Question about heat and vent settings
 

Hi all,

I've had my '10 Fit Sport for a week now and I have a question about heat and vents. The air blowing out of the "feet heat" (i.e. floor) vents seems to be very weak even on full blast. With the dial turned to floor only, I can feel air blowing out of the side window vents and the front defroster vents, even if the air source is set to recirculating.

What I expected was for the side vents to blow only if the air source was set to fresh air. This is what happens in our '04 CR-V, where we know to set it to recirc if we want all air to go to the floor. I know I can close the side vents, but I can't close the front defroster vent, and I don't understand why air is coming out there even on recirc.

So, is this just a quirk of the Fit or do I have a problem?

And yes, I do know that it can take awhile to get heat out of the vents (I've read the other threads about this). I am concerned about the airflow, not the temperature.

The recirculate setting has no effect on where the air exits into the car.

Avoid using recirculate except to initially warm it up (or cool down in the summer) as this will trap moisture in the car and cause the windows to fog/ice up.

There are also floor vents that exit under the front seats to warm the rear passengers. It is really putting out a lot of air, it's just distributed.

Some air will continue to come out the side vents and side defroster even when floor only is selected. This helps keep the side windows clear. You can close the vents manually if you want.

This is consistent with other Hondas (and most non-American cars) I've had.

Don't be afraid to read the manual.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_xibTly9JtDk/Sy...ting%20and.jpg

Thanks for the response. While that addresses the side vent issue, what about the air I'm feeling coming out of the front defroster vent?

Same deal, it helps keep the side windows clear even when the floor vents are selected.

Luckily you can close the corner face vents, in case you enjoy cold drinks in the winter and like keep them in the corner cup holders.
I like the fact that air comes out of the window vents in feet only mode, keeps me from having to use the defrost mode, which turns on the A/C whether you want it on or not.

Dumb question: does defrost + foot also turn on A/C? It did in my Toyota.

Yes. (it's the so-called "defog" mode).