Okay here's my beef. It's 10 degrees outside and I have the temperature set to 80 degrees. When I get to my destination the car reminds me to use a more moderate temperature. A more moderate temperature it's 10 degrees outside. It is cold outside. I get out my car and say whatever. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
trust me, you'd have to drive a thousand miles to get to 80 in a toyota. i have always found that you have to crank up the temp to get things going, then crank it way don to cool it down, then try to find middle ground. toyota temp settings don't work that well, imo. disregard screen messages, they are intended for those looking for mpg help
I set mine for 77 year round. On the rare times I go to the great white north in winter, I think I run it at about 70. I'll adjust if needed to keep the windshield clear. But that's all for the sake of keeping the battery (or my wife if she's in the car) happy. I have coats and jackets to keep me happy.
Driving a regular Prius, I've found during warm-up the engine will be MUCH more willing to shut down, and MUCH sooner, if you've set the cabin temperature lower, and/or switch the vent system right off at red lights. It's maybe counterintuitive, but when it's winter, getting into a stone-cold car and setting cabin temp to something like 65F is a big step up. Setting it to 80F is imposing an extreme demand, delaying warm-up. Also, when the car's computer sees such a high cabin temp setting, it'll intentionally delay engine shut down, race the cabin fan.
@bisco is correct about "you'd have to drive a thousand miles to get to 80 in a toyota". Whether you set your temp at 80 or 70, there is not going to be much difference in the final cabin temp reached or how quickly it warms up. I don't know about other Toyota or Prius, but this is absolutely true for PRIME with a very inefficient heat pump in extreme cold temp. Mine is always set at 70 AUTO when I have AC on, but if there is no frost on my windshield, I usually do not use AC at all. It was 8F this morning, but dewpoint was lower than that, so no frost on my windshield, thus I drove in without AC all the way to work for my 30 min commute. I did have heated seats on High.
Dang that’s warm lol. I’m usually at 72°F for winter and 76-77°F for summer (with A/C and AUTO). If it gets below 0°F, I might bump the temp up to 74°F. My trips are short enough that the automatic climate control is usually at full blast so technically it doesn’t matter what temp I set it since I’ll be warm. Maybe after 30-40 mins is when it’ll matter as the cabin reaches your set temp so if you want it warmer, then you’ll have to use a higher temperature setting.
It's likely that setting 60F and 80F result in the same response when it's 10F outside - full heating. I regularly notice that there's no difference between 74 and 66 on the set point, at least during the first 15 minutes of the drive. On the other hand, if you want some serious heat from a Prime, drain the battery below 80%, and turn it on charge mode the second you get in. I got the car from -12F to comfortable in about 3 minutes that way a year ago. And it was downright hot in 10 minutes.
I don't think the most recent car we had with an automatic HVAC went up to 80. I think it just hit a MAX setting.
However, you have to remember anything under 13 degrees Fahrenheit the engine comes on and runs and you getting the heat from the engine. Once it reaches a normal temperature for me I then know to turn down the temperature and the fan. But when it's 10 degrees out and you in a cold car you need some warmth. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
80°? Does the heater put out more warm air when set high, or is it putting out 100% of what it's got at any setting well above ambient? I think the latter is the case. The heat loss through glass, doors, roof, floor is significant. It isn't insulated like a house or a good down parka. I'd never expect a delta of 70°...10 outside to 80 inside. Most of us would be wearing a very warm hat & coat in any case.
i find if i set it to 72, it never even gets warm. conversely, if i don't turn it way down after it reaches temp, it keeps getting hotter, or won't go down with small downward adjustments. prime may be different
I found when the temp is 30 or so i have to turned the temp down or reduce the fan speed. Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
Seems to me when outside temp is below 20 degrees F the heat pump keeps the windows clear and knocks the edge off the cold cabin. With the seat and steering wheel heaters on it's comfortable enough for me, certainly not at all toasty. When temperatures drop below 10 deg F or especially into the subzero range and the ICE starts the heater works quite well. One thing I like is that the ICE in my prime warms up way way faster then other vehicles I am familiar with sporting typical V6 and V8 engines. Once the engine heat is available I don't see where temperature setting would have much impact on efficiency as on longer cold weather trips the energy monitor shows no power going to the heat pump (apparently does not care about the fan, a small draw anyway) so I dial up the cabin temp to whatever happens to feel good that day and drive.
