How does cabin heating work?

[WXman]

LOL, same thing, one is >0degC.

Not the same thing at all. One is moisture on the inside of the glass. The other is ice on the outside of the glass. Also, frost happens even above 0C/32F.

What I want to do is simply defog the windshield, which requires dry air. In other words, compressor should be on. Doesn't matter at all which vents the air is coming out of, as long as it's conditioned air.

Now if I get ice on the outside of the glass, then yes I'll use defrost setting. That'll come soon. Getting close to November.

Negative's is that it has the worst "auto" setting I've ever had in 20 years. It's like it's not reading the drivers temp accurately. I need to crank up the temp on cold days and drop the temp on hot days.

This echos my experience as well, but with a 24. My previous ICE F150’s worked great. I could set 70F and leave it there all year.

At least I'm not the only one.


Interestingly, I just looked in my 2025 owners manual and it states:

"When E-Heat is on, an electric heater warms the cabin and keeps the windows from fogging. Turning E-Heat off saves battery power, which extends your driving range. The electric heater is the only source of heat to warm the cabin."

Hmmm.....

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[TaxmanHog]

Not the same thing at all. One is moisture on the inside of the glass. The other is ice on the outside of the glass. Also, frost happens even above 0C/32F.

What I want to do is simply defog the windshield, which requires dry air. In other words, compressor should be on.




At least I'm not the only one.


Interestingly, I just looked in my 2025 owners manual and it states:

"When E-Heat is on, an electric heater warms the cabin and keeps the windows from fogging. Turning E-Heat off saves battery power, which extends your driving range. The electric heater is the only source of heat to warm the cabin."

Hmmm.....

I think the editor(s) in charge of revisions didn't capture the distinctions with the 24+ heat pump functionality.

 

[TaxmanHog]

in the 30 years of F150 ownership, the HVAC system controls have always been problematic, it's a FORD problem, I'm hoping the whizz-bang tesla kids coming to work for Ford have re engineered it for T3

 

[WXman]

I think the editor(s) in charge of revisions didn't capture the distinctions with the 24+ heat pump functionality.

That is very possible but even if I get in the truck and open up the climate settings on the screen it says the same thing.

 

[RLXXI]

Bingo.

I can't wait for the winter discussions of heat pump vs no heat pump trucks. Our 2022 heats great. I believe heat pump owners will not be happy with what I expect to be:

- slower heat
- noisier heat
- vibration

No extra noise or vibration. Heat pump works by simply reversing refrigerant flow.

 

[RickLightning]

No extra noise or vibration. Heat pump works by simply reversing refrigerant flow.

I guess the people that reported both noise and vibration are imaging things?

 

[P-38]

No extra noise or vibration. Heat pump works by simply reversing refrigerant flow.

You must not have heard the fans go to high speed to warm up the refrigerant when it's below 30. It's definitely more noise and a slight vibration from the fans running flat out.

 

[RickLightning]

https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/threads/first-night-with-the-heat-pump.23871/

https://www.f150lightningforum.com/...-heat-pump-noise-vibration.22363/#post-447143

https://www.f150lightningforum.com/...heat-pump-comparison-tests.22593/#post-439108

 

[RickLightning]

You must not have heard the fans go to high speed to warm up the refrigerant when it's below 30. It's definitely more noise and a slight vibration from the fans running flat out.

One of the challenges for people living in warm climates is understanding the behavior of features in a cold environment. "Heat pump works great" when you live where winter is 35 degrees may not apply when the temp is -20 degrees.

In Feb, we were in Idaho skiing, and the hotel had no charging. In the morning, the truck battery, after remote starting, was 15.8 degrees. With an 89.5% SOC, and 99.5% SOH, energy was 96.13kWh which works out to 107.4 at 100%. 130kWh at 99.5 SOH yet we were "missing" 23kWh...

 

[El Duderino]

I agree that there is noise I can hear and vibration in the steering wheel I can feel when the heat pump kicks on. Not unacceptable but noticable.

 

[RLXXI]

You must not have heard the fans go to high speed to warm up the refrigerant when it's below 30. It's definitely more noise and a slight vibration from the fans running flat out.

That's a possibility. Our climate during winter is much more forgiving than the northern climate.

 

[jwrezz]

I have not had to use the heat yet, only the heated seats and steering wheel. I can say that a couple weeks ago, when it was unusually hot for autumn, my co worker came out at the same time as me. I had started the hvac before I got into the truck. He said "this is the new, all electric f150?" my reply of "yes" had him ask "why is it so noisy?" As I got closer, I said it must be that I have the AC on. It can get quite loud when it needs to. I'm sure working in reverse, it'll be the same for the heat. I'll try it tomorrow morning. Heat pumps have gotten way more efficient in recent times. Below 0F isn't a big deal for home units. Maybe Ford made the switch without using the latest tech?

 

[RLXXI]

You guys up north could probably benefit from the seat and steering wheel heat. Down here not so much.

 

[RLXXI]

I guess the people that reported both noise and vibration are imaging things?

I'll have to try mine out when I get back to town. Haven't used it yet.

 

[F150guy]

I have a 24.

I never use Auto. Can't stand it. I prefer controlling the HVAC completely manual. Despite that it requires me hitting various menu items. But I can do it pretty quickly.

With that said, the Heat and AC icons will light up still automatically (annoys me to no end) driven by the temperature setting I also set manually. If I set it higher than ambient cabin temp, Heat lights up if I had it off. If I set temp lower AC lights up if I had it off. But Heat and AC icons seem to stay off if I turn them off a second time. At that point I think I have full control of all of the controls. It all starts over if I restart truck.

I switch the vents manually as needed. This is my preference.

I think I've hit Max defrost only once.

And my info button also says the only cabin heat is resistive like others mentioned. But I hear the Fans for heat pump activate if I change the temp or cabin fan to more extreme settings and outside the fans are quite loud when doing so.

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