Does using the car's heater consume fuel?
1 Answers
Heating in a car utilizes the engine's cooling system. During the process of cooling the engine, a small fan directs the heat into the car's interior, so it does not consume fuel. Here are the details: 1. The working principles of heating and air conditioning are different. Air conditioning works by compressing the refrigerant to liquefy it and then vaporizing it, absorbing a large amount of heat from the air to achieve cooling. When the air conditioning is turned off, the mechanical connection disengages, the compressor pulley idles, and the compressor does not work, thus not increasing the engine load. When the air conditioning is turned on, the connection engages, the compressor pulley drives the compressor to work, increasing the engine load and consuming a certain amount of fuel. 2. On the other hand, heating uses the engine's cooling system. During the process of cooling the engine, a small fan directs the heat into the car's interior. When the heating is turned off, the fan stops, and the hot air vent closes, allowing the heat to dissipate into the atmosphere. Therefore, car heating is a form of waste heat recovery and does not consume fuel.