Solar Roof Vs 5 PM Sun

I can post an experience today as well as some observations I made the other day washing the car in the morning (before full sun).

This afternoon - 109°F ambient temp in Sun City West, AZ visiting a relative. HeatShield up, car parked east. 5:01pm and solar fan was still operating. 10-15 minutes later, I activated remote A/C as we were ready to leave, let it run about 30 seconds before we got in the car (kids got impatient). Noted the interior ambient was about exterior temp, if not just slightly cooler. FAR better than any blast furnace it would have been w/o either feature (even w/ heat shield). It was just enough to take that edge off and wasn't such a huge battery hit that it would severely affect MPG.

In the early AM, we've all noted the fan will make odd noises as the voltage is just not high enough to star the fan (kinda like a farting or moaning sound from the air handler). I suspect we reach that point at some point in the evening as well. My family observed this at about 7:30am this morning in SoCal, and I've observed it on partially cloudy mornings around 8am.

On a different note - obstructions make all the difference for remote A/C. I've been within the spec distance and attempted to activate remote A/C only to not get it turned on as other cars were in the way of the signal. IMHO, a stronger transmitter and/or receiver would be highly desirable in this instance. Anyone have any ideas on a higher gain antenna? By the time I am close enough, it won't have enough time to run anyway.

Another remote A/C story: I used remote A/C earlier today on our way back from CA to AZ. The older kids and I had stopped at a rest area to use the bathroom. My sleeping-ish wife and infant stayed behind (no more than 5-10 min). The girls took much longer than anticipated, so rather than letting my wife roast, I activated remote A/C from where I was standing. The only reason I hadn't left the car running this particular time was because the XM receiver was acting up (no signal lock) and I wanted to power cycle the car to reset it. Interesting side note, my wife attempted to get out of the car (she saw my wait start to turn into panic w/ the older girls - only one available stall) with the system active and set off the RS3200 alarm ;-) Either way, she appreciated the blast of cool air - and we noticed that when the system isn't fighting a hot interior, the run time could be much higher.

 

Prius III or IV - but most regions are only ordering SR w/ the IV. AZ region can get either.

 

It'll beep as if you locked the car. The lights will also flash.

 

It'll beep as if you locked the car. The lights will also flash.