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Old 11-20-2008, 07:17 PM   #1
RobM
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2015 WRX

Default Not at all happy with the automatic climate control

$*#&! climate control .... honestly has only two useful settings: hot / cold.

Unlike my former '08 Impreza 2.5i, with a manual adjustable heat control, the automatic climate control has no fine-adjustment on heat, at all, in either my '09 STI, or my wife's '09 F-XT.

If I turn the temperature knob to minimum, it blows cool outside air. Even one click warmer than the minimum setting, and it's blowing hot air. There's no in-between. Cold, or hot... why even bother having a selectable range from 20 - 30 degrees, when 20 = HOT.

If it's, say, a couple degrees above freezing, and you only need a little bit of warmth added to the air, good luck! Either you get direct outside cold air, (minimum), or way too hot air (anything above minimum). Turning on the A/C does no good, because it doesn't operate when the outside air is only a few degrees above freezing.

I have found the only time it actually works more-or-less as advertised, is during highway driving, when there is more fresh outside air blowing through the vents to cool the hot air down enough to make it merely "warm".

Grrrrr!
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Old 11-20-2008, 08:29 PM   #2
disaster999
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tank it back to the dealer?
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Old 11-20-2008, 08:34 PM   #3
tux121
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Same here, mines doesn't have an in between for some reason either. I can never get the temp I want that is most comfortable. So my new theory is to open the window 1/4 way down during winter and blast the freakin heat XD
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Old 11-20-2008, 08:40 PM   #4
forrealsss
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It's not that bad... I usually keep it on the lowest possible heat setting during the winter and then leave it on automatic for the summer. You can always just put the fan on really low in either setting.
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Old 11-20-2008, 08:41 PM   #5
whoosh
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i had it on the 2005 3.or

it takes 15 to 20 minutes to even out.

it all has to do with the sensor in the climate control system.


the air in the cabin doesn't get to it quick enough.


a couple of years ago a fxt owner put a small computer fan in the dashboard and it worked as it should.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:32 PM   #6
surowrxa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by forrealsss View Post
You can always just put the fan on really low in either setting.
Same here. Except every time you turn it on for heat, you have to hit A/C off also.

Getting used to it, but in the Legacy (coming from 2005 WRX) the climate control/radio interface has the ease of use comparable to eating with chopsticks while hanging upside down. Awkward to say the least.
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Old 11-20-2008, 09:50 PM   #7
10-56
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Read the manual?

If I put on Defrost/Floor + Auto + ~23 = Perfect temperature
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:10 PM   #8
STirocket
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 10-56 View Post
Read the manual?

If I put on Defrost/Floor + Auto + ~23 = Perfect temperature
Yeah... I set mine like the manual suggested and haven't changed it in 3 1/2 years and it works perfectly. The only thing I change is the temp control if it's a little too warm in the summer....
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:14 PM   #9
RobM
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Turning the fan speed off AUTO, and to low speed, just means it blows the "too-hot" air less quickly than before. Still too hot.

I'd much rather have it calibrated for 15C - 25C, than for 20C - 30C. Who the heck would ever want the temperature to be at or above 25C, anyway??? Friggen sauna.

I wonder if it's possible to change the calibration.
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:43 PM   #10
novacivic
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the reason it blows too warm or too cold is because it will automatically switch between warm and cold air to get the in cabin temp to where the dial is set. it has a sensor to tell what temp the air is inside the car. say you set it at 60f and its 20f outside, it will blow hot air until the in cabin temp reaches 60 then the air coming from the vents will cool down. then if it will fluctuate between warm and cold in order to maintain the temp where it was set to.
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Old 11-20-2008, 10:59 PM   #11
curiousfish
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^^^+1 exactly!
So for those short city style driving, it wont work out that great. If the cabin is cold, and the temp knob is just switched to lets say 25, the car will try to get to 25 ASAP, so the air coming in wont feel like 25. Therefore, in the beginning, it doesnt really matter if the temp knob is at 25 or 30, it's gonna blow out hot air.
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Old 11-21-2008, 12:14 AM   #12
Prevent
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my auto climates work wonders, i have a hot a medium and a cold. and everything in between woot!
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Old 11-21-2008, 12:38 AM   #13
industrial
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The climate control on my new 08 STI sucks compared to the one on my 04. I've noticed the same things the OP has and it's pretty annoying.

Even on long drives I have to crack a window here and there because on the 08 is either HOT or COLD. I'm hoping maybe the climate system settles in some or I find some magic setting but so far I've had no luck and I'm considering taking it in to the dealer to have them check it out. It's like I'm on my 2002 wrx again with no automatic climate control. I have to micromanage the temperature constantly and it's really annoying because the system worked fine on my 2004 sti.
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Old 11-21-2008, 10:18 AM   #14
curiousfish
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there is a way to kind of "reset" the thing, but not sure exactly what I'm resetting. I read a while ago something along the lines of: turn key to "on" position, press and hold the "recirc" button, wait for it to blink a couple of times.
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Old 11-24-2008, 10:27 AM   #15
Leadfoot77
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I probably just need to review the owner's manual but I can't figure out how to turn it OFF... in my 08 STi I put the two left knobs to OFF and have played around with the right one (the temperature setting) but it seems like no matter what when it's cold out it get raging hot in the cabin.
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Old 11-24-2008, 04:45 PM   #16
mapleleaf
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I never use auto.
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Old 11-24-2008, 07:54 PM   #17
Eyedoc Orlando
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RTFM people.
If you HOLD the button for A/C it will blink, thus making it fully automatic.
If you HOLD the button for recirculate it will blink, thus making it fully automatic.

Now all you need to do is set the temperature. I find that mine works extremely well in my 2007 2.5i SE. The only thing I have to occasionally do is tell it not to run the A/C when its abut 50F outside and unnecessary, but that's just one quick press. Otherwise it performs flawlessly and keeps me nicely warmed or cooled as I like especially on the highway.
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Old 11-24-2008, 08:48 PM   #18
ejicon
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I've never used Auto... serves me right..
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Old 11-24-2008, 08:59 PM   #19
marcmtb35
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Peaty has a fix on scooby mods, as there is a problem. There is an issue with the way the temp. sensor reads. It's annoying and many people experience this problem of getting blasted with heat, until it's almost unbearable.
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Old 11-24-2008, 10:18 PM   #20
honeybadger
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I also noticed that on most auto climate controls it will simply blast the max cold air until it hits the target temp and then turn off... and cycle the max cold again.
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Old 11-24-2008, 11:54 PM   #21
roobaroo
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Unhappy Subaru should give it up.

Reading some of the stories here, it seems to me that Subaru should just give up completely on their automatic climate control system. They need to re-design it to actually work, or just don't offer it. Luckily, the '08 OBS has manual controls. My better half has an '01 LL Bean Outback and the climate control is absolutely horrible in it, and has been since she bought it at 30k miles. Too hot, too cold, sensing seems to creep in one direction or another, etc. It even seems to vary whether you're driving uphill or downhill. Completely screwed up.

If I didn't know how good auto climate control can be, I'd think it was just the nature of the beast. But I used to have a '93 Saab CSE Turbo with nearly perfect auto climate control. I could drive the car a month (OK, maybe only in the winter) without ever even thinking about the climate control, never mind touching it. It would wait until the heater core was warm before ramping up the fan, and pretty much do everything necessary to maintain a nice, even temp. In a snowstorm, I might have to use the defroster or something, but other than that, one click up or down under some unusual circumstance every once in a great while would do it.

My guess is, Subaru's automatic climate control has contributed to more than a little bit of road rage.
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Old 11-25-2008, 02:38 AM   #22
forrealsss
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RobM View Post
Turning the fan speed off AUTO, and to low speed, just means it blows the "too-hot" air less quickly than before. Still too hot.

I'd much rather have it calibrated for 15C - 25C, than for 20C - 30C. Who the heck would ever want the temperature to be at or above 25C, anyway??? Friggen sauna.

I wonder if it's possible to change the calibration.
It's not that damn hot. In the winter I do this:
Fan on "auto"
Windshield/floor
Temp set to 18º C
Drive.

The 30ºC setting is for the A/C since in some places (where I live) it can reach 48ºC in the summer and not everyone wants the air being blasted at them to be that cold i.e. old people.

P.S. I LOVE my automatic climate control. It works perfectly for me.
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Old 11-25-2008, 07:34 AM   #23
Jack
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My wife has an 08 base Outback with the far, far superior manual system.

I have an 08 LGT with the bothersome automatic climate control.

I'll live with it but told the dealer and responded in the survey that I'd rather have the non-manual climate control ....... and personally, I'd rather have the option of no sunroof. I'd pay extra to delete these 2 options.

With my wife's car, we were able to do this, since the base Outback has no sunroof and no auto climate control. We traded an Outback LTD (02....which also had manual climate control).

jack
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Old 11-25-2008, 09:09 AM   #24
conker69
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Quote:
Originally Posted by STirocket View Post
Yeah... I set mine like the manual suggested and haven't changed it in 3 1/2 years and it works perfectly. The only thing I change is the temp control if it's a little too warm in the summer....
Same here. I set in per the manual and have not changed it yet minus the few times I needed to quickly defrost the windshield.

I suggest reading the owners manual.
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Old 11-25-2008, 07:26 PM   #25
RobM
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This past weekend, I set my STI, (and my wife's F-XT) as the manual suggests, and it's still too hot, until about 30 minutes into driving, and then it seems to even out.

I park my vehicle outside, and maybe that makes a difference. It must take the sensor a long time to warm up. Certainly a lot longer than it takes for me to warm up.

Next time either vehicle goes in for service, I'll see if they can take a look at it.
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