3 ms·

On that note, my wife either sets to the absolute minimum (60F) or max (80F) and alternates between the two extremes as she inevitably becomes too hot or too c

On that note, my wife either sets to the absolute minimum (60F) or max (80F) and alternates between the two extremes as she inevitably becomes too hot or too cold with one of those settings. I've tried my best to help her understand the insanity of it, but no luck yet. I think it's actually a throwback to the days when there was just red and blue to indicate gradually larger amounts of hot or cold.

porknubbins 5y ago
The alternating all the way is a little insane but I can kind of understand because the old UI of heat or AC level knob is more intuitive . When I first get in a 40F car I don’t want to set it to 72 or whatever I just want max heat I can get as soon a possible while knowing my 72 is meaningless until the engine warms up. I don’t trust my car to use max heat until exactly 72 so I set it all the way to 80 then back off.
- jonny_eh 5y ago
  > I don’t trust my car to use max heat until exactly 72 so I set it all the way to 80 then back off. I've done the same in rentals but have always wondered if that helps. Shouldn't the car try to get the heat to 72 as fast as possible?
  - CorrectHorseBat 5y ago
    Yes, but it's actually not that simple. If it blasts too hard there's the chance it will have to start cooling. I suspect cars use linear control for heating and cooling, it's easy to implement and well understood. In that case it will not use max heat until it reaches the target and turning it to max could get you there faster. It's actually really not a simple problem, look into control theory of you're interested.
- midasuni 5y ago
  Doesn’t it work like your home thermostat for the 80s - heat is on until temperature sensor equals 73, then heat is off until temperature sensor less than 71
  - bluGill 5y ago
    No,there is a flap that mixes outside air with hot air. The fan is always on, depending on how the flap is set you get more hot air mixed in with the outside. The heat side is always hot when the engine is warm, even on the hotest summer days.
throwawayboise 5y ago
My wife does the same thing, with the temp setting but also with the fan speed.

porknubbins 5y ago

The alternating all the way is a little insane but I can kind of understand because the old UI of heat or AC level knob is more intuitive . When I first get in a 40F car I don’t want to set it to 72 or whatever I just want max heat I can get as soon a possible while knowing my 72 is meaningless until the engine warms up. I don’t trust my car to use max heat until exactly 72 so I set it all the way to 80 then back off.

jonny_eh 5y ago
> I don’t trust my car to use max heat until exactly 72 so I set it all the way to 80 then back off. I've done the same in rentals but have always wondered if that helps. Shouldn't the car try to get the heat to 72 as fast as possible?
- CorrectHorseBat 5y ago
  Yes, but it's actually not that simple. If it blasts too hard there's the chance it will have to start cooling. I suspect cars use linear control for heating and cooling, it's easy to implement and well understood. In that case it will not use max heat until it reaches the target and turning it to max could get you there faster. It's actually really not a simple problem, look into control theory of you're interested.
midasuni 5y ago
Doesn’t it work like your home thermostat for the 80s - heat is on until temperature sensor equals 73, then heat is off until temperature sensor less than 71
- bluGill 5y ago
  No,there is a flap that mixes outside air with hot air. The fan is always on, depending on how the flap is set you get more hot air mixed in with the outside. The heat side is always hot when the engine is warm, even on the hotest summer days.

throwawayboise 5y ago

My wife does the same thing, with the temp setting but also with the fan speed.