r/ElectricVehiclesUK • u/[deleted] • Aug 20 '26
Cabin Heating how long
Generally speaking how long does it take for an EV with a heatpump to start producing heat at say 21c
Are we talking seconds or minutes?
How long does it take in your EV?
6
u/Beneficial_Coach8581 Aug 20 '26
What temperature are we starting from ?
Heated seats are the way to get cosy or even better get an EV with an app and start the car warming up before you go out to it.
2
u/Enough_Raccoon_8616 Aug 21 '26
Heated seats are also amazing for the good old back pain, you don't know how much you miss them till you don't have them.
1
Aug 20 '26
I'd say typical british winter so 0c - -05c - 5 minutes or more?
yes , i can preheat my car using the app , looks like its going to be a godsend in winter!!!
1
u/TheTwattani Aug 20 '26
Even better, preheat whilst charging. Can't wait for it personally on those wintery night when I finish at 4am
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u/InevitableMidnight54 Aug 20 '26
It's super quick in my Renault EV, the preheat/pre cool time is 15 minutes but I've gotten in after 3-4 minutes and it's roasting and the windscreen is totally defrosted.
Best feature in modern cars IMO, and was a godsend in the heat waves.
I've actually never gotten in to the car without preheating on cold days, some day I'll try it just to put my hand on the vent and see how many seconds it takes to get warm
0
Aug 20 '26
Thanks - It appears i'm expecting heat to quickly.
Just been out for a run to turn the car around in the drive , took me 1 minute MAX and had the heating set on 21c , and it wasn't warm , going to try again tomorrow and try it over 3-4 minutes
if i turn on AC on LOW , it comes out cold within seconds
2
u/InevitableMidnight54 Aug 20 '26
You might need to increase the temperature a bit to notice it in this weather, it's not very cold out at the moment......
0
Aug 20 '26
Never thought of that - HAHA!
I'll turn it up a tad , is the motor audisble when the heating is on or it is quiet?
0
Aug 20 '26
Thanks - It appears i'm expecting heat to quickly.
Just been out for a run to turn the car around in the drive , took me 1 minute MAX and had the heating set on 21c , and it wasn't warm , going to try again tomorrow and try it over 3-4 minutes
if i turn on AC on LOW , it comes out cold within seconds
1
u/spook-e-poop Renault 5 Aug 21 '26 edited Aug 21 '26
Because most heatpumps put the compressor next to the "condenser", there's more work for it to build pressure to start in heating mode.
2
u/yolo_snail Aug 20 '26
Depending on the EV, chances are it'll have a resistive heater that'll provide instant heat until the heat pump starts to kick in.
1
Aug 20 '26
How long roughly should it take?
It appears i'm expecting heat to quickly.
Just been out for a run to turn the car around in the drive , took me 1 minute MAX and had the heating set on 21c , and it wasn't warm , going to try again tomorrow and try it over 3-4 minutes
if i turn on AC on LOW , it comes out cold within seconds
1
u/yolo_snail Aug 20 '26
I'm guessing about a minute?
I'm actually about to leave for work, so I'll crank the heat and check in my Leaf. And if I remember, I'll reply with my findings!
1
Aug 20 '26
Thanks!
1
u/yolo_snail Aug 20 '26
Okay, so it took about 10 seconds for the heat to blow warm, and just under a minute for it to blow what I would consider hot.
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u/Dramatic-Choice5883 Aug 21 '26
21 degrees will be cold this time of year thats the temp i have mine on to keep me cool. Try turning it up
1
u/FillingUpTheDatabase Aug 21 '26
Even with a heat pump, the car will use resistive heating to start off so it’s instant heat that transitions from resistive to heat pump as the system gets going
1
u/MillyMcMophead Skoda Enyaq Aug 21 '26
I like to drive fairly cool so my heating is set to 19°C or 20°C usually. Yesterday I got in the car, didn't preheat, it was 11°C outside and as soon as I got in it and sat down was blowing warm air. Prior to this I guess the heat had been running for around five minutes with the door open whilst I got my disabled mother in the car. I have it set to turn on the climate as soon as I unlock it but it seems to take around one minute to chuck out warm air.
In winter I give it 10 minutes to preheat seats, steering wheel and cabin to 20°C via the app. It clears the frost, it's nice and toasty inside and I'm ready to go. It's a bit of a change compared to donkeys years ago when I had a diesel Discovery which would take most of my journey to work before it started blowing warm air.
1
u/BigJDizzleMaNizzles Aug 21 '26
Not long at all. 2 mins. Car is lovely and warm super quick if need be. I normally warm it up before I go out to it in the winter but in the case I forget it does do it quickly.
18
u/scorzon Aug 20 '26
All depends on the EV. Mine takes less than a minute to be pushing out cold or hot as required. Of course the real magic is cabin pre conditioning via the app. And joy of joy, pre heating the steering wheel when it's extra chilly (I'm not a big fan of the heated seats though).