Automatically Switching from Recirculation to Fresh Air Bug

[reeler]

I often drive without heat when needing range. I press the button that recirculates the cabin air rather than introducing cold fresh air to the cabin. The windows will start to fog after a while, but that isn't a big deal when trying to stay warm with just the seat heater.

What annoys me is that the car will switch from recirculate to fresh automatically even when HVAC is completely off. What little heat I have in the cabin disappears. I did a 85 mile drive from DIA to Keystone with an extended charge while the outside temperature was as low as minus 10 and the cold from outside was unbearable.

Changing any of the air vent selection, changing the eco heater mode or front defrost will all put things back into fresh air from recirculate. I am just going to have to remember to also push the recirculate button every time, but what a pain.

Does anyone else find this annoying?

 

[TonyWilliams]

Does anyone else find this annoying?

I think I would manually override whatever door is opening to allow fresh air in or simply make a winter time plug to put in the fresh air vent.

Unfortunately, for a car primarily sold in California, it just doesn't get that cold in any of the markets where this car is sold.

 

[reeler]

Unfortunately, for a car primarily sold in California, it just doesn't get that cold in any of the markets where this car is sold.

My comment wasn't limited to cold days as I was just illustrating the point with an example. But, I bet we have owners in the Tahoe area that have similar weather to Colorado.

Even on a warm day, I close the fresh air vents using the recirculate setting. After driving electric for several years, it really annoys me to breathe the exhaust of the "smokers." I will notice it once it is too late and I have exhaust smell in the cabin.

Do folks really like the car overriding your recirculate choice to force you to the fresh air setting?

 

[Blastphemy]

This drives me crazy too, especially that I can't stop the outside airflow when the A/C system is off. I've had to close the large round air vents in the top front left and top front right of the car. Frequently, the car will be the perfect temperature when I pull out of the garage, but then the unstoppable airflow from outside makes the car too cold. Perhaps getting cold won't be a problem in summer, but not being able to keep out the car fumes and black smoke from the cars in front of me is infuriating. I've had to turn ON the A/C system just to stop the stink from coming in the cabin (because the recirculate control doesn't do anything if the A/C system is off).

 

[Blastphemy]

Unfortunately, for a car primarily sold in California, it just doesn't get that cold in any of the markets where this car is sold.

Perhaps you haven't visited California this winter. Just last week we had ice on the ground in Los Angeles. I imagine northern California has it even worse. Compared to normal L.A. weather, it's been freezing for nearly three months.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Unfortunately, for a car primarily sold in California, it just doesn't get that cold in any of the markets where this car is sold.

Perhaps you haven't visited California this winter. Just last week we had ice on the ground in Los Angeles. I imagine northern California has it even worse. Compared to normal L.A. weather, it's been freezing for nearly three months.

Yes, I have visited this year. we had snow down to 2000 feet elevation here in San Diego. Cars parked outside were covered in frost a few days.

I guess that doesn't quite register as cold compared to where I grew up in Montana where winters hit -20F to -40F, and I grew up close to the still record cold spot in the continental USA at Rogers's Pass; -70F in 1959.

 

[skuld177]

This happens to me all the time and it is quite annoying. It has also happened that the seat warmers come on by themselves. Not sure if this is a "bug" or a "feature" (seat warmers auto turn on when it thinks seat is cold??)

 

[Blastphemy]

This drives me crazy too, especially that I can't stop the outside airflow when the A/C system is off. I've had to close the large round air vents in the top front left and top front right of the car. Frequently, the car will be the perfect temperature when I pull out of the garage, but then the unstoppable airflow from outside makes the car too cold. Perhaps getting cold won't be a problem in summer, but not being able to keep out the car fumes and black smoke from the cars in front of me is infuriating. I've had to turn ON the A/C system just to stop the stink from coming in the cabin (because the recirculate control doesn't do anything if the A/C system is off).

My original post was incorrect - you can stop the outside airflow by pressing the recirculation button. It works whether the A/C is on or off. I do it all the time, now, and it works perfectly.

 

[snoltor]

This problem is not limited to the Rav4, but also occurs on some other Toyota models. It happens occasionally on my 2010 Prius. In general I keep the air on recirculate so I don't have to breath other's exhaust.... if I was driving around country roads it would be a different story but on route 80 the outside air isn't that fresh! The only time I'm forced to use outside air is when I need to defog the front windshield. Anyway, for reasons I've never figured out every now and then the 'auto climate' turns on and decides it's better to have fresh air coming in the cabin. But I always notice right away because you can smell the exhaust so I quickly switch back to recirculate. Still it is annoying. That never happened on my 05 Corolla, but that's a very simpler car....

 

[reeler]

Has anyone figured out the algorithm for it overriding the recirculate setting. At least if I knew when it would happen, I could be watching for it.

 

[yblaser]

Does it have anything to do with the humidity sensor? The car thinks it is too humid and the windows risk fogging so it lets in fresh air. Have someone blow on the sensor and see if it causes the switch.