What temperature setting for car air conditioning saves more fuel?
2 Answers
Setting the air conditioning temperature between 22-25°C with the fan speed at 2-3 levels provides a comfortable experience throughout the year. Under these settings, neither the air conditioning compressor nor the blower needs to operate at high loads, which helps save fuel to some extent. Air conditioning systems can be categorized by drive type: Independent type (uses a dedicated engine to drive the compressor, offering large cooling capacity and stable operation, but with higher costs, larger size and weight, mostly used in large and medium-sized buses) and non-independent type (the air conditioning compressor is driven by the car engine, with cooling performance significantly affected by engine operation, less stable, mostly used in small buses and sedans). By performance, they are divided into: Single-function type (separate installation of cooling, heating, and ventilation systems, operated independently without interference, mostly used in large buses and trucks) and integrated heating-cooling type (cooling, heating, and ventilation share the same blower and air ducts, controlled on the same panel, which can be further divided into combined type where heating and cooling work separately and mixed temperature-control type where they can work simultaneously. Sedans mostly use the mixed temperature-control type). By control method, they are classified as: Manual type (adjusting temperature, fan speed, and air direction via function keys on the control panel) and electro-pneumatic control (using vacuum control mechanisms to automatically regulate temperature and airflow within preset ranges when function keys are selected).
Oh, I just thought about this issue. The car's air conditioning compressor is driven by the engine, and the lower the temperature setting, the more fuel it consumes. I tried setting the temperature to the lowest, and the engine sound noticeably became heavier, with fuel consumption going up directly. In summer city driving, I now keep it fixed at around 24°C, which feels the most balanced. Any lower and the compressor works overtime, with the fuel tank dropping like a timer. If the car is under direct sunlight, I always crack the windows open a bit to let out the hot air before turning on the AC, which saves a lot of effort. It's recommended to set the fan speed to medium, as the highest setting increases the compressor's workload and consumes more fuel. Actually, a temperature difference of 5-8℃ between the inside and outside of the car is the most comfortable and doesn't strain the engine. Remember to change the filter regularly—if it's clogged, efficiency drops and it consumes more fuel.
