Decrease the amount of time it takes to cool your car off after it’s been sitting in the sun by using this simple six-step process.
Photo by jam343.
Even with fancy reflecting shades and window tint, leaving a car parked in the sun inevitably turns it into a blast furnace. How-to compendium wikiHow offers a simple guide to getting the hot air out as quickly as possible:
1. Roll down the windows.
2. Turn on the A/C on the fresh air setting, do not recirculate.
3. Crank the fan up all the way and make sure the thermostat is on the coldest setting.
4. Drive for a minute or two with the windows down, to force out the superheated air.
5. Once the air in the car begins to feel cooler than the outside temperature, then switch from fresh air to recirculate.
6. Adjust temperature using lower thermostat and fan settings.
We would add one more tip to their guide. Your car, with the windows rolled down, is essentially a bucket. If you adjust the airflow so the air is also blowing down into the foot wells, you’re more effectively displacing the air from the area of the car with the least air circulation and pushing it up and out the windows.
This trick works, albeit less effectively, even if your air conditioner is broken because the ambient air outside is usually a good deal cooler than the roasting air trapped in the car. Have your own car-cooling hacks? Let’s hear them in the comments below.
Edward Chan
July 14, 2009 at 8:24 AM
Before driving off and while the fans are on, open the boot or hatch. Also, open the doors completely for a minute or two (not just the windows). During this time, put the reflectors on the *outside* of the windscreen to stop the windscreen from heating any further.
While driving, direct air flow up to the windscreen, not the foot well. The hottest part of the car is the windscreen, and it will radiate heat into your face. That’s why the air con (which uses heat conduction) doesn’t seem cold – your face will be heated via heat radiation (from the windshield) which is stronger than conduction. Cool down the windscreen and you’ll feel cooler straight away.
Report Permalinksol95
July 14, 2009 at 8:55 AM
I know this sounds ridiculous on first reading, but it really does work. And when you think it through, the logic behind it holds up.
You open the backseat window on the opposite side of the driver. So for us in Australia, you open just the window of the back left door, leaving all other windows closed.
Then you open and close the drivers door about 5 or 6 times.
This looks ridiculous, but works by sucking the much cooler air from outside into the car as you open the door.
5 or 6 times makes it much cooler than getting into it straight away.
Once this is done, turn the car AC on. :)
Report PermalinkMike Williams
July 14, 2009 at 10:51 AM
If you have a sun-roof open that. That dissipates hot air very quickly. It’s actually one of the main reasons I had one installed on my vehicle, since I have dogs who sometimes have to get back into a hot car after time at the park.
Report Permalinkj0e
July 14, 2009 at 11:52 AM
Another option to opening ALL windows – which does not create proper airflow, is to (if you have a passenger car with four windows) open 2 windows diagonally to each other as this creates a directed airflow which dissipates hot air better. E.g. if you have your front driver window open, then you also open the rear passenger window or vice versa.
Report PermalinkWobble
July 14, 2009 at 12:47 PM
Go through a Car Wash with your windows down.
Report PermalinkTerence Boylen
July 14, 2009 at 1:20 PM
I also like to give the vehicle a squirt with the hose (on the lawn) just prior to setting off as the evaporation while driving cools the chassis.
Report PermalinkStef
July 20, 2009 at 2:08 PM
Wow. You’ll post a step-by-step on how to turn on a tap next.
Report Permalinkanthony
August 19, 2009 at 3:02 AM
LOLLLL!! @ Stef. I hate to say it but my thoughts exactly.
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