Keeping AC on for other seat passengers

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EVMan

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 25, 2017
Messages
340
Location
USA, DC
I think a great advantage of a EV is that you can keep the AC running on , without the engine guzzling.
The only way i am able to turn it back on and leave the AC on , when i am not in my seat is to use the passenger door

Good software makes life easy and not good makes simple things very difficult
If you have kids , you need to open the door many times ( water / shoes etc ) , and The car keeps turning the AC off , with door open event.
This On/off battle every few seconds is bad for the AC hardware unit.
Ideally you should wait 2-5 mins , before restarting the AC.

Is there a trick , where the car cannot turn off the AC , so i can leave it on for passengers
Can i turn it on from the driver door and keep it running when the door is closed.
I never left a car or Car AC running unnecessary , if some one suggest , this is a feature.
 
After you park but before opening the driver's door, press the Start/Stop button once. The car will go into accessory mode and the iDrive display will show the goodbye screen. Below the charging options is a checkbox for Activate Comfort Climate Control. Select it and the system will run for up to 30 minutes regardless of whether you turn off accessory mode or open the driver's door.

If you want to use the climate control before setting off, activate it from the Connected/iRemote app. Again the system will heat/cool for 30 minutes or until you start the car.
 
Thanks for this tip, and its very helpful
While i use Comfort Climate Control , often while DC charging, i did not realize i can use it for other reasons as well.

Looks like to use this car effectively , one need to be actively engaged in some forums.
I wonder if all the end customers of BMW are so skilled with hacks.
 
Neither of the things mentioned are 'hacks'...the idrive functionality is described in the manual which few people read. The app functionality is fairly evident, if you use a compatible phone (most any Android or iOS device). That menu comes up every time you shut the car off. One of the first things I do when I buy a car is read the user's manual. I often read it again after driving it for awhile to discover things that didn't register the first time. The modern car has all sorts of functionality most people do not ever use, although some is just a bit weird.
 
stumbledotcom said:
After you park but before opening the driver's door, press the Start/Stop button once. The car will go into accessory mode and the iDrive display will show the goodbye screen. Below the charging options is a checkbox for Activate Comfort Climate Control. Select it and the system will run for up to 30 minutes regardless of whether you turn off accessory mode or open the driver's door.

If you want to use the climate control before setting off, activate it from the Connected/iRemote app. Again the system will heat/cool for 30 minutes or until you start the car.


I followed your instructions above, but when i press the STOP button for the car to goto accessory mode and the iDrive display will show the goodbye screen, my AC will shut off automatically.

After some tries i figured this out.
When the AC is already running , and if i want to step out and keep the AC running for others , i have to
Car is in Ready/Start Mode
1) put it in park
2) lift the leg from the break
3) then activate the Comfort Climate Control ( if you keep the break pressed, the the option of Comfort Climate Control is disabled / dimmed)
Now closing the door will not shut the AC off.

Wola , finally no more fight with the AC - On..off ..On.. Off....and beating the AC to death unnecessarily .
 
jadnashuanh said:
Neither of the things mentioned are 'hacks'...the idrive functionality is described in the manual which few people read. The app functionality is fairly evident, if you use a compatible phone (most any Android or iOS device). That menu comes up every time you shut the car off. One of the first things I do when I buy a car is read the user's manual. I often read it again after driving it for awhile to discover things that didn't register the first time. The modern car has all sorts of functionality most people do not ever use, although some is just a bit weird.

+1
 
The below steps also failed.
I am not able to keep the AC running continuously by directly activating the ClimateControl Mode.
Have to stop the car ( Stop Mode) which shuts off the AC, and then i can put it to ClimateControl Mode. ( restart AC)

My objective was to reduce this On Off of AC , as its not good for the hardware.




Older steps
After some tries i figured this out.
When the AC is already running , and if i want to step out and keep the AC running for others , i have to
Car is in Ready/Start Mode
1) put it in park
2) lift the leg from the break
3) then activate the Comfort Climate Control ( if you keep the break pressed, the the option of Comfort Climate Control is disabled / dimmed)
Now closing the door will not shut the AC off.
 
EVMan said:
My objective was to reduce this On Off of AC , as its not good for the hardware.

What exactly about this is 'not good for the hardware'?!?

AC compressors are constantly switching on/off - that's how they work normally and they're designed as such.

...and you can also program the <> button on your remote to activate the AC. It's also in the manual.
 
yes, they do , but after a gap of minimum 3 mins
The gas starts to flow back immediately .
The life of hardware gets reduced to reverse the flow...

Most new Hometherostats have minimum 5 min minimum interval now...
 
EVMan said:
yes, they do , but after a gap of minimum 3 mins
The gas starts to flow back immediately .
The life of hardware gets reduced to reverse the flow...

Most new Hometherostats have minimum 5 min minimum interval now...

Do you have any evidence for that, or just this 'anecdata'?

From this thread and others you have started, it appears that you think you know better than the BMW engineers who designed & built this vehicle. Perhaps you should apply for a job at the Leipzig factory so you can show you them how to do it properly... :roll:

My tip: get different car.
 
nitramluap said:
EVMan said:
yes, they do , but after a gap of minimum 3 mins
The gas starts to flow back immediately .
The life of hardware gets reduced to reverse the flow...

Most new Hometherostats have minimum 5 min minimum interval now...

Do you have any evidence for that, or just this 'anecdata'?

From this thread and others you have started, it appears that you think you know better than the BMW engineers who designed & built this vehicle. Perhaps you should apply for a job at the Leipzig factory so you can show you them how to do it properly... :roll:

My tip: get different car.

nitramluap :twisted:
Why don't you mind your business.
If you have nothing to contribute to my thread , please stay away and stop trolling me. Do keep your stupid tips to yourself .

Not sure why you keep reading my threads , since you clearly cannot understand them or are capable off.

If you want to increase your knowledge, you can learn to use google.
.
 
EVMan said:
nitramluap :twisted:
Why don't you mind your business.
If you have nothing to contribute to my thread , please stay away and stop trolling me. Do keep your stupid tips to yourself .

Not sure why you keep reading my threads , since you clearly cannot understand them or are capable off.

If you want to increase your knowledge, you can learn to use google.

Still waiting for your evidence that turning the AC on/off again is going to damage it and that BMW's engineers don't know what they're doing. An ad hominem attack isn't an answer to the question.

You asked a question in a *public* forum; you received good answers from others (hint: it's all in the manual, which you can even download if you don't have a paper copy); then you proceed to tell everyone that it doesn't work properly, why they're wrong and how the car is so badly designed it's going to damage its own AC compressor.

This was the same approach you used in your post asking how to activate the speed limit info display - which resulted in you dismissing the whole system as flawed simply because your car turned out to not have the required hardware... which you said was rubbish (?!). Ok then.
 
I have a much easier solutions, since I have to constantly open the rear drivers door...and realized that if the seatbelt is connected the car won't shut off :cool: so buy a seatbelt extension (i happen to have a few laying around when I used the boosters for my kids and keep it in my center console ) and plug it in the seatbelt hole..woaila! the car keeps running even if you take the keys with you...my 2cents
 
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