Air conditioner compressor and automatic climate control

[vinkalmann]

Sorry if this post is out of place, but I didn't find a suitable forum.

Any time I turn on my automatic climate control, the A/C button lights up. My question is this: Is the compressor actually running? I'm concerned about the reduced fuel economy if it is. I of course understand that it would be running if the temperature I set is lower than the outside temperature. But if I select a temperature higher than the outside temperature, is it constantly running?

Thanks!!

Matt

 

[onikaze]

when you turn on the climate control the AC will cycle on and off so that the inside temp can be maintained at what ever you set it to. believe it or not the AC being on will not hurt your fuel economy much unless its on full blast in hot weather and the car is under high load. however if you are not a believer just turn off the AC. i mostly use the AC during winter. FYI the AC automatically turns on when you use defrost. hope this helps,

 

[nig3]

when you turn on the climate control the AC will cycle on and off so that the inside temp can be maintained at what ever you set it to. believe it or not the AC being on will not hurt your fuel economy much unless its on full blast in hot weather and the car is under high load. however if you are not a believer just turn off the AC. i mostly use the AC during winter. FYI the AC automatically turns on when you use defrost. hope this helps,

wrong. first the ac compressor being on will draw the some power from the engine on low or high, it doesnt mater. and second ive seen test and in magazines and on my car while on the dyno. in my modded wrx i lost 15-20 whp with the AC on, the extra parasitic drag on the motor will cause slightly more gas consumption, some cars are worse than others. if it bothers you just turn the ac button off after the ac has been on and teh fans will keep running, or just turn the whole thing off to be sure. On some cars they are actually set up the shut the AC compressor off if your at full throttle. The MS3 makes so much damn torque the engineers probably didnt worry about it (breakn)

 

[TheMAN]

studies have shown that driving with the A/C down on the highway produces more aerodynamic drag on the vehicle, thus more energy used to maintain speed than when using the A/C

around town/stop and go though, of course having the A/C off will save gas ever so slightly

I hardly ever drive with the windows down anyway..... I don't care about the slight mileage difference it makes because I'm not a cheap ass.... but why do I do this? because driving with the windows down brings dust, pollen, mold, smoke, and other s*** into the car and making the interior nasty.... guess what? I'm too lazy to clean that s*** every few weeks!

 

[aaronc7]

in our car, the compressor will shut off at WOT..so you might lose a little power for a split second, but I've never really noticed a significant difference. If I was at the track or something I would still def. turn it off though

 

[Rotus8]

A/C doesn't always make you slow:
http://www.the-glas-shop.com/vintage.htm

 

[ForceFed]

wrong. first the ac compressor being on will draw the some power from the engine on low or high, it doesnt mater. and second ive seen test and in magazines and on my car while on the dyno. in my modded wrx i lost 15-20 whp with the AC on, the extra parasitic drag on the motor will cause slightly more gas consumption, some cars are worse than others. if it bothers you just turn the ac button off after the ac has been on and teh fans will keep running, or just turn the whole thing off to be sure. On some cars they are actually set up the shut the AC compressor off if your at full throttle. The MS3 makes so much damn torque the engineers probably didnt worry about it (breakn)

+1

 

[SharkDiver]

Just because you turn off the ac button it does not mean the compressor will be turned off.If you set your air flow to the flooror defrost your ac will be on no matter what you do.Most cars are like this now because they want the ac on to get rid of all the humidity in the car.