Little vent after one year of ownership

[AlexLou1222]

Hi everyone, has anyone live in a hot area and feel the AC is weak?
If the car is parked in garage, the AC is cold to the point my hands are freezing but once it get into Vegas 100+ heat, after the car sit in the sun for a while, the AC just doesn't cool my interior enough. I had to put it on Max AC and it's just barely cold, and for the life of me I can't adjust the air vents to blow strong air to my face!
Same with my friends X5M and another X5, they both complain the AC is not cold enough.
Even my Kia does a better job of keep me from sweating, and today driving a 528i loaner got me so jealous of the cold AC that actually blows right at my face!

[sbash]

Be sure rear climate is turned off in vehicle settings. It blows much harder when only directed to the front.

[kanvas]

Yep, A/C is a joke. I'm freezing my tail off in my 2005 Lexus RX330. I think the weakest air setting in the RX330 still blows more air than in strongest air setting in the X5!

[Bibendum]

Yep. Total joke. Especially if black/black. Heat continues to radiate from roof also.

[Hammmerhead]

Like said above, having the rear on really cuts it back and I have to deal with it having a kid in the rear. My old '13 had a little more gusto even with the rear on. I was concerned about the new platforms smallish front vents, but figured the output would be the same and the side vents near the window don't do much of anything. The vented seats feel like seat heaters unless the cabin has cooled. Sadly, my Jeep Wrangler has a lot more output.

On another note, I think the Krauts just got the hottest summer on record. Maybe the pencil pushers will will do something about it. And for heavens sake, put an AC output tube near the seat fans.

[AlexLou1222]

I have my rear on, maybe I should try to turn it off and see if it's better, but it's just hard to imagine I can't get comfortable in a 100k+ 'luxury' car!

[zero4]

Yeah the AC totally sucks in our cars. What I also noticed in my car is that the driver side front vent is weaker than the passenger side.

[Luca42]

"Little vent"? Ahh. I see what you did there!

(Or perhaps, NOT )

I agree. Sometimes it helps to shut the sunroof shade too. If not, it never seems to get cool.

I hate to have the fans at full blast for long. I have no issues with the ventilated seats. I find that they get cool quickly and work effectively.

[atxgt3]

The AC seems OK to me, but the ventilated seats don't seem to do much.

[tastelid]

vent seats are basically anti-sweat tech for me. seems to work fine for those expectations.

[Ryngo]

Yea the ventilated seats suck. And agree on the a/c.

[P1]

The A/C in my F15 works great. I'm in Texas, and have black exterior with nappa mocha interior. On 60F with the rear A/C blowing, I'm being frozen out like a popsicle.

Agree that the ventilated seats don't cool, but rather just blow...

[AlexLou1222]

Well, turning off the rear does help a little. I never expect this though, as all my previous BMW don't do that since they had 4 zone climate controls? Still, wouldnt expect this in a 100k car, what if I got people riding in the back in a 110+ heat! :/

[tastelid]

Originally Posted by AlexLou1222

Well, turning off the rear does help a little. I never expect this though, as all my previous BMW don't do that since they had 4 zone climate controls? Still, wouldnt expect this in a 100k car, what if I got people riding in the back in a 110+ heat! :/

Then it's one of the few days per year that it gets that hot!

What if I'm driving on the surface of the sun? My AC won't keep up!

[Luca42]

Originally Posted by tastelid

Then it's one of the few days per year that it gets that hot!

What if I'm driving on the surface of the sun? My AC won't keep up!

Have some sympathy. OP is from Vegas.

If you've been there in August, you know it gets as hot as the surface of Mercury!

[TheQ]

uggh this is not want I want to hear.....its hot in Texas.

[Hammmerhead]

No fanboy here. I call it like I see it.

The AC is very marginal is high heat areas. You add a crap load of humidity and it really knocks the AC unit in the head.

High temps are bad, you add the high dew point with it and everyone wont be happy.

[arrivederci]

Good to know - thanks for the heads up. A few other data points...

2013 E70 X5d - same issue
2016 F31 328d wagon - same issue

Flaw in BMW design? Do the cooled seats help at all?

[atxgt3]

Originally Posted by arrivederci

Good to know - thanks for the heads up. A few other data points...

2013 E70 X5d - same issue
2016 F31 328d wagon - same issue

Flaw in BMW design? Do the cooled seats help at all?

The cooled seats do absolutely nothing. I barely even feel that they're on. Horrible design.

My E92 M3 A/C blows really cold even after 56k miles! No complaints there. Much better than the X5M, but then again the tint I have on it is much darker, and it's a smaller car.

[Mahmood07]

I probably live in the hottest place out of everyone (120F in summer and feels like 150F with the humidity), and I don't think the AC is that weak. It's no lexus, but trust me it's better than lots of cars.

At first I had the same problem as everyone, and thought the AC was weak. But you have to switch off the Rear AC to cool down in the front. Plus, I think the issue is not with the AC, but somehow heat enters the cabin and hangs around in the top portion of the interior. I also notice when I take hard turns that this hot air moves around the cabin.

So on really hot days I drive a bit with the sunroof and windows open to let this hot air escape, then the AC does fine.

I compared my AC with our new Range Rover and a G-class back to back, and the X5 is much better. My E92 M3 has a much better AC though, but that's probably because its a small cabin.

[gizmo958]

maybe tinting the pano glass further will reduce the heat or perhaps a beter sort of tint. although ive never had this issue , would assume this could help

[Sotally Tober]

Originally Posted by Mahmood07

I probably live in the hottest place out of everyone (120F in summer and feels like 150F with the humidity), and I don't think the AC is that weak. It's no lexus, but trust me it's better than lots of cars.

At first I had the same problem as everyone, and thought the AC was weak. But you have to switch off the Rear AC to cool down in the front. Plus, I think the issue is not with the AC, but somehow heat enters the cabin and hangs around in the top portion of the interior. I also notice when I take hard turns that this hot air moves around the cabin.

So on really hot days I drive a bit with the sunroof and windows open to let this hot air escape, then the AC does fine.

I compared my AC with our new Range Rover and a G-class back to back, and the X5 is much better. My E92 M3 has a much better AC though, but that's probably because its a small cabin.

Mahmood07 is not kidding when it comes to the heat in Bahrain...