my 2015 C is new to me. i live in Canada. I have not had a winter with this car yet. How do you keep the ICE running to defrost ice from you windshield ? It seems the engine does not stay on long enough .Does it have something to do with leaving the climate control on "auto" with the heat high ?
Setting the climate control to "front defroster" should keep the engine running. In the winter, running the heater will also keep the engine running. An engine block heater helps warm up the engine faster which will result in heat from the climate control coming out much quicker too.
You set the heater controls for how much heat you need, and the car starts and stops the engine and runs it however much it needs to for the amount of needed heat. It will not necessarily "keep the engine running" all the time, nor is there any need to do so. It will keep running more of the time when you are asking for more heat, or when the outside temperature is lower. The car will do the math and control itself accordingly. There isn't any need to out-think it.
It's got electric PTC heaters in the defroster duct, and it's got the smarts to use them in combination with the gas engine to make heat quickly. Push the defrost button and let it do the work. The c isn't short on winter clearing capacity, but they also aren't instantaneous.
