A/C Useless

[Socal2025]

I just checked mine. There are 3 vent areas: (1) windshield, (2) front and (3) feet. On Auto there seems to be no air coming out of the area 1. Only on Manual I can get air to come to area 1. On Auto there is always a bit of air coming to area 3 and most of the air comes to area 2.

[MtgMaster]

Mine works but think it could be a bit better. Doesn't blow as hard or cold as it should and takes a while to cool down the interior. Yes the settings are right.

And what happened to the rear vents by the door like on the previous model?

Another subject but speaking of cooling; the ventilated seats are dam near completely useless.

Love the truck but cooling is a weak link IMO.

[SpeedN8]

Originally Posted by Bibendum

Anyone else feel like the a/c on the car is useless on hot days? Underwhelmed.

If I'm the only one in the car, I turn off rear air and hit max a/c. You get much more airflow with the rear a/c turned off. It cools the car off super fast. I actually set up a shortcut on one of the memory buttons to quickly turn off rear air. Hope this helps.

[wdimagineer]

Originally Posted by NPickles

Out of interest what parts are you having replaced and why? I assume they will all be under warranty.

Yep, happy all are under warranty. It's my windshield, the trim directly under the windshield (interior) and right headlamp. Oh, and the door lock recall.

The windshield was damaged at the factory or during delivery and has a scratch in my line of sight. There are also some scratches on the trim at the base of the windshield. I have a few additional 'nicks' in my leather dash, but that's major surgery and I can live with them. Someone at the factory or when prepping the car just simply wasn't careful.

The headlamp has an intermittent issue with the LED turn signal. It will flicker at times when activated, instead of a clean on/off pattern. Seems to happen mostly when the headlamps have been on for a bit and the circuits heat up.

Really pleased at such a small list for such a new vehicle.

[MysticBlue]

Originally Posted by USAusi

My AC works fine, but as has been noted earlier, when on Auto, the fan does not run at full speed. If you set the fan speed to manual, you can get A LOT more airflow out of the vents.

worsy already asked. I'll ask again; Have you guys tried pressing the a/c button to cycle through low/medium/high output? (Actually, I don't have an f15 yet, but this is how the rest of the BMW HVAC systems work, so...) This setting adjusts the aggresiveness the a/c works while in auto mode. If it is currently in medium, and you don't think it blows hard enough in auto, cycle it up to high. It will then blow harder in auto to get to whatever temperature setpoint you have entered. In other words, it will still work as a thermostat controlled climate control as long as it is in auto mode, but you can control how fast it will get there, depending on what you select, low, medium or high.

[atomic80]

Have you tried pressing the "Max AC" button? I find that really blows cold air out but the normal "auto" mode is nowhere near powerful enough to cool things down.

[Zipforia]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

Have you guys tried pressing the a/c button to cycle through low/medium/high output?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe F15 has a "low/medium/high" settings on the A/C button. The A/C button just turns the A/C on or off.

Originally Posted by atomic80

Have you tried pressing the "Max AC" button? I find that really blows cold air out but the normal "auto" mode is nowhere near powerful enough to cool things down.

That's just it. Max A/C should be used to quickly cool the cabin down. Not used to maintain cool temperature in the cabin (this is what I believe it should be used for. I suppose everyone has their own idea as to how to use it). Also, using Max A/C is so loud!



The problem isn't finding a solution to circumvent the F15's mediocre HVAC unit. The problem is that some owners find the HAVC unit underpowered when compared to E70 or other vehicles during "normal" use. For that, in short of replacing the whole A/C unit to a more powerful unit, there's no solution. Thus, it leads us back to trying to find a solution to circumvent this issue on a 60k vehicle, which, again, isn't addressing the main problem. So, in short, some of us (myself included) are just griping about the poor choice of A/C unit BMW has used to build the F15.

Z.

[Bibendum]

Again, I go to the engineering specs. Just to remove opinion from the equation.

How long should it take for a mildly heat-soaked car (80 degree day, sunny, outside for 3 hours) to cool to 68 degrees on "max a/c". 5 mins, 10 mins, 15 mins? They design for this sort of stuff, so wondering what the cooling spec is and how it might compare to what is actually going on in our cars and how it might compare...

[MysticBlue]

Originally Posted by Zipforia

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe F15 has a "low/medium/high" settings on the A/C button. The A/C button just turns the A/C on or off.


Z.

I just checked mine... It's actually the "auto" button, not the AC button. Push the auto button and you should be able to cycle through low, medium, and high. The low, medium, and high settings refer to how fast the HVAC system responds to the set temperature while it is in auto. It won't make the system any bigger, or give it more overall capacity, but it might help some tweek the system a little more to their liking.

[SpeedN8]

I just tried again this morning and along with your advice, I uncheck the box in idrive for Rear Climate to get drivers area cooled faster then hit Auto and Sync to return things to normal. I'm completely satisfied with the A/C on the X5. It's just as good if not better than the ones in my previous BMW's.

[sand99]

My only complaint is that it doesn't cover the head/face area well as others have said. Having ceramic tint all around really helps, especially on the panoramic roof.

Agree though that BMW's AC isn't as strong as other auto manufacturers.

[Tommyvee]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

I just checked mine... It's actually the "auto" button, not the AC button. Push the auto button and you should be able to cycle through low, medium, and high. The low, medium, and high settings refer to how fast the HVAC system responds to the set temperature while it is in auto. It won't make the system any bigger, or give it more overall capacity, but it might help some tweek the system a little more to their liking.

This is an awesome tip! We've only had our X5 for a few weeks and I noticed that the system was in auto and that the passenger side intensity was higher that the driver side wondering why, not realizing you could increase the intensity in auto. I believe my 2007 3 Series auto mode worked differently. From the owners manual:

Intensity of the AUTO program
With the AUTO program switched on, automatic
control of the air flow and air distribution
can be adjusted.
Press the left or right side of the button:
decrease or increase the intensity.
The selected intensity is shown on the display
of the automatic climate control.

[Zipforia]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

I just checked mine... It's actually the "auto" button, not the AC button. Push the auto button and you should be able to cycle through low, medium, and high. The low, medium, and high settings refer to how fast the HVAC system responds to the set temperature while it is in auto. It won't make the system any bigger, or give it more overall capacity, but it might help some tweek the system a little more to their liking.

If I'm understanding you correctly, I think you mean the fan speed, right? If so, yes, the F15 can increase the fan speed. There's a fan up/down button next to the Auto button that allows the Auto fan speed to be increased up to 5 increments.

Z.

[drewdogg808]

Great, I was going to post to ask about A/C on the new F15. Been doing research and planning on ordering a new 3.5D for the wife this year. In the past few weeks, every time she is riding with me in my e92 during lunch (temps outside mid 90's), she comments she doesn't think she wants the X5 if the A/C sucks like the M3 (our first BMW). I have it on max A/C and it still does not cool as well as any previous cars we've owned. Even her current 2005 rx330 has colder A/C than my M3.
If temps are below 90, it's not too bad. I think only people who live in the south will know how the heat can be.

[1230vani]

Originally Posted by Zipforia

If I'm understanding you correctly, I think you mean the fan speed, right? If so, yes, the F15 can increase the fan speed. There's a fan up/down button next to the Auto button that allows the Auto fan speed to be increased up to 5 increments.

Z.

All I'm thinking is that I like your signature photo. Looks so good. Gots to have those M50 inlays, ordering tomorrow.

[MysticBlue]

Originally Posted by Zipforia

If I'm understanding you correctly, I think you mean the fan speed, right? If so, yes, the F15 can increase the fan speed. There's a fan up/down button next to the Auto button that allows the Auto fan speed to be increased up to 5 increments.

Z.

No. You don't understand me correctly.
If you change the fan speed, the hvac system is no longer in automatic mode. In automatic mode, you set the temp that you want and it goes there automatically and maintains that temperature automatically by varying the fan speed. If you manually pick a fan speed, it is no longer in auto and it will continue to run at that fan speed regardless of the temp setting you have chosen. Generally, if it's been parked in the sun, when you first start it, it will be hot inside. If you have it set to 70 degrees, and it's in auto mode, when you start it, the fan will run pretty high and as the temp gets closer to 70, the fan speed lowers itself automatically and will try to maintain a temp of 70.
The high, medium, and low settings I am refering to (that you can cycle through by pushing the auto button repeatedly) adjust the aggressiveness with which the system will automatically seek the chosen temperature. The end result of a high setting vs. a low setting, is that the fan will run at a higher rate when you first start the car than it would have if you were set at low, but since it is still in auto mode, the fan will still eventually run at a lower setting as the temp comes down. It just gets there faster.

[buckeyewalt]

I agree the cars of the past got colder and worked better than they do today. That sais, is it possible the non use of freon and the use of a different refrigerent could be some of the problem?

[oskee64]

My observations is that, If you just parked your car under the afternoon sun, Definitely your A/C will have a hard time to cool the metal roof. Since we have a bigger sun/moonroof not enough heat insulation on top. That is why the heads feels warmer that our bodies. Utilize the (MAX AC). But if you just drive out of a covered garage, normal AC works just fine.

[worsy]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

No. You don't understand me correctly.
If you change the fan speed, the hvac system is no longer in automatic mode. In automatic mode, you set the temp that you want and it goes there automatically and maintains that temperature automatically by varying the fan speed. If you manually pick a fan speed, it is no longer in auto and it will continue to run at that fan speed regardless of the temp setting you have chosen. Generally, if it's been parked in the sun, when you first start it, it will be hot inside. If you have it set to 70 degrees, and it's in auto mode, when you start it, the fan will run pretty high and as the temp gets closer to 70, the fan speed lowers itself automatically and will try to maintain a temp of 70.
The high, medium, and low settings I am refering to (that you can cycle through by pushing the auto button repeatedly) adjust the aggressiveness with which the system will automatically seek the chosen temperature. The end result of a high setting vs. a low setting, is that the fan will run at a higher rate when you first start the car than it would have if you were set at low, but since it is still in auto mode, the fan will still eventually run at a lower setting as the temp comes down. It just gets there faster.

^^ This

Actually it says Soft/Medium/Intensive on the E70, but you got my drift . I was playing with it today.

[stewy604]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

No. You don't understand me correctly.
If you change the fan speed, the hvac system is no longer in automatic mode. In automatic mode, you set the temp that you want and it goes there automatically and maintains that temperature automatically by varying the fan speed. If you manually pick a fan speed, it is no longer in auto and it will continue to run at that fan speed regardless of the temp setting you have chosen. Generally, if it's been parked in the sun, when you first start it, it will be hot inside. If you have it set to 70 degrees, and it's in auto mode, when you start it, the fan will run pretty high and as the temp gets closer to 70, the fan speed lowers itself automatically and will try to maintain a temp of 70.
The high, medium, and low settings I am refering to (that you can cycle through by pushing the auto button repeatedly) adjust the aggressiveness with which the system will automatically seek the chosen temperature. The end result of a high setting vs. a low setting, is that the fan will run at a higher rate when you first start the car than it would have if you were set at low, but since it is still in auto mode, the fan will still eventually run at a lower setting as the temp comes down. It just gets there faster.

I've yet to try the different high, medium, and low modes for the auto setting...I didn't know it existed. Small revision to your above comment...you CAN change the fan speed in auto mode, but it narrows the window to 5 settings. I've typically kept it on 2 or 3, seems to work great. That said, on really warm days...turning it up to 4 or 5 will allow the car to cool more quickly.

[Zipforia]

Originally Posted by 1230vani

All I'm thinking is that I like your signature photo. Looks so good. Gots to have those M50 inlays, ordering tomorrow.

Thanks! Can't wait to see yours after you get them. Post pictures!

Z.

[Zipforia]

I'm not sure if F15 has a Low/Med/Fast Auto setting. When I push the Auto button, it just toggles between Auto and Manual. Am I doing something wrong?

Z.