If you’re a new driver and in the market for a new car, you’re probably reading a lot about the various features available in different cars. Some cars have air conditioning. Others have climate control. Some might claim to have both.
Both systems are designed to maintain a comfortable temperature on the inside of the car. But what’s the difference? And if you’re thinking of buying a car, should you get one with air conditioning or one with climate control?
What is Air Conditioning in a Car?
Your car has a heating system. It heats up the as it enters your car, blowing it out through the ventilators to allow it to circulate. The air conditioning system directs this air through an evaporator, which causes it to lose heat and humidity. The blowing system then circulates this cooled and dried air around your car.
You can use the air conditioning system to set the ideal temperature in your car. If it’s too hot outside, you can use air conditioning to make things cooler. If it’s too cold outside, you can use air conditioning to make things warmer.
You have control over how warm or how cool you want this air to be. You can also control the intensity of the blowing. Turning the ventilators right up will result in either a strong gust of warm air or a strong gust of cold air, depending on how quickly you want to change the temperature in your car’s cabin.
What is Car Climate Control?
Some might say that climate control is just a fancy term for air conditioning. This isn’t quite true. Climate control systems takes away the need for you to manage the air con. The confusion might be there because climate control systems use the car’s existing air conditioning systems to function.
This means that all cars that have climate control also have air conditioning. But not all cars that have air conditioning have climate control.
What’s the difference between air conditioning and climate control?
Think of it this way: with air conditioning, you can change the temperature of your car at any given point but you’ll have to adjust the settings yourself. With climate control, on the other hand, you can set your ideal conditions in advance. The system will then work automatically to maintain these conditions, without your input.
The Benefits of Climate Control
With climate control, there’s no need to make constant adjustments to the system to ensure things never get too hot or too cold. Instead, you can just set your desired temperature and, using a computer and a series of sensors throughout your car, the system will take care of the rest automatically, leaving you free to focus on the road.
Another major benefit of climate control that you don’t really get with air conditioning: you can set different temperatures in different areas of your car. Maybe you like things to be cool, but your passengers are feeling the cold. With climate control, you can make things cool for you and warm for your passengers.
So with air conditioning, you might have to make countless small adjustments every time you want to change the temperature in your car. But with climate control, you may only have to set your ideal temperature once. Then you’ll never have to think about it again!
Should I Choose a Car With Air Conditioning or Climate Control?
Climate control is a complex and sophisticated system. So if you want a car with climate control, expect to pay more. Also, if anything ever goes wrong with the climate control system, it might cost a lot to get it repaired.
So if cost is your biggest priority when buying a car, choose one with an air conditioning system instead of a climate control system. But if you’re going to pay more for a climate control system, is it worth the cost?
Almost certainly!
If you have a big family with small children, climate control can help you to keep everyone happy. There’ll be no arguments about whether it’s too hot or too cold. Everyone can set their own ideal temperature!
In some cars, you can even set the system so that it preheats your car before your journey. So climate control can also make those cold winter mornings a lot less unpleasant. It works the other way too, so you can ensure your car’s cool and comfortable on the hotter days of the year.
One final thing to consider: if you’re not having to constantly adjust the air conditioning settings, you’ll be fee to focus on the road. This is not to say that air conditioning systems cause road accidents. But the fewer distractions you have in the car, the less likely you’ll get involved in an accident. In this small way, climate control just might make you a safer driver. You could build up a no claims bonus and, eventually, make savings on the cost of your car insurance.
