cold car and cold feet

[Glen Mansbridge]

I'm surprised how long the Octavia takes to get to operating tempertaure at the moment - about 8 miles of driving! Also, it takes about another 7 miles once up to temperature with the dual climate set to 28 degrees, and the air distribution set to footwell before my feet start to warm up! I've got a 2.0 TDI BTW

This is not a gripe, just an observation - my BMW 320 D is up to temp in about 4 miles and shoving out heat on the feet after about 2 miles.

Roll on the summer!

[JohnMorr]

Am I right in thinking the Octy 2 doesn't have a diesel cabin pre-heater? But surely you have the heated seats.....?

[Glen Mansbridge]

Err - don't have heated seats and even if I did, might be a bit awkward to get my feet on the seat to warm them whilst driving

[yashicamat]

No pre-heater in the Octy 2's climate control system to my knowledge. I don't know how complex or expensive it would have been to have incorporated one into the design, but surely it must have been worth it? My Octy takes the same sort of time to warm up too - thick coats are the order of the day on cold mornings.
One could always look on the bright side though . . . if it takes a long time to warm up it's theoretically being very efficient.

[dstev2000]

Try leaving the recirc on for a while once you are on the move, I find it warms the car up slightly quicker as it's reheating the cabin air rather than the freezing air from outside. I find I have proper warm air by the end of the bypass near me which is about 3 miles.

don't forget to turn the recirc back off once up to temperature or it will start to steam up once the cabin humidity rises.

[johnpritt]

Left on automatic, the airco will send what it thinks to be hot air to the footwells, on the basis that hot air rises and fills the cabin. Obviously, on cold days, that theory only works well once the heater has some engine warmth to play with.
I find it more comfortable these winter mornings to switch the ventillation to, say, demisting until the temperature indicator moves off its rest, then switch back to automatic.

[ged.fi]

Originally Posted by Glen Mansbridge

Also, it takes about another 7 miles once up to temperature with the dual climate set to 28 degrees, and the air distribution set to footwell before my feet start to warm up!

Your problem may actually be that you have set the climatronic to 28 degrees. That will probably cause the fan to run at full speed, moving more excess heat than necessary. This would cause the PTC element to not heat up properly if the outside air is cool enough.

It's a common misconception that setting the thermostat higher would somehow heat up the car faster. That's simply not true, because in cold conditions the heating will be maxed out anyway. However, setting the temperature too high may cause the climatronic to run differently. For instance, it may just run the fan too fast, actually slowing down the heat build-up in the car.

Have you tried simply setting the temperature you wish, and letting the logic do its best? The PTC element should really kick in, and help bring up the incoming air temperature rather quickly, without running the fan too high. In Finnish forums, the Octavia TDIs are known for heating up really quickly. That is, internally - the engine temperature takes ages to rise in the cold.

If your car is not equipped with a PTC element, then you are just out of luck, I'm afraid.

[Glen Mansbridge]

Originally Posted by ged.fi

Your problem may actually be that you have set the climatronic to 28 degrees. That will probably cause the fan to run at full speed, moving more excess heat than necessary. This would cause the PTC element to not heat up properly if the outside air is cool enough.

It's a common misconception that setting the thermostat higher would somehow heat up the car faster. That's simply not true, because in cold conditions the heating will be maxed out anyway. However, setting the temperature too high may cause the climatronic to run differently. For instance, it may just run the fan too fast, actually slowing down the heat build-up in the car.

Have you tried simply setting the temperature you wish, and letting the logic do its best? The PTC element should really kick in, and help bring up the incoming air temperature rather quickly, without running the fan too high. In Finnish forums, the Octavia TDIs are known for heating up really quickly. That is, internally - the engine temperature takes ages to rise in the cold.

If your car is not equipped with a PTC element, then you are just out of luck, I'm afraid.

Is the PTC element you mention the same as a pre-heater mentioned before? If so, guess I don't have one!

Regarding maxing out the heating - I tend to set the fan speed to about 1/2 until I feel warm air coming through.

[dstev2000]

I just whack everything to full. I always let the car get proper hot inside and then set down to about 22, this stops the cold fabric of the car absorbing the heat from the air.

Full fan, screen demister button on, recirc button on, heated seats to 5, rev car to annoy arsehole neighbours and you're off in a few minutes.

They love my 5am starts



PTC heater = ceramic element.

You can get electric PTC heaters to plug in to the ciggie lighter socket for instant heat, loads on ebay and such places.

[Ants]

I turn the cliamte control off completely and drive in a lower gear than I normally would for a few minutes. After a couple of miles the engine gets warmed up then I turn the heater on, but don't turn up to 28 if you only want it at say 22 'cause it won't help.

[ged.fi]

Originally Posted by Glen Mansbridge

Is the PTC element you mention the same as a pre-heater mentioned before?

No, the PTC element is a Positive temperature coefficient - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia heating element that is standard in Finland for all Octavia diesels. It heats the air flowing into the cabin separately when the engine is still cold, so warm air comes almost immediately. As a side effect, it increases power drain, so the engine will actually heat up slightly quicker. Once the engine gets warmed up, the PTC means that the heating element will put out less heat. Eventually it shuts down altogether, I assume.

[Exhausted]

I'm in the fortunate position to be able to stick a fan heater in the car for 15 minutes prior to take off.

I set it to 1kW, place it on the back seat pointing towards the front. I find that all the ice on windows has melted and the cabin is bearable.

Not easy I know if you park at the kerb but for those who park off road well worth trying.

[y Me]

Originally Posted by dstev2000

.......... rev car to annoy arsehole neighbours .........

I shall follow these instructions to the letter.

[dstev2000]

Originally Posted by y Me

I shall follow these instructions to the letter.

Thats the spirit, love thy neighbour and all that

[cheezemonkhai]

Originally Posted by ged.fi

No, the PTC element is a Positive temperature coefficient - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia heating element that is standard in Finland for all Octavia diesels. It heats the air flowing into the cabin separately when the engine is still cold, so warm air comes almost immediately. As a side effect, it increases power drain, so the engine will actually heat up slightly quicker. Once the engine gets warmed up, the PTC means that the heating element will put out less heat. Eventually it shuts down altogether, I assume.

Wonder if you can retrofit that.

A webasto etc costs about £800-900 fitted.

[No Waiting]

Originally Posted by Glen Mansbridge

Err - don't have heated seats and even if I did, might be a bit awkward to get my feet on the seat to warm them whilst driving

Isn't that what cruise control is for...

[cheezemonkhai]

ged.fi (or anyone who might have access to this info) have you got any details of there this PTC element is located in the car or any part number/diagrams.

If it is like one i saw in an old derv car, it just sat in the heater air intake piping and would warm the air post fan. If that is the case then it shouldn't be too hard to retrofit with a suitable wiring loom.

That would then be fantastic, as depending on the price of the item in question I'd seriously consider buying one and having a go at it all.

[VRS195]

There should be a marked difference between the warm up time of petrol and diesel engines (and hence the cabin temp and your feet!)

This is due to the intrinsic thermal efficiency of the diesel.

So hot feet or fat wallet

[cheezemonkhai]

Originally Posted by VRS195

So hot feet or fat wallet

Or a PTC if I can any member can post up some details and I can work out how to retrofit one.

[ged.fi]

Originally Posted by cheezemonkhai

ged.fi (or anyone who might have access to this info) have you got any details of there this PTC element is located in the car or any part number/diagrams.

I'm afraid not. I don't actually even have the car yet, so the PTC element is based on the sales fact sheet and hearsay from Finnish forums. But in Finland, the Octy II TDI is know for heating up quickly. That, of course, does not mean the engine heats up quickly. There's still plenty of cases where cold weather means the engine is not reaching standard operating temperatures.

Note that the Volkswagen 1.4 TSI is sold without a PTC heater here, and people who bought it are now complaining about cold feet, too.

If it is like one i saw in an old derv car, it just sat in the heater air intake piping and would warm the air post fan. If that is the case then it shouldn't be too hard to retrofit with a suitable wiring loom.

That sounds quite likely, considering that it is only intended to heat the air going to the cabin. Someone with access to Skoda part lists may be able to find out the spare part number?