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> I don't understand how so many people have come across cars with seemingly terrible auto AC systems. > Whenever I rent a car it's always infuriating having t

> I don't understand how so many people have come across cars with seemingly terrible auto AC systems. > Whenever I rent a car it's always infuriating having to constantly muck with the AC system. Am I missing something or do these not make sense together?

vel0city 3y ago
I guess I should have phrased it as "chosen to own cars with seemingly terrible AC systems". Theromostatic controls are pretty cheap to implement, its not like you'd need some high-end extreme luxury car to have that feature be normal. If the AC controls are on a touchscreen, chances are they're auto. If they're auto, you probably shouldn't have to mess with them at all while moving.
- dzikimarian 3y ago
  You need at least sun direction, temperature and humidity sensors and reasonable software behind them to have good automatic AC. Basic thermostat is somewhere in center console, which doesn't help much if your chest is blasted with sun. Also temperature you feel is different depending on humidity.
  - vel0city 3y ago
    I live in North Texas. I guarantee you we get a lot of days with intense radiant heat. Both of my cars have glass roofs. Previously they had sunroofs. Lots of sunlight in the cabin. I haven't had issues with automatic AC in decades in cars that aren't exactly luxury cars. It is a solved problem for at least every brand of car I've owned.
    - fastasucan 3y ago
      This explains why you are content with automatic AC. When you live with fost and snow many months a year you get a need to adjust the AC while you drive.
      - vel0city 3y ago
        It snows in Texas. I wake up with many mornings of frosted windows and several week stretches below freezing. I still don't need to adjust my AC other than pressing "defrost" at the start and pressing it again later when its all melted. I'm 100% for a physical defrost button as things related to visibility should absolutely be physical, but that's not really a part of regular AC settings. I'm still not adjusting the overall temp or vent activation or compressor on or off, I'm just setting it to max defrost and turning that off when it's done. Even when I drive to places where its below freezing every day, I'm still just leaving it on auto AC other than defrosting. Why would I need to adjust the AC while I drive when its snowing outside of defrosting? The AC can automatically adjust itself. People say auto AC can't possibly work when its hot and sunny. People say auto AC can't possibly work when its cold out. And yet every car I've had for over 20 years of model years with auto AC has worked perfectly fine at 0F and at 110F.

vel0city 3y ago

I guess I should have phrased it as "chosen to own cars with seemingly terrible AC systems". Theromostatic controls are pretty cheap to implement, its not like you'd need some high-end extreme luxury car to have that feature be normal. If the AC controls are on a touchscreen, chances are they're auto. If they're auto, you probably shouldn't have to mess with them at all while moving.

dzikimarian 3y ago
You need at least sun direction, temperature and humidity sensors and reasonable software behind them to have good automatic AC. Basic thermostat is somewhere in center console, which doesn't help much if your chest is blasted with sun. Also temperature you feel is different depending on humidity.
- vel0city 3y ago
  I live in North Texas. I guarantee you we get a lot of days with intense radiant heat. Both of my cars have glass roofs. Previously they had sunroofs. Lots of sunlight in the cabin. I haven't had issues with automatic AC in decades in cars that aren't exactly luxury cars. It is a solved problem for at least every brand of car I've owned.
  - fastasucan 3y ago
    This explains why you are content with automatic AC. When you live with fost and snow many months a year you get a need to adjust the AC while you drive.
    - vel0city 3y ago
      It snows in Texas. I wake up with many mornings of frosted windows and several week stretches below freezing. I still don't need to adjust my AC other than pressing "defrost" at the start and pressing it again later when its all melted. I'm 100% for a physical defrost button as things related to visibility should absolutely be physical, but that's not really a part of regular AC settings. I'm still not adjusting the overall temp or vent activation or compressor on or off, I'm just setting it to max defrost and turning that off when it's done. Even when I drive to places where its below freezing every day, I'm still just leaving it on auto AC other than defrosting. Why would I need to adjust the AC while I drive when its snowing outside of defrosting? The AC can automatically adjust itself. People say auto AC can't possibly work when its hot and sunny. People say auto AC can't possibly work when its cold out. And yet every car I've had for over 20 years of model years with auto AC has worked perfectly fine at 0F and at 110F.