Ignition/climate control question

[Aptera3390]

Originally Posted by n_dawg

source

Because the system runs while you are parked as well, the advantage is that you never get into a car that's more than one or two degrees above ambient temperature, it's always relatively cool.”

Your English must be different from mine…

I take this as running fans only to keep it just above ambient, so a solar panel would be sufficient. If you are parked in the shade, the interior will be close to ambient anyway, so it makes sense. This still means on a hot humid day, you will get into a hot humid car. Hopefully, the AC works to reduce heat and humidty like other cars or it will be very uncomfortable to drive, especially with very little windows to open.

For those that don't know, Carlsbad has some of the nicest weather in the world, and rarely gets above 80 with typically low humidity. This makes me wonder if they are testing this in more extreme weather areas to see just how well the AC works.

[n_dawg]

Originally Posted by garygid

Even though the "Climate Control" system might be technically "ON",
it is not always doing maximum cooling (or heating). Presumably it
can just run a fan to ventilate the cabin with outside "fresh" air.
In that mode, presumably, the heat pump is not running at all.

Ahh, so your English is different from mine. You see, when I say "the Climate Control system is on," I don't mean "the heat pump is on." I mean that it will be regulating the temperature (if you will, 'controlling the climate').

Hopefully they will do something like the Prius does.

[garygid]

OK, forget ON and OFF.

One can do nothing and let the cabin heat or cool (due to
solar heating or radiation, or due to convection). Of course,
this requires the least energy, but only occasionally drives
the cabin temperature in the desired direction. The cabin is too cold,
but the sun comes up and starts to warm the vehicle's interior.

Usually, there are only two other ways to "regulate the temperature":

1. Run the Heat Pump, pumping stronger (uses more energy),
or pumping less strong (using less energy). Usually this
would also require running at least one fan, to "circulate"
the air inside the cabin. If the vehicle is not moving, it would usually
also require running a second fan, to move outside air over the heat
pump's "exterior" radiator.

2. Blow more (or less) "fresh air" through the cabin.
This generally requires less energy then running the heat pump.
But, only occasionally does this drive the cabin temperature
in the desired direction, like when parked on a hot day and
the cabin temperature climbs over the outside temperature.
But, if it is 95 outside, and only 85 inside the cabin, bringing in
"fresh air" only makes the cabin temperature rise faster.
So, this "fresh air" fan should not be "always" running.

Thus, to do very much "regulating" typically requires substantial
energy, unless the outside temperature happens to be at (or near)
the desired cabin temperature.

When it is "nice out", we usually "open the windows", but in the
Aptera that will impact mileage, so running a "strong" fresh air
fan might be necessary.

Often it is not "nice, but it is too cold or too hot. Then, to keep
the cabin even near "comfortable" (varies by person), it is necessary
to "run" the heat pump, and use more energy than the solar panel
can provide.

Sometimes it is so humid (rarely in CA) that one wants to run
the air conditioner to take out much of the humidity, and also
run the heater to take the too-strong chill out of the air.

No, I do not know how one would do that with a simple heat pump.