How to Turn on the Heater in an Electric Car?
4 Answers
Method to turn on the heater in an electric car: Electric cars have an air conditioning switch. Simply turn off the AC button and adjust the heater temperature. Below is a partial introduction about car air conditioning: 1. Air conditioning circuit: Car air conditioning is divided into high-pressure pipelines and low-pressure pipelines. The high-pressure side includes the compressor output side, high-pressure pipelines, condenser, receiver-drier, and liquid pipelines; the low-pressure side includes the evaporator, accumulator, return pipelines, compressor input side, and compressor oil sump. 2. Precautions: The car air conditioning should be turned on weekly even in winter to lubricate all parts. Additionally, the dust filter should be checked regularly and replaced promptly if too much dust accumulates. The condenser located at the front of the car should ideally be rinsed with a high-pressure water gun during each car wash to prevent debris from clogging the cooling fins and affecting cooling efficiency.
Turning on the heater requires starting the vehicle first, but you don't need to wait for the engine to warm up, which is really convenient. I usually just press the AUTO button on the AC, then turn the temperature knob toward the red mark to above 22°C. The fan speed automatically increases, and warm air comes out. If the car has a heated steering wheel and heated seats, I definitely prioritize using those—they save a lot more power than the AC. Using the heater in winter consumes a lot of power; once I set it to 25°C, and my range dropped by 30–40 km. I learned my lesson and now use recirculation mode to warm up quickly before lowering it to around 20°C. The remote temperature control feature is super practical—I turn on the heater 10 minutes before getting in while charging, so the car is already warm, and it saves some power. The cabin air filter should be replaced every 20,000 km, otherwise, the heater will start to smell musty.
After starting the car, locate the temperature knob with the red mark on the AC panel and turn it to the right to around 24°C. I prefer manually lowering the fan speed first and then gradually increasing it, which saves more power than auto mode. Remember to turn off the AC button before switching to heating mode, otherwise the compressor will waste energy unnecessarily. Last winter, I noticed the windshield tended to fog up when using the heater. I later learned to first activate the external air circulation to defog the windshield, then switch to internal circulation once the temperature stabilizes. Seat heaters are a game-changer – with a warm back, you can actually lower the AC temperature. Heating consumes significant power, adding about 7-8 kWh per 100 km. On long trips, I always calculate the remaining range before using it. No need to set the temperature too high – 23°C is actually quite comfortable.
My operation is super simple: press the ignition button to start, directly press the AUTO button on the center console, and turn the temperature knob to around 25 degrees. Wait three minutes and the warm air will come out. For heating, it's best to select the recirculation mode to warm up faster, but remember to switch to external circulation for ventilation after half an hour. The steering wheel heater is a must—once your hands are warm, you don't need the AC temperature too high. Using the heater drains the battery significantly, which doesn’t matter for short commutes, but for long trips, I turn on the heater while resting at charging stations or remotely preheat the cabin after charging. Once, with only 50 km of range left on the highway, I adjusted to 20 degrees with low fan speed and barely made it to the charger. Try not to open the rear AC vents when using the heater to save some power.
