How Cold is your AC?

[ennislaw]

Originally Posted by Angry3

Seems like there may be some variation between cars and differences between interiors. My 'vert with the Savanna interior is the best car I've owned when it comes to dealing with an NC summer. The interior doesn't heat up badly and the a/c seems very strong. Cools down fast and can run on very low fan once chilled down even in 90+ heat.

Maybe its the lighter interior and reflective leather helping, but IMO the a/c seems to do its job quite well.

I would agree; in fact, there seems to be a lot of variation between 1-ers. So far this summer my BSM coupe with black interior has been cooled off within a short period of time even after sitting in direct sun, especially if the windows are opened before or when the car is started. If fact, some times I've had to turn the a/c up to 71º F (or off) when there's not direct sun and it's only in the low 80ºs F. I guess I'm reserving judgment while waiting for the high 90ºs and 100º+ F mark to hit this summer in NC.

pge

[SlickShift]

I think the A/C is inadequate for Florida summers. I get in my car after it's been sitting outside at work and it takes forever for the A/C to get somewhat cold even on its "Max A/C" setting. I drive Ford vehicles almost everyday at work and their A/C gets much cold, much faster.

[m_thompson]

I had a Toyota Matrix rental in Phoenix this week that made the interior like a meat locker within a few minutes. Much more air volume and much colder air than my 1er.

[white911]

I am very happy with the A/C in my car. It has delivered cold air on the hottest days. It does take a while to cool the car off after sitting baking in the sun. Of course, it helps that my car is white. It is as good or better then the other German cars we have (or have had). It seems to cool on par with the Avalanche; but that truck is black.

As someone suggested, use a probe thermometer and check your outlet temperature by sticking the probe in the vent. Compare it to other cars, when your A/C is working outlet air should be less then 50F, closer to 40F is better. Too cold may not be that great as ice may form on the evaporator and block the air flow and it will never cool off.
The Honda used to do that and I would have to cycle to heat to melt the ice before you would get cooling air. The Porsche puts out 40 degree air; but, it is more like a squirrel blowing at you.

Concur that the fan is noisy. Additionally the vents will not direct as far toward the driver as I want them to.

[JS135i]

What is the point of the Auto Climate if I to control the fan speed? There is the switch in the center that the manual says to set for how much air speed I want but what is the point if the speed is not controlled automatically??

[bimmer74]

Originally Posted by Dak Tirque

I have been driving my 2011 for about a week now...today in NY it is around 85 degrees.
I put the air conditioner on the lowest temp (60 degrees) on both sides figuring I would get blasted with Ice cold air.

I was underwhelmed...this AC seems weak to me, not frigid, just "kinda cold".

The " MAX" setting sounds like a jet turbine, lots of air displacement, but not really any cooler.

Does anyone else have sub-par AC?
Does AC needs to "break in" like the rest of the cars parts (will it get colder with time)? I would doubt it.

Anyone else with mild AC?

I just actually had my A/C system repaired last week. It wouldn't blow cold air at all. I found a leak on the black hose section connected the the top aluminum line going into the condenser. The dealer replaced the hose, recharged the refrigerant and the A/C is cold again. It is not as powerful as the one in my wife's Subaru but it will cool the interior sufficiently.

[escobar929]

i have yet to own a car in south florida that could keep up w/ the summer heat, so i havent noticed if the A/C is weak cause up till a month or so back, it did a great job but as w/ other cars as we get closer to june, it doesnt have the same effect

[crzy4135i]

FWIW, based on a post I saw on here.. I just had the dealership check my freon level. They said it was OK but it still seems to be weak. I think the system isn't designed for high cooling capacity.

[Yes2m3cs]

I live in hot FLA and mine seems to do fine, granted I garage my car and park in a parking garage all day long. My lighter color leather may help too..

Brian

[fwmcb]

Mine gets cold but if it's been out in the sun for a while it takes a while to cool down.

[tmclssns]

I'm on my second E87 now and the airco units (manual and automatic) just don't do it for me. (both black cars, black leather interior).

It takes ages (even when you put the windows down or use in-car air to cool it faster) before it gets to reasonable temperatures if it's been out in the sun. Once it gets to acceptable temperatures inside, it never gets "cold".

My wife has a black Vauxhall / Opel Vectra (black outside, light coloured interior) and even during the hottest summer days it gets (feels like it at least) up to freezing temperatures where you'd put on a coat or sweater.

Hope my ordered E82 white / boston terra interior gets less hot (and has better airco units compared to my previous cars).

[Tom K.]

In our current high humidity 95o weather, my '08 128i is very comfortable on Auto with cabin temps set around 68o. At a setting of 65o, it's too cold - same with my '07 E90 wagon. As long as they are properly charged, I have no complaint with BMW A/C.

Tom

[michifan]

I'm in Florida and I don't have any complaints about the A/C. My car cools down faster than my wife's Volvo - but the Volvo is bigger and has more glass.

[VirtuallyDevious]

I'm in Ontario Canada (where, contrary to popular belief, we actually have hot summers; it's not ALWAYS snowing) and the AC for my 1er seems pretty adequate. I like it *cold*, and I've had no issues getting the interior practically frozen in a short period of time. Helps that the exterior is white, though of course that becomes moot when it's garaged. Compared to my boyfriend's Infiniti SUV, though, the 1er gets colder MUCH more quickly.

[rc'Z]

FWIW: Some cars have the duct work for the air molded into the dash board. when the dashboard gets hot in the summer it transfers the heat to the coolant ducts and it feels like the air conditioning is doing nothing. I had a Prelude with that problem. Started keeping a white towel on the dash when parked and it made a world of difference inhow efficent the air worked. The AC in my MINI Cabrio seemed useless, but was black on black on black. My 335 convertible cools well, but has reflective interior that keeps it 30 degrees cooler than non reflective interior. The iDrive system vents the car when parked, does not run the air when parked. My American Suburban has dual AC units and in the high 90's, I can run it on low when on the high way and be on the chilly side. Dehumidifys great btw.

[Dak Tirque]

Well, its been over a month since my original post, got about 1200mi on the 1er. Here on the island we've had about three consecutive upper 80's low 90's temps. I've used the AC consistently in the last few days and it DOES seem colder than when I first tried it in May. Is it possible that it needed to break in? I really have to retract my original complaint, and I have black on black! It's still not as cold as my previous cars, but it does it's job nicely. Not a fan of how it robs me of my boost and hastens the heat soak, however.

[bimmerboy]

with a black/black car, even with tinted windows, on sunny 80+ days it takes a long time to cool the car off, i usually just roll the windows down anyways....

[GotM]

It was a 113F yesterday and 11F today, my car sits in the sun all day. I set the AC on auto at 65F. The fans starts slowing down off full speed in 3 mins, and drops off the second bar in about 5 mins. My car gets cool farily quick. I did have a 328 for a couple of days this week as a loaner...and that AC was less than adequate. There must be some variation on how well these AC systems work.

I am happy mine works well considering it is going to be well over 100 for the next several months.

[RPM90]

Originally Posted by Dak Tirque

Well, its been over a month since my original post, got about 1200mi on the 1er. Here on the island we've had about three consecutive upper 80's low 90's temps. I've used the AC consistently in the last few days and it DOES seem colder than when I first tried it in May. Is it possible that it needed to break in? I really have to retract my original complaint, and I have black on black! It's still not as cold as my previous cars, but it does it's job nicely. Not a fan of how it robs me of my boost and hastens the heat soak, however.

It's been hot and humid here around the Chicago area for it seems the past month. I've been running the AC almost daily. I never feel it rob me of any power, and the idle is smooth and solid, now that the AC system has been filled.

However, I do think I have a leak somewhere.
I bought my 135i about this time last year. The AC seem ok but not great during last summer. This early summer I had NO AC. It was blowing warm air. I knew it has to have a leak somewhere. But, the BMW tech said the system was simply low and he could spot no leaks. They filled the AC and added some dye and said they found no leak.

Well, I don't accept the "no leak" conclusion, simply because they have NO explanation as to where the refridgerant went from when it was filled at the factory. These are sealed systems, which means the R134 should have stayed the same, but it didn't. The system was so low that it only blew hot air, and it affected my idle. So, it had to leak out somewhere.

Now, after nearly 1.5 months since the fill, the AC feels not as cold as when it was filled., and it's taking longer to get it to feel cold.
I think it's a slow leak somewhere. It will probably last till the end of summer just like last year, and then I'll be back into the shop next spring.

I'm due for an oil service in the next couple of weeks. I'm going to get them to use a sniffer instead of relying on seeing the dye. The system could be leaking somewhere where they can't see the dye. The sniffer should be able to do a better job as it can sniff the air and detect a leak tha can't be seen.

[Dak Tirque]

Originally Posted by RPM90

It's been hot and humid here around the Chicago area for it seems the past month. I've been running the AC almost daily. I never feel it rob me of any power, and the idle is smooth and solid, now that the AC system has been filled.

However, I do think I have a leak somewhere.
I bought my 135i about this time last year. The AC seem ok but not great during last summer. This early summer I had NO AC. It was blowing warm air. I knew it has to have a leak somewhere. But, the BMW tech said the system was simply low and he could spot no leaks. They filled the AC and added some dye and said they found no leak.

Well, I don't accept the "no leak" conclusion, simply because they have NO explanation as to where the refridgerant went from when it was filled at the factory. These are sealed systems, which means the R134 should have stayed the same, but it didn't. The system was so low that it only blew hot air, and it affected my idle. So, it had to leak out somewhere.

Now, after nearly 1.5 months since the fill, the AC feels not as cold as when it was filled., and it's taking longer to get it to feel cold.
I think it's a slow leak somewhere. It will probably last till the end of summer just like last year, and then I'll be back into the shop next spring.

I'm due for an oil service in the next couple of weeks. I'm going to get them to use a sniffer instead of relying on seeing the dye. The system could be leaking somewhere where they can't see the dye. The sniffer should be able to do a better job as it can sniff the air and detect a leak tha can't be seen.

Let us know how this turns out... we will all be tested in the coming week in the northeast.. mid 90's and high humidity

I already miss the spring.....

[NewYearsBoy]

SlickShift... HAHA I agree this Fl weather is crazy hot in the summer... My old Lexus IS 300 cooled way faster than the 135i.. Plus the dashboard has warped from the heat... Also the Dash sweats to the point where it forms water on the top where the piping for the AC runs... WTF...