My honda blows air out cemter vent at 38-40 F in summer. When we lived in super humid and hot Houston, the japanese cars were barely able to keep up with the heat, the american cars were great, esp chrysler air temp
Last edited:
What vehicles have really good AC?
- Thread starter Vern_in_IL
- Start date
Surprisingly the HVAC in my 2015 Pilot is very strong heat and AC across entire vehicle.
My 1988 VW Jetta GLI 16V had freezing/coldest AC and heat that would nearly burn you.
My 1988 VW Jetta GLI 16V had freezing/coldest AC and heat that would nearly burn you.
- Joined
- Jul 10, 2022
- Messages
- 5,951
I had always heard BMW = no good. Mine seems fine. My 2006 Toyota product is "freezing." What I mean is say 95F and humid, on max, uncomfortably chilly, in the cabin. My wife's 2011 GM which is a SUV and has a rear evap (seems GM is notorious for rear evap failures across many models), by far the worst. I have measured the temp and even tried recharging. imho car AC and home is not the same. In a home, we don't simply say it should blow xF out the vents, we're looking for a 20-22F drop from ambient temp. It seems that with cars, on YouTube, people are looking for 42-48F and it varies with rpm (MAC tools makes a thermometer with a color range that is fixed). I don't see how if you're in Las Vegas and it's 118F, one can expect 42F out the vents 
Many newer cars have good A/C. But I agree, pretty much any Ford truck I've been in you can hang meat in them with the A/C cranking... goes for the Panther chassis vehicles also.
All my G.M vehicles [Caprice Impala Cadillac] were awesome. Same goes for my 2016 Tahoe. My Ford Panthers were awesome also.
The worst 2 vehicles with horrible A/C was a rental Nissan Altima and rental Dodge 200. It could not keep up in Miami jungle heat.
The worst 2 vehicles with horrible A/C was a rental Nissan Altima and rental Dodge 200. It could not keep up in Miami jungle heat.
If you can keep the freon from leaking out. FoMoCo's vehicles have been notorious about developing leaks for... forever. I know that they are mostly easy to fix O-Ring problems, but they ALL eventually need this repair, every Ford that I have ever owned did.
I don't know what it is about Mopar's evaporator failure problems. It seems like everyone I know who has one for any length of time has had to replace an evaporator.
The coldest I've had is my 2014 Tahoe. When I first got it from auction, it was overfilled with refrigerant and wouldn't cool right at all. Found a leaking Schrader valve on the low side as the reason for someone overcharging it. Replaced the valve, pulled a good vacuum, recharged with the correct amount of r-134a.
The little electronic temp gauge I put in it showed -4°F while going 70 mph down the highway on a 85° day. I had to check and make sure it wasn't set at Celsius, because I've never seen an A/C that cold.
My 2019 F150 with the r-1234yf would get down to 10°F
My 2015 F150 with r-134a gets to 25-30°F
I gotta check the Crown Vic, but I know it's extremely cold.
In general, I've always thought Ford heat and A/C was best overall. Haven't been impressed with Nissan and Dodge. Toyota and Honda have always done well for me.
The little electronic temp gauge I put in it showed -4°F while going 70 mph down the highway on a 85° day. I had to check and make sure it wasn't set at Celsius, because I've never seen an A/C that cold.
My 2019 F150 with the r-1234yf would get down to 10°F
My 2015 F150 with r-134a gets to 25-30°F
I gotta check the Crown Vic, but I know it's extremely cold.
In general, I've always thought Ford heat and A/C was best overall. Haven't been impressed with Nissan and Dodge. Toyota and Honda have always done well for me.
All of the Honda's seem to be excellent.
Toyota hybrid's with the electric compressor are generally quite good, though my Prius has not been great in the last few years - despite a new condenser and several evac/recharges. Perhaps the compressor is just getting tired.
My truck is terrible - in line with most Mazda products. The 2019+ Ram DT's, even with the "TSB fix," are not great at all.
Toyota hybrid's with the electric compressor are generally quite good, though my Prius has not been great in the last few years - despite a new condenser and several evac/recharges. Perhaps the compressor is just getting tired.
My truck is terrible - in line with most Mazda products. The 2019+ Ram DT's, even with the "TSB fix," are not great at all.
What's the, "TSB fix"?
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10184775-9999.pdf
It went from terrible to tolerable. When it is >100F outside, I don't think I have ever seen vent temps below 50F.
Does anyone know if there is a cheaper, more available replacement for R-12, that can be used in an older R-12 system without changing out anything?
Yeah I have to say the AC is kinda weak in my BMW. It's decent if you are on a longer trip and it has been running for a while, but seems to take some time to cool the cabin. The heat is fantastic though. I have heat by the time I reach the end of my street on the coldest of days.
On the contrary, my '98 Jeep Wrangler has amazing AC. Even with the doors and roof off if I turned the AC on it is cool enough to feel it. With the top and doors on it is quick to cool down inside, probably because of how small the interior is. It was previously a California vehicle, so I'm betting the AC was well used and serviced.
The weakest AC by far is my mom's 2011 Honda Fit. For such a small car the AC is terrible, and on top of that it also creates a very noticeable amount of drag on the tiny engine. It has been checked a few times, and everything is working as designed.
The best AC I've ever experienced was a 2000 Ford F-350 Super Duty, single cab with 7.3 diesel. I used to drive that truck when I worked on a farm, and it would often be left idling for a bit while I loaded stuff on it, always got back in to a freezing cab.
Coldest and fastest AC system I ever had was surprisingly an r134a converted factory AC system in a beater 1977 GM Suburban I owned a few years ago.
Second would be the 2015 Volt I have now.
My 2010 Ford Escape always had lame AC.
My 1997 Yukon has decent AC but it better, I just replaced the compressor a month ago LOL.
Second would be the 2015 Volt I have now.
My 2010 Ford Escape always had lame AC.
My 1997 Yukon has decent AC but it better, I just replaced the compressor a month ago LOL.
Mercedes Benz.
Similar threads
