Auto temp control - pumping out a LOT of hot air

[jgt1942]

My 2006 RTL is new to me (BTW I really like it), yesterday was our first cold day here in AZ (today it was 25 degrees F) and I had the heating system set at 69 degrees in the auto mode and it would not stop pumping out heat. The air coming out of the left dash vent (next to the drivers door) was really hot. It got so uncomfortable hot that I was forced to turn it off and open some windows. A couple of months ago when it was hot I did not notice any issues with the cooling.

Any suggestions about the darn heat?

[Matt08RTL]

sounds like your heat works awesome!

[jgt1942]

Yes it is working too awesome. I expected the heat to reduce when the temp hit 69 degrees. When I was driving across country in the late summer the temp in the cabin stayed very comfortable this is was not true with the heat. I'm a bit cold nature so when the heat (temp) did not level off I was uncomfortable. I'm not sure how hot it really got but it was too darn hot and well above the 69 setting.

Possibly tomorrow I'll go by dealer and see if the temp sensor is working correctly.

[chiph]

Have them also check that the mix door motor is working correctly.

Chip H.

[jgt1942]

Thanks for the suggestion about the motor. Tomorrow in the AM when it is cold I'm going to run a test with my infrared temperature gauge and see what the temp is in various places and what the temp of the air coming out is. I know where the sensor is under the steering column and the center of the dash near the windshield, this of course will be two points of measurement. I will also measure the temp of the air coming out of the vents (front windshield, dash vents, etc.) I have a PDF copy of the owners manual and will reference it for additional places to measure. I just checked my PDF and on page 129 there is a picture showing all of the vents. FYI the locations are:

1. Driver Left (two locations)
2. Driver Right
3. Driver Floor
4. Passenger Left
5. Passenger Right (two locations)
6. Passenger Floor
7. Rear Driver Floor
8. Rear Driver Center
9. Rear Passenger Center
10. Rear Passenger Floor
11. Front windshield defrost (Driver and Passenger)

I talked to the dealer service today and he stated that when the cabin is cold the air coming out will be hot and max flow until the cabin temp is near the setting. I just know that it really gets uncomfortable before the hot airflow decreases to a reasonable volume. When I had a Mercedes the climate controls were super and I never got uncomfortable, the same is true for my Lexus. On that note I much prefer the Mercedes E320 over the Lexus RX350.

I just noticed in the manual that to adjust the driver and passenger temp individually you must engage the Dual button. Turning the Auto button on just turns on the automatic climate control. I can understand the Honda thinking but IMO the Dual button is a waste but they did not ask me.

[zroger73]

Originally Posted by jgt1942

I can understand the Honda thinking but IMO the Dual button is a waste but they did not ask me.

They didn't have to. Beginning in the 2009 model year, the DUAL button was deleted. There are many of us that miss it and wish Honda hadn't cheapened out on this "tiny" detail.

[chiph]

It's funny ...

I came home from work today and apparently the heat in the apartment ran all day. The thermostat was showing over 99 degrees indoors (maxed it out - felt hotter). Even after turning it off at the thermostat, it stayed on (normally would run 2-3 minutes and shut off, not this time), so I opened the circuit breakers. They were hot too. :/

Chip H.

[speedlever]

Wow. Would have been interesting on a 110*F August summer day.

What caused your heat to run all day?

For jgt1942, if you just turn the passenger heat control, the dual button will light automatically to let you know you are in split mode. Personally, I really like the dual mode and think Honda cheaped out by deleting it in 2009 and on.

Interestingly, Honda for the RL has a side to side dual mode. But in the Pilot (at least our 2006), the dual mode is front to rear.

[laserguy]

I had a hard time getting used to the dual mode I simply do not use it. If my wife feels cold she will turn the seat heat on. Another annoying thing, if a use AC and turn the engine off, when I turn It on, it gives a blank display and It is hard to tell he AC is on, then I have to turn it off and adjust the fan down in most cases.

[speedlever]

My wife uses the seat heaters all the time in the Pilot. But the RL doesn't have seat heaters... nor does it need them with the cloth seats. Not sure what you mean about AC and shutting down the engine. I rarely use anything but Auto on the HVAC controls. I will shut off the AC on days that don't need the conditioned air for cooling or humidity.

My standard routine it to shut everything off before I shut down the engine... too many years of aviating, I guess.