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Auto Temperature/Fan Doesn't Seem Too Intelligent

mopac

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mopac Enthusiast

mopac

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My 2010 Nissan Cube at HALF THE PRICE of this 2018 Silverado handles automatic temperature control like a genius.  Virtually no fan at all when I start it up on a freezing day.  But as the engine warms up the fan gradually blows harder and harder and you feel the cabin slowly warm up.  As you're feeling it get warm you notice the fan is starting to ramp back down and the temperature of the air coming out of the vents is going down as well.  It's really "smart" whatever the algorithm they've programmed to look at outside temperature, engine temperature and inside temperature and adjust the HVAC air temp and fan speed in response.  The AC in the summer is similarly intelligent.  In 8 years of driving this Nissan I've basically had the temperature set to 68 all year long and I never have to mess with it.  Not so the Silverado, not so.  Seems like such a simple thing really.

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20165.3Eco Enthusiast

20165.3Eco

Posted
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It's very annoying huh ha. I don't think I have ever owned a vehicle that I actively disliked the HVAC system. When I was younger I had trucks with crappy heat because of clogged heater cores but not something with a flawed system.

 

Once the cab gets close to desired temp I find I am constantly adjusting the temp settings to remain comfortable. So much for automatic. 

 

I rode 2 hours to pick up a boat a few weeks ago in my Dad's 16 Ram with auto HVAC. I set the temp when we left and I think I adjusted it maybe once on the trip because the sun came out and made it a little to warm from hitting your body directly. Otherwise it was nice and comfy for the whole ride (which can also be achieved with simple old manual controls). 

aseibel Senior Enthusiast

aseibel

Posted
Posted

These new cabs are sealed so well that you need very little air blowing to maintain temp after its warmed up.

I drove my truck across the state for holidays several times with the kids. (5 hour ride) I've found the auto thermostat to work pretty well. Setting at around 68 keeps it warm enough for my wife and I'm not sweating. It usually blows only on the lowest fan setting I believe.

mopac Enthusiast

mopac

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30 minutes ago, aseibel said:

It usually blows only on the lowest fan setting I believe.

I'm going to have to dig through the owners manual again.  (And yes, I read it cover to cover.)  I don't remember any explanation on this auto fan setting.  It's not intuitive as to why you're setting a fan speed relative to auto.  Just doesn't immediately make sense.

15 Z71 Senior Enthusiast

15 Z71

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, mopac said:

My 2010 Nissan Cube at HALF THE PRICE of this 2018 Silverado handles automatic temperature control like a genius.  Virtually no fan at all when I start it up on a freezing day.  But as the engine warms up the fan gradually blows harder and harder and you feel the cabin slowly warm up.  As you're feeling it get warm you notice the fan is starting to ramp back down and the temperature of the air coming out of the vents is going down as well.  It's really "smart" whatever the algorithm they've programmed to look at outside temperature, engine temperature and inside temperature and adjust the HVAC air temp and fan speed in response.  The AC in the summer is similarly intelligent.  In 8 years of driving this Nissan I've basically had the temperature set to 68 all year long and I never have to mess with it.  Not so the Silverado, not so.  Seems like such a simple thing really.

Mine works just you described. My fan slowly picks up as truck engine warms up. I keep mine on 72 and works great. Hope you can get it fixed.

djw88 Enthusiast

djw88

Posted
Posted

i have to agree with the OP the auto setting is garbage compared to other makes. we have a few Infinitis and the automatic climate control was miles better i almost never had to fiddle with the settings it worked perfect.

 

im always messing with temp, fan speed, A/C (seems to always be on), direction... it is annoying compared to our past vehicles.

mopac Enthusiast

mopac

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17 hours ago, 15 Z71 said:

Mine works just you described. My fan slowly picks up as truck engine warms up. I keep mine on 72 and works great. Hope you can get it fixed.

Well, based on this and others suggestions I made sure my fan "auto" setting on the infotainment menu was "medium" and I bumped up the temp auto setting to 72.  It was 31 outside this morning and I didn't use autostart so I could hear the fan from the moment the engine started up.  This morning it seemed to work as I'd originally expected and as my Nissan does.  This is the first day it's been below freezing.  When I thought it aptly less than intelligently, blowing cold air on me at a pretty high speed when the engine wasn't near warm yet, I think the outside temps were in the 50s and I had the auto temp control set to either 68 or 70.  Perhaps it needs a much larger gap in temperature to do well in regulating fan speed.  So, at least this morning with the outside temperature at 31 (and the truck was sitting outside all night) and the dial set to 72 it performed intelligently enough for my comfort.  

 

Thanks guys.

sk Senior Enthusiast

sk

Posted
Posted

Just remember the AUTO setting doesn't just control temp -- it also sets the system to read things like inside humidity and the difference in temp between inside and outside.  It will adjust things like fan speed, upper/lower air vents, and the AC to account for these readings.  That's why sometimes even when it's cold outside you see the AC light on.  In this mode the AC is not really supplying cold air through the vents it's just pulling condensation out of the air to keep the windows from fogging up.

 

The AUTO on my 2015 LT works fine.  I have the fan speed set at Medium most of the time but during the middle of winter and summer I sometimes change it to High so that when I remote start it blows full blast.

mopac Enthusiast

mopac

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32 minutes ago, sk said:

The AUTO on my 2015 LT works fine.  I have the fan speed set at Medium most of the time but during the middle of winter and summer I sometimes change it to High so that when I remote start it blows full blast.

SK - Based on my playing around with the system, I think the fan blows full blast WHEN YOU REMOTE START no matter WHAT you have the Auto Fan Speed set at.

 

The manual is as obtuse and unhelpful as one could possibly imagine on the Auto Fan Setting. On page 163 it says only this about the Auto Fan Speed:

 

"This feature will set the auto fan speed.  Select Low, Medium, or High."

 

WTF is THAT supposed to mean?  My system this morning with a huge variant in outside temp (31) to inside auto temp setting (72) did seem to vary the fan speed higher as the engine warmed up and then lower it as the inside temp was reached.  The whole concept of "auto fan speed" seems a complete oxymoron to having a low, medium, high setting for said "auto fan speed."  I wonder if anybody understands how exactly those 3 values impact how the auto fan speed works.

BobJ Enthusiast

BobJ

Posted
Posted

Love my truck but GM has failed on this topic, my Grand Cherokee auto temp worked as you would expect AND you can set how you want it to behave when you autostart, do you want the heated seats and steering wheel on when autostarting? As a matter of fact you could set it to turn on the Seats and Steering wheel whenever you start it in temps below a certain number, Oh yeah the GC has auto UP on both front windows, Oh yeah, did not have to take key out of my pocket EVER.

tbarn Senior Enthusiast

tbarn

Posted
Posted

My '14,'15 and '18 all worked exactly as expected/designed. If it's a too warm, turn the temp down a degree or two. Too cold, turn the temp up a degree or two. No need to change any other settings unless defog/defrost is needed. Mine sits at 74 degrees + or- 2 degrees all year. Remember, the truck doesn't whether you run hot/cold or whether you a dressed in a tank top or a winter coat.

Brianibew Enthusiast

Brianibew

Posted
Posted

My 2003 Silverado auto climate control system was way more intelligent than my 2014 Silverado auto climate control ever was.  The 2003 could MAINTAIN a temp without an issue as with the 2014 I was turning the temp control up and down constantly.

kickass audio Enthusiast

kickass audio

Posted
Posted

I have never had any problems with the auto climate control on my 14 Silverado. When I start my truck (with either the key or my aftermarket remote start since I despise the factory one) and it is cold outside and my engine is not up to temperatures around 160, my fan speed is on low and the air is coming out of the top of the dash and the side vents on the dash right onto the windows at low speed. Once my truck gets around 160 degrees (takes me around 3-5 minutes of driving) it will ramp up the fan speed to high (I have my auto fan speed limit set to high) and continue to put out air on the defrost vents. Now if I have the system set to auto and it is really warm outside it will blow the air directly out of the upper vents that face forward and have the speed on high to try and cool down the cabin.

 

The only thing I have different between the aftermarket remote start and the factory remote start in my truck is that if I start the truck with the factory remote the blower will be at high speed on defrost until I turn the key in the ignition. On my aftermarket remote start it works the same as it does when you put the key in the ignition and the blower speed will be low until it's warm enough to put out warm air through the vents. I have yet to go through a harsh winter where my truck freezes over solid to test the difference between having the blower set to max speed regardless of the temperature my engine is at as opposed to having it speed up once the engine is warm enough. Logically it makes sense to keep the speed down until it warms up enough or else it will take longer to heat the engine since you are blowing off the heat before it can be sustained.

 

The only complaint I have is that when it is putting out heat, it does so with the defrost vents and a tiny little bit on the floor vents. When in auto and it is set to cool the truck it will blow the air out of the upper vents that face forward. Sometimes I would rather have it blow warm air out of the upper vents and not the defrost outputs but I know they are doing this to keep the windows defrosted.

 

Finally, another item I noticed people complaining about is the vents for the rear seats. Mine put out a great amount of air (way better than my old Envoy did) but it only sends air to the rear floor vents when you have the mode set to the floor. If you have the mode set to defrost only or high, it will not send any air to the rear vents. All GM vehicles have the rear HVAC vents sets to operate only through the bottom vents of the vehicle. 

15 Z71 Senior Enthusiast

15 Z71

Posted
Posted

Also what you need to remember is if its say 40 out and truck is sitting in the sun for awhile inside temp may be really warm. This has happened to me I start it and its blowing cold air. Auto thinks it's hot out. Green house effect..

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