72°, will it heat that cabin up as quickly as if you crank it all the way up? like... if its at 32° and it needs to go up 40 deg to get to 72, will it pump heat out all out at the most efficient fan speed, or would i see higher cabin temps if i do a manual override and tell it to go full fan, full heat? will the auto wait till the heater core gets fully up to temp? in that case, the time it is only slightly warm is wasted when the air could be slightly warmed...

i know this is a silly discussion,a nd i could probably figure it out over time, i just figured someone else might have input out there. no one likes a 20° truck first thing in the am!

elricfate

Not silly, really.

I've found that Auto is a far more gentle affair than my own manual settings. If I have it set to Auto and 76, it will only hit about medium fan speed no matter how much my engine has warmed up.

srb1194

I have the same system in my truck. In temperatures below 60 I'll hit the AC button to turn it off. I've found that it saves fuel. It's a great system to by the way.