Okay, so you’ve read our Zen Guide to Peaceful Road Trips, you learnt all about how heat can bring about car motion sickness, and now you just want the cold hard facts – “How the hell do I cool this car down?!”
Whether you use sun shades on the windows or window tinting to keep the heat out, Australian drivers can’t avoid the sun until they park beneath cover.
So, what can you do to get your automobile to cool off rapidly so you can get back on the road as soon as possible?
- Turn those windows down – all of them!
- Let the hot air empty out of the car by driving around with the windows down
- Switch the air conditioning to the very coldest setting, then crank up the fan power
- Ensure your air condition is set to fresh, rather than recirculating the air inside the vehicle
- Set your airflow to blow upwards, from the footwells
- When the air is cooler inside the car, wind the windows up.
- Then switch the air conditioning setting to recycle, so this cool air stays in the car.
Hey, about those aircon settings…
It’s important not to drive for super long distances with your air con settings on recirculate when the windows are up. Why? Because it’s gross. That’s why.
More seriously though, you should run some fresh air through the vehicle at least every couple of hours. By blowing air down into the foot wells you are forcing the hot air up and out, if you only blow cold air upwards then you will not cool the whole cabin of the vehicle.
These tips also work without the use of air conditioning, albeit less effectively, but you should still be able to achieve a cooler interior than exterior by removing the hot air.
Why remove hot air from the vehicle?
Now it’s fair to say that no one really wants to drive a sauna on wheels, and we’ll even go as far as to say it’s actually a bit unsafe.
The toxins that can be created in a hot car are another factor to be aware of. These days, we have a heightened awareness of the potential pollutants produced by materials stored in confined spaces in today’s world, and it’s at our peril that we ignore the facts.
It’s the same with your car. The car is full of different materials, from the flooring to the seat coverings and door panels, that in a highly hot situation may release more toxins than usual.
When getting into a heated automobile, take a moment to open the doors and let some of the heat and pollutants out before getting in.
What about sunshades?
Sunshades work well to keep the sun and its heat out of your vehicle. They can be used on the inner windows of the front and/or back doors.
Side window blinds that slide over the top of the door are also available – you know the type! Sunshades range in price from $10 to $75 depending on which kind you choose.
Although the effort required to keep them in the car and correctly place them may try your patience, some people swear by them. At the very least, they keep the sun off your gear lever and steering wheel, preventing them from being too hot to touch.
If worst comes to worst, keep those windows low
If you don’t have an easy solution with our air condition method, the best thing to do is just slightly open your windows.
This will just remove heat from the top of your vehicle, but it may be enough to lower the interior temperature to a more comfortable level. Just be super careful if you’re leaving your car unmanned – car thieves have a ‘golden eye’ when it comes to open car windows.
And it goes without saying, but we’ll say it anyway. On a hot sunny day, however you leave your car, ensure no dogs or children are left inside. This is serious and can be life threatening and is breaking the law.
Need help with your air conditioning? We’re here to help, and you won’t find any hot air where we’re concerned! Head over the service area to get started, and we’ll connect you with a local mechanic to help take the heat off.