No heat in -15c and colder temps (partially fixed with the HVAC update)

[mkhuffman]

I am fully convinced a metal roof instead of my glass roof would make a big difference.

You can feel the cold air seeping off the glass, but the padding below my metal roof is the same temperature as the cabin. As Lee said, it is a very significant factor. Cover it like Lee did if you can.

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[camdenlake]

So weird some people's vehicles have this issue. I think it's a software issue of some kind, a glitch of sorts.

I have had no issue with mine. I park outdoors plugged in overnight.

My climate controls are set to 20°C with my heated seat and steering wheel as auto.

I remote start my vehicle anywhere from 5-10 min and I find the cabin comfrotable.

Even last week when temps reached -27°C I had no issues. I've never felt uncomfortable/cold in my MME.

What if you dont use seats and wheel. just curious. Not sure where you are but in my area i think those temps wont be back for this winter.

 

[slimothyjames]

What if you dont use seats and wheel. just curious. Not sure where you are but in my area i think those temps wont be back for this winter.

I don't think it would be an issue. The cabin's air is comfortably warm. I often end up turning off my seat/wheel if I'm driving a while.

 

[camdenlake]

I don't think it would be an issue. The cabin's air is comfortably warm. I often end up turning off my seat/wheel if I'm driving a while.

Very interesting. Where abouts are you located? Pm that if you want.

 

[Guy]

-

The problem with this idea is not taking into account temp loss in the vehicle and glass. With fan on low air feels warmer but in short time the car gets colder. Tried that last winter.

josh
.

Very interesting.
what was the ambient temp outside approx? I assume max ac you mean max defrost?

-27C , yes max defrost.

 

[Devbloggs]

I've never had issues within town, or the city, nor when remote starting and the vehicle sitting still. For me its when I drive on the highways in rural areas, where there's nothing but farmland on either side. The wind just cuts under the vehicle and chills the battery, precondition or not

Funny thing, decided to sear for "cabin heat" in the lighting forums, couldn't find any posts about poor cabin heat. Almost like Ford figured out that they need a bigger heater

 

[Womps]

I've never had issues within town, or the city, nor when remote starting and the vehicle sitting still. For me its when I drive on the highways in rural areas, where there's nothing but farmland on either side. The wind just cuts under the vehicle and chills the battery, precondition or not

Funny thing, decided to sear for "cabin heat" in the lighting forums, couldn't find any posts about poor cabin heat. Almost like Ford figured out that they need a bigger heater

There are complaints on the Lighting forum. There is an owner that had a diesel heater he retrofitted in his Lighting. Problem solved he said.

 

[shadowchan454]

I've never had issues within town, or the city, nor when remote starting and the vehicle sitting still. For me its when I drive on the highways in rural areas, where there's nothing but farmland on either side. The wind just cuts under the vehicle and chills the battery, precondition or not

Funny thing, decided to sear for "cabin heat" in the lighting forums, couldn't find any posts about poor cabin heat. Almost like Ford figured out that they need a bigger heater

I have driven 3 separate Lightnings at the dealership just to test them on the highway and all I can say are the same as what you describe. They flag the truck as a work spec truck and it requires higher power output and wattage. It can run a house on its battery for crying out loud.

 

[camdenlake]

I have driven 3 separate Lightnings at the dealership just to test them on the highway and all I can say are the same as what you describe. They flag the truck as a work spec truck and it requires higher power output and wattage. It can run a house on its battery for crying out loud.

So the lightings are better than your Mach e ? I have heard the heater is bigger but no public spec yet.

 

[shadowchan454]

So the lightings are better than your Mach e ? I have heard the heater is bigger but no public spec yet.

No complaints on my end so far. I haven't put it through its paces yet but it seems to be keeping up. I noticed theres a "focus driver" function for the HVAC system.

 

[camdenlake]

No complaints on my end so far. I haven't put it through its paces yet but it seems to be keeping up. I noticed theres a "focus driver" function for the HVAC system.

Interesting. Neighbour has one and says it’s great.
Josh

 

[Phrozen]

Here in central Alaska, I experience the same climate control issues you are seeing at very cold temps, and that's with two different Mach Es over approx. two years. And, yes, I too have received the climate control updates.

I do one major thing that largely mitigates the problem. I try to NEVER use the climate fan at its max speed in very cold temps. If the auto defrost comes on, I immediately deselect it. Since the auto defrost seems to come on even when the windows aren't fogged, immediately deselecting it doesn't impact my visibility. When the windows do start to fog, I manually selected defrost for 15-20 seconds or just long enough to clear the windows. I also manually cycle between the windscreen and floor and dash vents.

For normal heating, I use manual climate control and keep the fan as low as possible - until the temps drop below -10 to -15F the heater does a good job of keeping the interior warm.

I would be surprised if your dealer actually finds a component that needs replacing. I believe Ford may want to offer a larger heater option for far north deliveries.

My Lightning heater's performance is better, although still not perfected. I think the reason may be that Lightning may have a larger inline heater due to the larger battery pack. Using the Car Scanner app, I've seen a peak heater output of 10kW in the Lightning, but have never seen more than 8kW in the Mach E. Those numbers make sense since the Lightning's battery pack is ~33% larger. That's just speculation, though.

One other possibility is the coolant is starting to have ice crystal growth and those crystals are inhibiting the flow in the coolant\heating hoses and associated bends and junctions. I read somewhere the coolant in the Mach E is only formulated to -25 or -30F (I don't remember the exact number the dealer told me). I don't know about MB, but standard delivery procedure for new ICE vehicles here in AK is to flush and refill the vehicle's system with a -50 or -60 formulation for the vehicle fluids. I asked my dealer about doing that to my Mach E, but after checking with Ford they said it would cost some crazy amount to do (like $400) because of the size and complexity of EV cooling systems. Also, if Ford EV's system work like I've been told they do, the vehicle should automatically heat the coolants to prevent it from getting too cold to ice up and burst hoses like ICE vehicles experience here.

Also in Fairbanks, and my Mach-E has been working well enough down to -45.

Crystalization in the coolant is an interesting theory, though, and would explain the couple times I have had minor issues after long durations un-garaged. I might go ahead and flush with pure cold weather coolant next fall.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Also in Fairbanks, and my Mach-E has been working well enough down to -45.

Crystalization in the coolant is an interesting theory, though, and would explain the couple times I have had minor issues after long durations un-garaged. I might go ahead and flush with pure cold weather coolant next fall.

Ford spec is 60% max glycol concentration or it gets too viscous to pump and has reduced heat capacity. Do not replace with 100%. You can suck out what’s in the bottle and replace with concentrated Motorcraft Yellow if you want to bump up the glycol concentration a bit. Let it mix and check the concentration a few days later and adjust within spec.

 

[Womps]

There are complaints on the Lighting forum. There is an owner that had a diesel heater he retrofitted in his Lighting. Problem solved he said.

But maybe he installed the diesel heater for extra range and not heat. I’m not sure.

 

[camdenlake]

Also in Fairbanks, and my Mach-E has been working well enough down to -45.

Crystalization in the coolant is an interesting theory, though, and would explain the couple times I have had minor issues after long durations un-garaged. I might go ahead and flush with pure cold weather coolant next fall.

Are you the brave Alaskan that did the super cold test last year ended up charging on 110v a couple times. ? Have you measured vent temps after or during some highway driving?

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