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Climate Control Lacks Power - 2014 BMW i3 Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.comEdmunds.com Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,315
edited May 2015 in BMW

imageClimate Control Lacks Power - 2014 BMW i3 Long-Term Road Test

I'm hardly a power user when it comes to climate control, but the system in our 2014 BMW i3 is feeble even by my standards.

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    fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    Not a gigantic surprise. Most ICE vehicles expend almost as much energy on HVAC systems as this car uses to power the vehicle down the road.
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    schen72schen72 Member Posts: 433
    edited May 2015
    Tint the windows. 20-30% tint should help. After 7 and 9 years respectively, I finally got my two cars tinted. I don't know what took me so long, but it's so much nicer and cooler. Also looks good!
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    legacygtlegacygt Member Posts: 599
    The real question is, how hard is it working to maintain the temperature at which you feel comfortable. If it gets to a comfortable temperature quickly and maintains it without blowing at max fan speed then there's not much to complain about.
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    markedwardsmarkedwards Member Posts: 32
    edited May 2015
    If you drive as shown in the photo above, I'm not surprised by your assessment because you have the auto program Intensity set at the lowest level. Meaning the system takes the longest amount of time to bring the cabin to the set temperature. When Auto is engaged, the fan rocker switch controls the program Intensity, not fan speed. Yes, increasing the intensity level tends to increase fan speed immediately but it also affects how the system distributes air, air temperature, and how quickly fan speed automatically adjusts to cope with changing conditions. Try pressing the switch on the right side so the single LED moves right. Since I started leaving mine in the middle position, I've had no issues.

    Also note that driving in EcoPro significantly curtails the climate control effectiveness.
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    kirkhilles1kirkhilles1 Member Posts: 863
    With lower range (ie: Not 250+ mile range Teslas) electric vehicles that have no exhaust gases and in combination with the advances in Internet and Smart Phones, there really is no excuse to have a polished system where you can easily set the temperature WAY in advance before you drive and the temperature locked in before you drive off with a full charge. That's the beauty of not having exhaust gases, you can have you car running while enclosed in the garage! Set it to 68 (or less) in the heart of the summer and 74 (or more) in the heart of the winter and let the vehicle use the power while plugged in to overset the temperature. The only time this should be an issue is if you are driving some place where there is no charging available.
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    allthingshondaallthingshonda Member Posts: 878
    markedwards said:

    If you drive as shown in the photo above, I'm not surprised by your assessment because you have the auto program Intensity set at the lowest level. Meaning the system takes the longest amount of time to bring the cabin to the set temperature. When Auto is engaged, the fan rocker switch controls the program Intensity, not fan speed. Yes, increasing the intensity level tends to increase fan speed immediately but it also affects how the system distributes air, air temperature, and how quickly fan speed automatically adjusts to cope with changing conditions. Try pressing the switch on the right side so the single LED moves right. Since I started leaving mine in the middle position, I've had no issues.

    Also note that driving in EcoPro significantly curtails the climate control effectiveness.

    When Auto is selected I shouldn't have to tell it the intensity I want. If the car has been sitting in the sun on a hot day and it's 120 inside the car and I request 68 degrees obviously I want the car to cool down fast. My Acura's system works well. On a hot day it will go straight to Max A/C and maximum fan speed. When it no longer has an unbearable hot feeling inside the fan begins to slow down. Acura/Honda does seem to prefer staying in Max A/C mode with a low fan speed to maintain the requested temperature. During the day in the summer it never selects fresh air when set to Auto. Even on a hot night it will start off on Max with a low fan speed if Auto is engaged.
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    markedwardsmarkedwards Member Posts: 32
    edited May 2015
    allthingshonda said:


    When Auto is selected I shouldn't have to tell it the intensity I want. If the car has been sitting in the sun on a hot day and it's 120 inside the car and I request 68 degrees obviously I want the car to cool down fast. My Acura's system works well. On a hot day it will go straight to Max A/C and maximum fan speed. When it no longer has an unbearable hot feeling inside the fan begins to slow down. Acura/Honda does seem to prefer staying in Max A/C mode with a low fan speed to maintain the requested temperature. During the day in the summer it never selects fresh air when set to Auto. Even on a hot night it will start off on Max with a low fan speed if Auto is engaged.

    I could flip it around and say I shouldn't be stuck with a one-size-fits-all Auto program. I prefer more aggressive temperature management than average. In previous cars, I'd get impatient with the climate control. That's why I prefer the BMW approach. It's the kind of thing that you set once and leave alone like adjusting mirrors. The setting is saved in memory for each driver profile (key fob) but Edmunds probably can't test that since they have so many drivers.

    The system is not unique to the i3. I have a 3-series also. Driver-selectable intensity level has been a feature of every modern BMW I've been in. The function used to be controlled by repeatedly pressing the Auto button but a couple of years ago BMW moved it to the fan switch. I suspect to make it easier to discover. Unfortunately most people think they're controlling the fan speed even in Auto. In reality it's much more sophisticated.
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    dgcamerodgcamero Member Posts: 148
    markedwards said:

    allthingshonda said:


    When Auto is selected I shouldn't have to tell it the intensity I want. If the car has been sitting in the sun on a hot day and it's 120 inside the car and I request 68 degrees obviously I want the car to cool down fast. My Acura's system works well. On a hot day it will go straight to Max A/C and maximum fan speed. When it no longer has an unbearable hot feeling inside the fan begins to slow down. Acura/Honda does seem to prefer staying in Max A/C mode with a low fan speed to maintain the requested temperature. During the day in the summer it never selects fresh air when set to Auto. Even on a hot night it will start off on Max with a low fan speed if Auto is engaged.

    I could flip it around and say I shouldn't be stuck with a one-size-fits-all Auto program. I prefer more aggressive temperature management than average. In previous cars, I'd get impatient with the climate control. That's why I prefer the BMW approach. It's the kind of thing that you set once and leave alone like adjusting mirrors. The setting is saved in memory for each driver profile (key fob) but Edmunds probably can't test that since they have so many drivers.

    The system is not unique to the i3. I have a 3-series also. Driver-selectable intensity level has been a feature of every modern BMW I've been in. The function used to be controlled by repeatedly pressing the Auto button but a couple of years ago BMW moved it to the fan switch. I suspect to make it easier to discover. Unfortunately most people think they're controlling the fan speed even in Auto. In reality it's much more sophisticated.
    Honestly on that button, it'd be easy to print Lo and Hi with Green LEDs below them on the Auto button. That'd make the automatic control much more intuitive. Some people do like more or less airflow, I would never imagine I'd have to hit the fan speed button on a fully automatic system.
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    anotherdrunkanotherdrunk Guest Posts: 30
    I am more than happy with the climate control in our i3

    #87 down the list of important things
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