Idling in the Desert for AC

[Vlaak]

Hi all,

This summer I'll be on an photography event where we'll be out in the desert SW (starting from Page AZ). We'll probably be in some pretty remote places with some nights car camping.

There is talk of running the AC through the heat of the day while napping maybe (then doing photography during the sunsets/night).

I've never really idled a car for more than a few minutes so I'm a little nervous about it. Would idling the car for a few hours (or maybe even longer) through August AZ heat hurt anything?

I have a 2025 LC/LC

Thanks for your advice!
Marshall

 

[EOD Guy]

The LC's air conditioner runs off the hybrid battery. If you put it in park with the engine running, you'll be fine and you'll be nice and cool until it runs out of gas........ just answer the question on the dash when it comes up about auto-shutting off the engine after one hour etc......

Mine cycles on and off on a 20 min cycle, engine on 20 min, engine off for about 15.

 

[Noctilucent]

for mine if you turn the Air off from the front vents but use the rear controls to set the ac on low(lowest fan speed set to max cool) it seems like the engine kicks on less frequently I'll have to test the timer, I'd guess the engies off around 30mins then kicks on for 10mins cycles. this is in around 90 degrees. I'd like to hear from some folks who have boondocked in their Lcs with the ac on. so far this has been one of our LCS strengths.

 

[justaprado]

Interesting. @EOD Guy would your solar panel on the roof help with this? i think i saw you mention installing one in your build thread.

 

[BlueCruiser]

Depending how often you go out and how much you want to invest, you could build out a system with the following infrastructure:

1. A vehicle shade tent. It can lower the temp in the vehicle significantly. (20 degrees or more?) Harbor Freight has this one for $129.

2. A portable AC that you connect to a portable battery bank that you connect to the inverter. You can also simultaneously charge from solar panels. Then run th AC in a pop up tent with a shade cover.

Ecoflow makes both the AC and battery banks. The equipment plus tent gear costs $2K-$3K but of course can be used for many situations and has the added benefits of being able to displace and stretch out away from the vehicle.

EcoFlow WAVE 3 Portable Air Conditioner | WAVE 3

EcoFlow WAVE 3 offers fast cooling and heating with up to 8 hours of wireless use. Easy to set up—perfect for camping, RVs, and off-grid living.

us.ecoflow.com

Either way, as I am sure you know, the desert temps in the summer are a serious matter. If you are going to be out all day then you somehow need to figure out a way to reduce exposure to the sun's energy.

 

[EOD Guy]

Interesting. @EOD Guy would your solar panel on the roof help with this? i think i saw you mention installing one in your build thread.

Not at all, the solar is a trickle charger for the 12v battery and the AC is powered by the Hybrid battery.

I do have some solar panels for recharging/assisting in my EcoFlo power bank system.

 

[justaprado]

Not at all, the solar is a trickle charger for the 12v battery and the AC is powered by the Hybrid battery

Copy. On that note, I noticed in the manual that the battery level in the "Max" dash display names it as 12V. Erroneously, I'm guessing - that should be the Hybrid battery, right? The only level we have the 12V in the dash is on the Voltmeter/Oil Pressure option, correct?

 

[justaprado]

Copy. On that note, I noticed in the manual that the battery level in the "Max" dash display names it as 12V. Erroneously, I'm guessing - that should be the Hybrid battery, right? The only level we have the 12V in the dash is on the Voltmeter/Oil Pressure option, correct?

Page 101:
■ Electric Boost Gauge/SOC (State of Charge) gauge Electric Boost Gauge A Shows that the power of the motor assists the engine. B SOC (State of Charge) gauge Displays the current amount of charge remaining in the 12-volt battery.

 

[EOD Guy]

There are several discussions concerning "if the manual was misprinted" when it talked about which gauge read what..... 12 volt vs Hybrid. It caught my attention initially when my LC was new, but once I figured out the hybrid function wasn't what I thought it was and the SOC of the hybrid wasn't important at all, I didn't worry about it anymore.

IMO, the 12v battery is more important than the hybrid. The vehicle will not start if the 12v battery is low. Now that's not saying, when/if the hybrid battery ever goes flat, I won't change my mind of which is more important.......... LOL

 

[justaprado]

There are several discussions concerning "if the manual was misprinted" when it talked about which gauge read what..... 12 volt vs Hybrid. It caught my attention initially when my LC was new, but once I figured out the hybrid function wasn't what I thought it was and the SOC of the hybrid wasn't important at all, I didn't worry about it anymore.

IMO, the 12v battery is more important than the hybrid. The vehicle will not start if the 12v battery is low. Now that's not saying, when/if the hybrid battery ever goes flat, I won't change my mind of which is more important.......... LOL

hah. got it. threadjacking here, but I have a noco boost and a noco trickle charger. guess i should just install the latter to be ready.

 

[EOD Guy]

hah. got it. threadjacking here, but I have a noco boost and a noco trickle charger. guess i should just install the latter to be ready.

To be honest, most people who drive their LC daily, don't seem to have an issue with the 12v going flat. Those of us that regularly have the doors/hatch open for extended periods of time seem to be affected the most. Now that being said, I would definitely keep the jumper in the LC.

 

[Vlaak]

I really appreciate your guys feedback. For me, this is likely a unique scenario for just this summer's trip so I probably wont go after some of the more robust solutions mentioned. Good to know I can idle for long times in the heat though as needed. Also interesting to learn that the AC is run from the battery. This vehicle is so clever the more I learn about it

BlueCruiser, good points about finding ways to block the sun. My companion on the trip is bringing something similar actually for us to setup for shade, so shading the car might be just the thing.

 

[BlueCruiser]

Sorry if this is too obvious but another trick to try with the shade tent is to orient it with the shortest side facing east/west. Studies from the construction industry have shown that by doing so, the building (or in this case the vehicle) can be exposed to up to 25% less energy from the sun.