Heater/Cabin Temp Management Suggestions and Observations

[smkettner]

I finally got to try the heater.
I expected instant heat like, say a hair dryer. Not happening. I put the temp at 90 (highest) and ran it at lowest fan speed. Lukeworm at best. I got tired of that fast and cranked up the fan to the middle. It took 1-2 minutes to finally feel the heat and warm up the car (outside temp about 40 F). I turned the fan down to one notch afterwards and it seemed fine with the heat output finally holding. So it actually works when needed.

Here is my suggestion for improvement. In older cars a turn knob does the analog temp setting that takes about 1 second to turn. In the last 20 years I have always kept it at 3 positions: cold, hot or middle of the range. I do not want to spend 15 seconds doing click click clik click and more click click clik clik up to 30 times to get from the battery-saving 60 F to range-anxiety producing 90 F and another 30 clicks to get back to 60 F again.

If Nissan thinks we need this degree-by-degree obesessive temp management then they need to change the clicking to holding the button that allows FOR FAST NUMBER RUN. Right now when I hold the button down it goes SOOOO SLOW that it is actually faster to change the numbers by going click click click.

Secondly, since most of the drivers I observed are like me, which is, hot cold or middle, why don't you, Nissan, just change the temp to increments of 5 as in 60, 65, 70, 75 ... all the way to 90. It will be scalable by 6 clicks, not 30 with pretty much the same result.

Just leave the temp set at what is comfortable and drive. No actual buttons need to be pushed if left in auto mode.

I mean do you set your home at 90 to get faster heat and then turn it down when comfortable?

Even an ICE takes a few miles to get the warm air blowing.

 

[CWO4Mann]

I tried to absorb everything on this particular subject before the Leaf was delivered. I like my warm and I like my cool, so to speak.

I've driven the Leaf just as I would drive another car, same routes, same accelleration, same heating and so forth. I have the timer set to do an 80% charge and shut off about 0300 hours. Then I pre-heat the car as it sits inside the garage for 15 minutes to 72 degrees. On my 12 mile communte to the nut house, it is very comfortable, including the few days when we had 20-30 degrees outside.

So far the km versus kw indicator says I am between 2.9 and 3.1, or average, I guess.

Works for me; haven't put gas in the Nissan Pathfinder for two weeks now. Spent the money on booze and ammo.

My plan is to drive the Leaf just the same as I would drive either my Pathfinder or my wife's Quattroporte
and see how the Leaf does in ordinary yoeman service.

Cheers,

Dave

 

[ghabel]

I tried to absorb everything on this particular subject before the Leaf was delivered. I like my warm and I like my cool, so to speak.

I've driven the Leaf just as I would drive another car, same routes, same accelleration, same heating and so forth. I have the timer set to do an 80% charge and shut off about 0300 hours. Then I pre-heat the car as it sits inside the garage for 15 minutes to 72 degrees. On my 12 mile communte to the nut house, it is very comfortable, including the few days when we had 20-30 degrees outside.

So far the km versus kw indicator says I am between 2.9 and 3.1, or average, I guess.

Works for me; haven't put gas in the Nissan Pathfinder for two weeks now. Spent the money on booze and ammo.

My plan is to drive the Leaf just the same as I would drive either my Pathfinder or my wife's Quattroporte
and see how the Leaf does in ordinary yoeman service.

Cheers,

Dave

+1, me too

 

[TonyWilliams]

I really thought Leaf was equipped with resistive ceramic heating. Now it all makes more sense and preheating is an obvious must. Thanks all for good input. Now Nissan needs to read it and take notes.

Nissan is working on a combination heat pump/resistance heater. I would guess it will be incorporated in the 2013 LEAF built in Tennessee, USA. Also, 6.6kW charger, and new colors.

Also, I think they'll have available electric/power seats. Not sure about leather.

 

[aqn]

Does D or Eco affect how fast the body of heater water heats up? Anyone know?

Check the wiki: LEAF owner's manual, page 4-12, top of rightmost column.

 

[thankyouOB]

Spent the money on booze and ammo.


Cheers,

Dave

If you are saving what I am saving -- $45 a week - that is a lot of beer and whiskey. or do you shoot it all up on targets on the weekends?

 

[CWO4Mann]

Spent the money on booze and ammo.


Cheers,

Dave

If you are saving what I am saving -- $45 a week - that is a lot of beer and whiskey. or do you shoot it all up on targets on the weekends?

:lol: Well, let's see here: 1 jug of Gentleman Jack Rye: $22.50; Reloaded 100 rounds of 3" 12 ga #8 + 100 clay birds: $$15.00; Looks like I am still saving a leetle bit o'green!

Good thing I don't have a Barrett with those big ole boogers costing $5.00 each -- and to think in my hover and strafe and keep their heads down days I must have shot up a couple of million bucks worth. Lord have mercy!

Cheers,

Dave

 

[countryleaf]

I tried to absorb everything on this particular subject before the Leaf was delivered. I like my warm and I like my cool, so to speak.

I've driven the Leaf just as I would drive another car, same routes, same accelleration, same heating and so forth. I have the timer set to do an 80% charge and shut off about 0300 hours. Then I pre-heat the car as it sits inside the garage for 15 minutes to 72 degrees. On my 12 mile communte to the nut house, it is very comfortable, including the few days when we had 20-30 degrees outside.

So far the km versus kw indicator says I am between 2.9 and 3.1, or average, I guess.

Works for me; haven't put gas in the Nissan Pathfinder for two weeks now. Spent the money on booze and ammo.

My plan is to drive the Leaf just the same as I would drive either my Pathfinder or my wife's Quattroporte
and see how the Leaf does in ordinary yoeman service.

Cheers,

Dave

+1, me too

+ another 1, me too. My other commuter car was a 2000 Nissan Sentra, about 35 mpg.
David

 

[johnr]

Someone posted here on the forums about buying a cheap 12 volt heater from Harbor Freight. Well, I didn't expect much, considering with the wattage limitation of a car's DC outlet how could it put out much heat. At $10 with coupon I figured it was worth a try. And I'm glad I did. It works great! Not enough power to heat up the car, but enough to help keep it at a reasonably comfortable temperature. The advantages, (1) it only uses about 150 watts as opposed to 2,000 watts or so for the car's heater; (2) it heats up instantly - no need to put up with 2-3 minutes of icy cold air before the heat starts coming in. Last night, driving to Fresno and back I used it, and was able to make the 120 mile round-trip easily with a 2-hour charge at the destination. Outside temperature was about 38 to 40 degrees. And everyone was comfortable inside. That said, the cord and fuse do get warm and they say not to use it more than about 15 minutes at a time. Of course, if I had to use the car's heater it would have dropped the range considerably; with this thing it makes virtually no impact. Anyway, that's my solution for now, and I'm quite happy with it. Whoever suggested this, thanks!

 

[GaslessInSeattle]

Someone posted here on the forums about buying a cheap 12 volt heater from Harbor Freight. Well, I didn't expect much, considering with the wattage limitation of a car's DC outlet how could it put out much heat. At $10 with coupon I figured it was worth a try. And I'm glad I did. It works great! Not enough power to heat up the car, but enough to help keep it at a reasonably comfortable temperature. The advantages, (1) it only uses about 150 watts as opposed to 2,000 watts or so for the car's heater; (2) it heats up instantly - no need to put up with 2-3 minutes of icy cold air before the heat starts coming in. Last night, driving to Fresno and back I used it, and was able to make the 120 mile round-trip easily with a 2-hour charge at the destination. Outside temperature was about 38 to 40 degrees. And everyone was comfortable inside. That said, the cord and fuse do get warm and they say not to use it more than about 15 minutes at a time. Of course, if I had to use the car's heater it would have dropped the range considerably; with this thing it makes virtually no impact. Anyway, that's my solution for now, and I'm quite happy with it. Whoever suggested this, thanks!

Thanks for posting this... We've started experimenting with seat warmers and such, we might just give it a try... it's amazing how effective some of the low wattage options are out there!

 

[mxp]

Someone posted here on the forums about buying a cheap 12 volt heater from Harbor Freight. Well, I didn't expect much, considering with the wattage limitation of a car's DC outlet how could it put out much heat. At $10 with coupon I figured it was worth a try. And I'm glad I did. It works great! Not enough power to heat up the car, but enough to help keep it at a reasonably comfortable temperature. The advantages, (1) it only uses about 150 watts as opposed to 2,000 watts or so for the car's heater; (2) it heats up instantly - no need to put up with 2-3 minutes of icy cold air before the heat starts coming in. Last night, driving to Fresno and back I used it, and was able to make the 120 mile round-trip easily with a 2-hour charge at the destination. Outside temperature was about 38 to 40 degrees. And everyone was comfortable inside. That said, the cord and fuse do get warm and they say not to use it more than about 15 minutes at a time. Of course, if I had to use the car's heater it would have dropped the range considerably; with this thing it makes virtually no impact. Anyway, that's my solution for now, and I'm quite happy with it. Whoever suggested this, thanks!

Glad it worked for you. Like I said, depending on where you live, the Harbor Freight job will do just fine. You get to keep the Watts for your trips. I haven't used climate control at all this winter. I do use the defogger from time to time when it fogs up but no more than 1 minute at a time.

;-)

 

[edatoakrun]

"johnr"Someone posted here on the forums about buying a cheap 12 volt heater from Harbor Freight. Well, I didn't expect much, considering with the wattage limitation of a car's DC outlet how could it put out much heat. At $10 with coupon I figured it was worth a try. And I'm glad I did. It works great! Not enough power to heat up the car, but enough to help keep it at a reasonably comfortable temperature. The advantages, (1) it only uses about 150 watts as opposed to 2,000 watts or so for the car's heater; (2) it heats up instantly - no need to put up with 2-3 minutes of icy cold air before the heat starts coming in. Last night, driving to Fresno and back I used it, and was able to make the 120 mile round-trip easily with a 2-hour charge at the destination. Outside temperature was about 38 to 40 degrees. And everyone was comfortable inside. That said, the cord and fuse do get warm and they say not to use it more than about 15 minutes at a time. Of course, if I had to use the car's heater it would have dropped the range considerably; with this thing it makes virtually no impact. Anyway, that's my solution for now, and I'm quite happy with it. Whoever suggested this, thanks!

The thread below goes back to 2010, and is interesting to read, as we were all wondering then how the heater would work (and now we know-not very well) before we got our LEAFs.

...I have used the cheap ($10-12$ from Harbor Freight) plug in 12 v "car heaters" for several winters, in various vehicles. Given the small output it might better described as a "hand (or other anatomical part) warmer", rather than a "space" heater.

But it does produce (some) instant heat, and has never blown it's own fuse, or that of my vehicle's 12 v outlet.

If I had a R A inducing winter drive, I would carry it with me in my LEAF.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=1629&start=20" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I wonder how many BTU’s your 4 passengers were producing on that Fresno drive, as compared to the 150 w heater...?

I've been carrying the 12 V heater, but there's been a long spell of sunny (and relatively) warm weather here in North California, and I've mostly used my (aftermarket) seat heater, instead.

I still need to figure out if I can run both at the same time. What amperage fuse protects the 12V leaf power outlet?

Anyone found one of these things, or other cheap and simple 12 V devices, at all useful for defogging (edit) or defrosting the windshield?

I believe it was Dave... who posted that he is using a dash mounted fan for this purpose.

 

[johnr]

I wonder how many BTU’s your 4 passengers were producing on that Fresno drive, as compared to the 150 w heater...?

I've been carrying the 12 V heater, but there's been a long spell of sunny (and relatively) warm weather here in North California, and I've mostly used my (aftermarket) seat heater, instead.

I still need to figure out if I can run both at the same time. What amperage fuse protects the 12V leaf power outlet?

Anyone found one of these things, or other cheap and simple 12 V devices, at all useful for defrosting the windshield?

I believe it was Dave... who posted that he is using a dash mounted fan for this purpose.

That is a good point. The passengers of course are producing some heat as well. The 12V heater helps keep it from getting cold inside if the car has been preheated before leaving, but it doesn't put out enough BTUs to actually heat the car. So don't expect too much from it, but for what it does I'm very happy. The Leaf has good insulation which helps too. The heater pretty much maxes out the allowable amperage, as the car's outlet is only rated at 10 amps. So I wouldn't plug in anything else while running the heater, unless it's something really low-powered like a cell phone perhaps. And yes, supposedly you can use it for defrosting the windshield, but I haven't tried that yet so I don't know if it would work well or not for that purpose.

 

[Navin]

I bought one of these heaters from Harbor Freight too. I'm very happy with the heater-- it keeps my feet warm and on the energy usage screen I don't see any difference at all when I turn it on and off. How do you know how much energy it's drawing? I'm back up to around 4.5 on the dash instead of 3.9-4.0 and zipping around more!

 

[NeilBlanchard]

We need to be able to just manually turn on preheat (and precool) when plugged into a EVSE. Doing it before the battery is fully charged or with a programmed setting is too complicated. We do not know ahead of time when we will need a preheat (or precool) and timing the charge to end right as you leave is also too complicated.

We need a direct heating defroster. Period. Every EV needs this.

I'd suggest a method like Ford did way back in the 1970's and 80's - a molecule thick layer of gold on the glass that heats it very quickly, and very efficiently. The e-Golf has this, but they use a set of tiny wires embedded in the glass, which apparently can impair the clarity of the glass in some situations.

PLEASE!

 

[Deleted member 14724]

We need to be able to just manually turn on preheat (and precool) when plugged into a EVSE. Doing it before the battery is fully charged or with a programmed setting is too complicated. We do not know ahead of time when we will need a preheat (or precool) and timing the charge to end right as you leave is also too complicated.

I agree wholeheartedly. Having to constantly set up a climate timer is annoying. Just let me tell the car to set the climate now!

We need a direct heating defroster. Period. Every EV needs this.

I'd suggest a method like Ford did way back in the 1970's and 80's - a molecule thick layer of gold on the glass that heats it very quickly, and very efficiently. The e-Golf has this, but they use a set of tiny wires embedded in the glass, which apparently can impair the clarity of the glass in some situations.

PLEASE!

This would be less useful to me, since the winters here are not too bad. But it would be nice to have as an option. Not sure it would be worth the expense, depending on how much it would then cost to replace a windshield, and how this feature would complicate chip repairs, but having the option, at least, would be welcome.

 

[edatoakrun]

Just wanted to update that after the last three drought winters (when I rarely needed any heat of defogging) I've finally needed to defog frequently over the last few months, and have found the 12 volt heater useful for defogging.

I just place it on top of dash, use the excess cord raise the front to elevate the flow, and it definitely helps to keep the windshield clear, if the windshield was clear to begin with (my drive to town) or following a pulse defog using the CC (on my return).

I've used it for 20-30 minutes, and the cord gets quite warm, but it's never blown the fuse.

"johnr"Someone posted here on the forums about buying a cheap 12 volt heater from Harbor Freight. Well, I didn't expect much, considering with the wattage limitation of a car's DC outlet how could it put out much heat. At $10 with coupon I figured it was worth a try. And I'm glad I did. It works great! Not enough power to heat up the car, but enough to help keep it at a reasonably comfortable temperature. The advantages, (1) it only uses about 150 watts as opposed to 2,000 watts or so for the car's heater; (2) it heats up instantly - no need to put up with 2-3 minutes of icy cold air before the heat starts coming in. Last night, driving to Fresno and back I used it, and was able to make the 120 mile round-trip easily with a 2-hour charge at the destination. Outside temperature was about 38 to 40 degrees. And everyone was comfortable inside. That said, the cord and fuse do get warm and they say not to use it more than about 15 minutes at a time. Of course, if I had to use the car's heater it would have dropped the range considerably; with this thing it makes virtually no impact. Anyway, that's my solution for now, and I'm quite happy with it. Whoever suggested this, thanks!

...I've been carrying the 12 V heater, but there's been a long spell of sunny (and relatively) warm weather here in North California, and I've mostly used my (aftermarket) seat heater, instead.

I still need to figure out if I can run both at the same time. What amperage fuse protects the 12V leaf power outlet?

Anyone found one of these things, or other cheap and simple 12 V devices, at all useful for defogging (edit) or defrosting the windshield?

I believe it was Dave... who posted that he is using a dash mounted fan for this purpose.