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Anyone ever record cabin temps?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Higgins909, Aug 16, 2020.

  1. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    I have a ThermoPro TP55 in my car. I've put it in there to record tempatures as I thought my AC wasn't working that good. It seems to be working better after essentially being drained and recharged. But it's still a pretty dang hot drive back home after work. I kept it under the radio/shifter area. It would hit 120F~ without the sunshade, 112F~ with it and windows cracked. This weekend I decided to try out another spot to record from. I also left open the trunk's privacy cover, which is normally closed. I decided to just put the TP55 on the back seat. I have tint on my side windows but not my big rear window and the small rear has factory tint. The TP55 was in the sun at least at some point.

    I got in my car apparently 106F out today 16:00~ 150F in my car. I thought it was hot before, but I was in my shorts and trying to air out the car and was sweating in just a few minutes the AC was pretty much blowing hot air because it was so hot inside. I was wondering if the trunk cover played that much in the temperature change of if it was because the TP55 was in the back seat or if 6F more than usual made that much of a difference.

    I was wondering if the Prius AC couldn't push enough air around despite it cooling air or if it's because I don't have tint on the rear window which is causing tons of heat magnification... Maybe both? My last car was a 04 Accord. While I only had it half of a summer or so, I don't remember it being bad like this and it had black leather which I've heard is supposed to be hotter in summer heat. (Had it 6 months~ but late summer I got it I think) I got a ride in a 18 F150 and that person only cracks the windows and sits a couple cars over from mine at work. It felt like it was 80-90F in there and cooled off in about 5 minutes to the Toyota Service. Much cooler than my 112F Prius with the windows cracked and a sun shade. Which after 15 minute drive might get that cool.

    What do ya'll think about this? Does anyone else monitor cabin temps? I'm going to see what it reads this week after a day of work, in the rear seats with the trunk cover open, sun shade, and cracked windows. It's really getting to me going from a hot work to a even hotter car and then to a hot home...
     
  2. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    Mine will get to 125. No tint, yet. I keep the rear deck cover closed.
    I have cloth seats. I hate leather! HOT in the summer, COLD in the winter.
    I keep the windows shut.
    When I get in the car, I open the windows, drop the temp to 70, usually 74-75.
    Fan on high, recirculate off. Outside air is a lot cooler than inside the car.
    After it starts to cool, which is within a minute, I close the front windows.
    Turn the fan speed to a medium speed. After a minute or so I turn on the recirculate
    and close the rear windows.. Eventually I put the a/c on auto.
     
  3. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    are you in normal or power mode? is the cabin filter clean?
     
  4. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    [QUOTE="is the cabin filter clean?[/QUOTE]

    This is so incredibly important!!!

    Pulled a cabin filter out of a 2007 today that had a 1/2" thick layer of leaves. Wonder how that AC worked......
     
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  5. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    I drive in ECO. Clean cabin air filter. I check it every month or so and tap out any dirt...
     
  6. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    I recently replaced my cabin air filter. I was confused on the ^ UP sign on the cover of the lid and ended up putting the filter in up side down which is how the original one in the car was positioned. When I was putting the new one in 3~ weeks ago I decided to figure it out and turns out air is blown upwards with the ^ UP sign so I put the filter ^ AIR FLOW to match. I didn't know what up on a filter was, just air flow. Google couldn't tell me and half of the videos on this subject were putting it in wrong.

    I also replaced my ICE air filter which was pretty clean. Cabin filter looked pretty dirty but I usually tap out the garbage on the driveway and put it back in, but decided to get a new one this time around.

    I do drive in ECO, but I manually control the AC. I wanna say the Manual says ECO mode only controls the blower speed when in AUTO. The vents do blow quite a bit and at 53F when it's 99F~ outside. I just don't understand why it takes forever to cool down. I do a version of what ASRDogman does to cool car down. I have noticed when on dash vents only recirculate, the feet vents blow a little bit. But even when I go to the floor vents only the vents under the front seats don't blow too much. The vent under the passenger seat barely blows ever. I used to switch to feet and dash to cool down the car for the first few minutes but not sure it's worth it.

    The vents blow at a high pressure but I wonder if it's not enough volume to cool effectively enough. Perhaps a design flaw for hot environments. Like they're definitely blowing and at 53F but I've got it on low temp and max blower for my whole 15-20 minute drive and the vents are pointed right at me. I was wondering if the trunk cover was holding a hot pocket of air.
     
  7. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    You shouldn't get any air flow to the foot vents when you have selected the center vents.
    Maybe you have a door that is sticking. And maybe you are getting bleeding from the heater core.
    It won't take much heat to overcome the cold.
     
  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    the air flows DOWN. that's how the debris collects on top. otherwise, it would come through the fan, and keep falling back into it.
    the oem has an arrow and the word 'up'. that arrow faces up.

    some aftermarket have an arrow, and the word 'flow', that arrow points down.

    i can't speak for 106 degrees. mine have always worked fine at 96 degrees and high humidity.

    as to ECO, it suppresses hvac, so try normal or power.
     
  9. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    So now I have it in wrong? I shoved my hand in there without the filter in there and could feel it blowing upwards, so I put the arrow up, to match that. I was wondering how that worked with all the garbage on top.
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    yeah, it's deceiving with the fan open. put a piece of paper in, strong enough not to get sucked into the fan
     
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  11. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    Forgot to say that when I was replacing the filter last time and figuring out the direction. I had it all back together and it would fight me over recirculate and fresh air and then lock onto recirculate. It would switch between the two a couple times and then lock. Hasn't done it since but perhaps that is evidence of something wrong with the blend door/actuator? I've only tested temps in vent above the volume knob of radio. (vent #2) Maybe it's blowing hot/hotter on the passenger side?
     
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    yeah, i've never seen that behavior. maybe even an ecu glitch or something. mine goes to recirc when i press a/c, but i can switch it back.
     
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  13. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    I think it happened when I was in manual mode. I validated all the vents blow within 5F~ of each other. This time around I got 63F out the vents. Yeah, when the dash only is on air comes out at the front seat feet area, not too much but there is definitely flow. I noticed when I go to the defroster and feet, there is no feet and no middle dash vents, just the outer dash vents and windshield. I also noticed when it was in windshield + feet I could press the windshield button and I could see a gear turn further but didn't notice anything else.

    Taking the glovebox out and trying to look in there, I found when I'm on dash vents and switching between fresh & recirculate air there is this baby carriage sun shade type thing that closes, but it doesn't close quite all the way so I see the little flap dancing around but if I close it that last bit the flap stops moving. It's got me wondering if it's letting in more fresh air than it's supposed to when it's on recirculate. I cycled from low to high temp a few times. I couldn't tell if there is something wrong there. Need to find my other video of my previous test. I thought it was 53F but this time around its 63F.
     
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  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i think you might be on to something, might be time to pull the whole dash apart :(
     
  15. lech auto air conditionin

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    Drove last week from San Francisco that was in the 80s to Antioch that was 106° inside cabin temperature air vents 44°F.

    Left my car parked in Antioch in front of the house with the car idling for about five hours while I was at a job site doing air-conditioning on a house the car stayed nice and cold like a San Francisco foggy day inside the car.

    My duct temperature hovers between 39° and 43° has that night that actually hurts your knuckles if the air is blowing towards your hands on the steering wheel.
     
  16. Grit

    Grit Senior Member

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    Had it been me who posted that, everyone would have jumped on my case saying you could have killed thousands of people by trying to save a few ounces of gasoline, makes no sense just turn the car off!!!
     
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  17. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    But you're our dude:p.

    Different sliding scale(y).
     
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  18. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    This makes a huge difference. Why cool 140F air down to 120 when you can cool 100F air down to 80?
     
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  19. lech auto air conditionin

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    What gasoline it’s a Prius it fits gasoline if not a hummer a Chevy and Ford and Chrysler.

    I was working out in the sun and 106° temperature on a residential air-conditioning unit that was not working inside the house was over 106°. I don’t like heat my car was my refuge every 15 or 20 minutes for a break.

    Anyway my work is like a UPS truck it never turns off from morning tonight I always leave it on with the air conditioning running 10 to 12 hours a day. I really really really like it very cold in my cabin
     
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  20. ASRDogman

    ASRDogman Senior Member

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    I learned that in A/C school from Mercedes. Outside air is easier and faster to cool then inside air!

    3 hour drive today, average 60mph.
    91 degrees out, 88% humidity.
    30 degrees out the center vent.
    Set on auto, 74-75 degrees.
     
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