Thinking of buying a new Prius v but had a question about the heating and air condoning system

Yes and yes. No complaints from the amply roomy and environmentally coddled back seaters.

 

Works well even in Texas heat. Warms up quickly also, probably less than 5 minutes. There is some kind of vent under both front seats at foot level. Back seat passengers have not complained. I do have film on the side windows. Toyota added cooling power on the Prius v.

\"Also, the three-outlet, center diffuser in Prius v is designed to allow greater through-cabin ventilation, accommodating the 2nd row and back. The center outlet, in particular, directs air towards the back of the cabin.

"Prius v also uses an intelligent control system for the air conditioning that automatically adjusts for conditions such as outside temperature and sunlight intensity."

 

can't speak for the v, but the gen III seems the same as the gen II to me. which i feel is more than adequate. although, we don't get your heat, we do get a lot more humidity.

 

I've had Toyota cars for 30 years and their AC and heating have always been a bit weak IMHO. Even my wife's Lexus AC is a bit weak in the hotter months.

That being said, so far in 4 months I've been OK with the efficiency of my 2013 Prius systems. Naturally if you're driving at Eco Mode as I do the AC is throttled back somewhat. The heat also takes a bit of time to get rolling and it does give your MPG a pretty big hit. On my normal 6 mile drive to work if I turn on the heat then the EV mode won't come on until 1/2 way to work when normally in the same weather it will go on within 1 mile of the start.

But once it's going, the heat goes pretty evenly throughout the car. I like that all of the head level vents can be completely close to avoid air spillage into one's face.

I have the heated seats as well and boy are they hot. I don't like them but my wife does. I wonder if they are more efficient than running the heat?

 

I own a v in the Mississippi Delta, in the afternoons of summer I have to shift out of ECO mode sometimes to get the full power of the A/C. 9 months of the year I am 100% in ECO.

 

In central NC and run ECO mode 12 months of the year. From 98F to 12F no complaints. HVAC controls easy to use once you grasp the concept of the single rotary switch and I noticed after 15 months and 15k miles I made adjustments the other night without looking (outside temp had changed 60+ degrees in 2 days). Good defrost. Have never elected to use a different vehicle due to HVAC concerns.

I have the fake leather seats but without seat heaters. Seldom found them necessary on prior cars except convertibles I was running top down in the 40s.

 

I find it a bit slow to warm up in cold weather, the block heater would help a lot with this, and the heated seats do also. No complaints about cooling in the desert heat with 20% tint all around.

 

I like mine. Have no complaints. I use the heated seats before I use the heater. If really cold I will use both.

 

Be alert to who responded about the Prius v you asked about, and who had some other Prius.

 

I wish there was a Mode that only directed air to the windshield. The nearest Mode splits it between windshield and heat, down by your feet. To deal with serious fogging your only other option is the hells-a-popping front windshield defog button, which forces AC on ;(

(Just realized this is Prius v forum. I'm thinking of regular Prius Hatchback, maybe the same vent options?)

 

Same design and behavior on the Prius v... and on the Honda CR-V.

 

I like both my Prius v and the Gen 2 I had before it, but no car is right for everyone. Here are some hints a Prius might not be for you

considering a Prius | PriusChat

 

It only turns on AC if the system is OFF when you hit the Defog button. If you have the system ON, it only changes the air direction. At least on my Prius 2013.

It also ramps up the speed which is HIGHLY annoying but that's another issue.

 

Just give the knob a nudge to the right and you can control the fan manually in the windshield mode too.
The A/C can also be turned off.

At least in the Scandinavian version of 2012 v (known as Prius+ here).

 

Prius 2013 Type V - no knobs.

 

The center round control on the HVAC panel I'd call a knob and moving it side to side changes the selection in an outlined window from mode to temp to fan speed. On a V3.

 

Same on v Five.

 

2013 Prius V5 has NO knobs. All HVAC controls are buttons. The mode is controlled with one button which when pressed cycles through the air flow modes. Plus a button for Defog.