i3 REX Airflow in Passenger Compartment

I'm a new i3 owner. Every car I've ever driven has shown strong passive airflow with outside intake open and highway speed >50 mph. I'm puzzled by the lack of passive airflow in the i3. Given that preservation of battery life is a priority it would seem as though allowing good passive airflow when the vehicle is moving, without running the fan, would be a priority. Am I doing something wrong or is the only way to have air circulating to open windows and/or run the fan at higher speeds? 1 and 2 settings for the fan hardly register a flow pattern that can be discerned.

I actually prefer the i3 setup. Cold air entering the cabin in our Leaf resulted in more use of the heater (and therefore more energy consumption) than would've been required otherwise.

i3atl said:

I actually prefer the i3 setup. Cold air entering the cabin in our Leaf resulted in more use of the heater (and therefore more energy consumption) than would've been required otherwise.

Click to expand...

But all you have to do is close the vents to stop the airflow, better that way than have to use the blower all the time.

In the Leaf, some outside air always entered through the floor vents. There wasn't a way to close them.

Not really interested in the Leaf guys... But I presume from the replies that the lack of passive air circulation is a consistent feature among vehicles and that it's not some odd setting or vehicle specific defect I'm encountering.

In the USA, I think some air movement is required to help offset the possibility of CO poisoning. Now, that might only be an issue with the REx, but is probably implemented the same on the BEV.

So far as I can tell it is impossible to get air circulation at highway speeds when it is cold outside without the heater turning on. On a sunny day I can easily be too warm in my i3 even though the outside temperature is in the 30s. The lowest I can set the thermostat is 60, so turning on the fan turns on the heat (confirmed by seeing the estimated range remaining drop). I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Exactly. I couldn't agree more. It seems to me as connected as these issues are, thermostat, fan, auto environmental control, outside air access there should be a firmware update that expands the range of options to conserve electrical use. While ideally I want to see improved passive airflow with fan off, there should be the option of running the fan without the heater turning on in cool/cold weather when sunlight and greenhouse effect are warming the car a lot.

I don't know anything about the systems design for the i3. Perhaps someone with that knowledge can comment. Could these issues be addressed in a software or firmware update?

MarkN said:

I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Click to expand...

Adaptive Cruise Control, if you have it, will happily drive over 56 mph in Eco Pro+. Not sure about regular cruise control.

But the real solution would be to allow the outside air flap to open without the fan being on.

I think the air flap only has two positions: recirculate and outside air. To keep the flow from varying radically based on speed, it is positioned in a relatively neutral pressure area...IOW, speed does not ram the air though, it must be pulled by the fan. Now, you can adjust where and how much the air does flow at the dash level, and various flaps can direct it to either the windshield or the footwell, but those are not 'volume' controlled except via the fan speed.

Cars of old rarely had a/c, so ramming the air in was appreciated, especially in the summer, but those days are mostly over, at least in some markets as a/c is standard on many more cars these days than those of old, so they are designed differently. Drag falls into that equation, too. At speeds over 30mph, using the car's climate control is more efficient than opening the windows because the extra drag is more than offset by the efficiency of the climate control. An a/c evaporator needs a fairly consistent air flow over it so it doesn't either ice up or produce air that is not cool enough so it can dry the air out. That doesn't happen well if the airflow alters via speed.

MarkN said:

I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Click to expand...

There's an easy workaround for this - while in Eco Pro+, just turn on cruise control. You don't have to set a speed or otherwise activate it - just turning it on will defeat the EP+ limiter.

i3atl said:

MarkN said:

I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Click to expand...

There's an easy workaround for this - while in Eco Pro+, just turn on cruise control. You don't have to set a speed or otherwise activate it - just turning it on will defeat the EP+ limiter.

Click to expand...

Won't that counter most of the efficiency gains from using EP+? I'd assumed that the GOM value shown for EP+ assuned you'd be driving at 56mph or less, so if you're ignoring that limit, the EP GOM value would probably be more representative for your driving style.

Part of any of the Eco modes is to dampen the accelerator pedal's response. Secondary things are to limit creature comforts. Driving at a smooth pace and returning to your set speed controlled by the computer will beat most drivers in efficiency. IOW, unless you're pushing high speeds all of the time, it probably won't make much difference between using that mode and letting the computer override things. Personally, if I had ACC (which I do), I'd use that for most trips, since it seems to notice traffic changes slightly before I do (not much!), but is always looking, which might not always be the case 100%. Less likely to creep up on illegal speeds as well.

In sloppy weather, using one of the Eco modes is probably safer when the roads are slick...while the computer will detect wheel spin, limiting the torque is probably a safer path.

In my opinion it is short sighted to not allow the free flow of air at any speed. Don't give a dam about what is viewed as best for efficiency, not to mention the fact that I do not agree with others perception of what is best for me! All the other cars I have owned allowed for free air flow from the outside and this car does not, you have to turn on the fan even at low speeds which is not in the best interest of efficiency!!!!

i3atl said:

MarkN said:

I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Click to expand...

There's an easy workaround for this - while in Eco Pro+, just turn on cruise control. You don't have to set a speed or otherwise activate it - just turning it on will defeat the EP+ limiter.

Click to expand...

Thanks! I just verified that works. It is certainly a circuitous way to get fresh air without heat.

MarkN said:

i3atl said:

MarkN said:

I cannot use Eco Pro + since I am driving above 56 mph.

Click to expand...

There's an easy workaround for this - while in Eco Pro+, just turn on cruise control. You don't have to set a speed or otherwise activate it - just turning it on will defeat the EP+ limiter.

Click to expand...

Thanks! I just verified that works. It is certainly a circuitous way to get fresh air without heat.

Click to expand...

Agreed - I wish they would add a "Heat" button or something similar, so you could enable/disable it as needed.