Windows misting in 2025 model HS PHEV

DickBrowne

DickBrowne

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Nov 25, 2024
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Location
Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England, GBR
Driving
HS Trophy
Hello everybody - I am amongst the luckiest boys in the world, for I have a brand new HS PHEV (ok, that may be an exaggeration, but I do really like it!).

In 90% of circumstances, it is the perfect car. It carried all the Christmas shopping yesterday, it’s good at long distance runs l, easy to drive around town, and the 75 mile (alleged) EV range is enough for most of my needs.

It isn’t without its quirks, but I may post a new thread about those, as this one is to ask a specific question.

It’s quite rainy here in the UK at the moment, and I’m finding that whenever it starts to rain, the windows mist up and I have to keep the demist function running permanently to keep the windows clear, which is noisy and annoying.

I’ve got the AC turned on, temp set to 22, recirc off (bringing air in from the outside). I don’t see how it would be relevant, but I use the car in HEV mode rather than EV.

I’ve cleaned the windows properly, and checked the carpets for any sign of leaks (I hand washed the car over the weekend and checked all of the openings afterwards). No leaks are obvious.

I did wonder if it was a quirk of the car, so I rang the salesman I bought it from, but he said that he’d sold the same model to numerous people without any streaming issues I thought, well, he would say that, wouldn’t he? So I called my brother in law who also has a new HS and he confirmed that he had no issues with steaming, so the sales guy may well have been telling the truth (shocker!)

Has anybody else had an issue with steaming windows on the new HS, and if so, how did you resolve it?
 
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You did every configuration that is usually done in a car to avoid steaming windows, If others have the same issue that is a general problem of the car. But if not, and this is the case apparently, there is something in yours that the salesman should solve. Is the air conditioning properly working? It is difficult to say in winter but my feeling is that you have problem there, maybe it is out of gas.
 
Upvote 0
DickBrowne said:
Hello everybody - I am amongst the luckiest boys in the world, for I have a brand new HS PHEV (ok, that may be an exaggeration, but I do really like it!).

In 90% of circumstances, it is the perfect car. It carried all the Christmas shopping yesterday, it’s good at long distance runs l, easy to drive around town, and the 75 mile (alleged) EV range is enough for most of my needs.

It isn’t without its quirks, but I may post a new thread about those, as this one is to ask a specific question.

It’s quite rainy here in the UK at the moment, and I’m finding that whenever it starts to rain, the windows mist up and I have to keep the demist function running permanently to keep the windows clear, which is noisy and annoying.

I’ve got the AC turned on, temp set to 22, recirc off (bringing air in from the outside). I don’t see how it would be relevant, but I use the car in HEV mode rather than EV.

I’ve cleaned the windows properly, and checked the carpets for any sign of leaks (I hand washed the car over the weekend and checked all of the openings afterwards). No leaks are obvious.

I did wonder if it was a quirk of the car, so I rang the salesman I bought it from, but he said that he’d sold the same model to numerous people without any streaming issues I thought, well, he would say that, wouldn’t he? So I called my brother in law who also has a new HS and he confirmed that he had no issues with steaming, so the sales guy may well have been telling the truth (shocker!)

Has anybody else had an issue with steaming windows on the new HS, and if so, how did you resolve it?
Click to expand...
Have you tried setting the temp higher i.e up to 24 or even 26 at the start and then when the windows clear set it back to 22 on auto?
 
Upvote 0
Yes, I would do a combo of those, a higher temp to start with and AC.

I came late to AC, only first experiencing it on my first new car, a 2002 Skoda Octavia.

I find it works much better at clearing misty windows initially than heat.
 
Upvote 0
Thanks all - for reference, AC is always on.

I shall try setting the temp slightly higher initially, but the misting isn’t always at the start of a journey. I could be 30 minutes in and if it starts to rain, the windows will mist up.

My suspicion is that the refrigerant level is low, maybe due to a leak in the system or something, it I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t going to take time trying to fix a problem which is just a HS quirk.

I’ve had cars with climate control since around 1999 when my daughter was born, and have a reasonable expectation of a heating system, but I’ve also seen some suggestions that some other cars (not the new HS) have poor designs which allow condensation to be an issue.
 
Upvote 0
DickBrowne said:
Thanks all - for reference, AC is always on.

I shall try setting the temp slightly higher initially, but the misting isn’t always at the start of a journey. I could be 30 minutes in and if it starts to rain, the windows will mist up.

My suspicion is that the refrigerant level is low, maybe due to a leak in the system or something, it I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t going to take time trying to fix a problem which is just a HS quirk.

I’ve had cars with climate control since around 1999 when my daughter was born, and have a reasonable expectation of a heating system, but I’ve also seen some suggestions that some other cars (not the new HS) have poor designs which allow condensation to be an issue.
Click to expand...
Hi
I had the older HS PHEV and now have a ZS EV it seams that is a thing with them you need to find the correct setting to stop this happening. I think I had set at 20 and A/C on fan was a 3 or 4. On wet day you have you have a lot of dampness and in most car I have had you steam up.
 
Upvote 0
DickBrowne said:
Hello everybody - I am amongst the luckiest boys in the world, for I have a brand new HS PHEV (ok, that may be an exaggeration, but I do really like it!).

In 90% of circumstances, it is the perfect car. It carried all the Christmas shopping yesterday, it’s good at long distance runs l, easy to drive around town, and the 75 mile (alleged) EV range is enough for most of my needs.

It isn’t without its quirks, but I may post a new thread about those, as this one is to ask a specific question.

It’s quite rainy here in the UK at the moment, and I’m finding that whenever it starts to rain, the windows mist up and I have to keep the demist function running permanently to keep the windows clear, which is noisy and annoying.

I’ve got the AC turned on, temp set to 22, recirc off (bringing air in from the outside). I don’t see how it would be relevant, but I use the car in HEV mode rather than EV.

I’ve cleaned the windows properly, and checked the carpets for any sign of leaks (I hand washed the car over the weekend and checked all of the openings afterwards). No leaks are obvious.

I did wonder if it was a quirk of the car, so I rang the salesman I bought it from, but he said that he’d sold the same model to numerous people without any streaming issues I thought, well, he would say that, wouldn’t he? So I called my brother in law who also has a new HS and he confirmed that he had no issues with steaming, so the sales guy may well have been telling the truth (shocker!)

Has anybody else had an issue with steaming windows on the new HS, and if so, how did you resolve it?
Click to expand...
What mode are you using when the car steams up if in eco try changing to normal makes a difference to the HAVC
 
Upvote 0
Quick update - I drove to the in-laws and back this week, a journey of a few hundred miles, and I thought this would be a good chance to either dry the interior properly or confirm that there may be a bigger issue.

It seems that there’s a bigger issue.

If there’s any moisture in the air - rain, fog etc - the windows steam up and the only way to clear them is to hit the demist button.

I tried running air at 24 degrees only to the windscreen at fan level 8 or 9, and after a while the heat increases massively, but the windows still fog.

One thing we all noticed in the car is that the air coming out of the vents became very warm and moist just before the windows steam up.

My assumption is that there’s an issue with the AC, either a mechanical issue or, most likely, the level of refrigerant being too low. Maybe it was under filled at the factory, or a union hasn’t been tightened properly, but my next move is clear - I’ve already spoken to the dealer and they seem keen to help, but wanted to keep the car through Christmas, but I shall call tomorrow to arrange a diagnosis on the car and a fix.

I shall keep this thread updated as it may, hopefully, help somebody else with similar issues.
 
Upvote 0
DickBrowne said:
If there’s any moisture in the air - rain, fog etc - the windows steam up and the only way to clear them is to hit the demist button.
...
I shall keep this thread updated as it may, hopefully, help somebody else with similar issues.
Click to expand...
Hi there I have the exact same issue. To get around it, I have set the A/C to direct the flow to windscreen and feet, fan at 7, temperature 22-23°C. Oh and bring in the air from outside. I love the car but found I was using the demister a lot (I'm in Scotland so need it)
 
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The only way to keep mine clear is to hit the demist button under the screen, but that’s way too noisy to use constantly.

I’ve had enough cars with climate control to know that this isn’t normal, and shouldn’t be needed - my brother in law has exactly the same car in black (so we can tell them apart!) and doesn’t have any issue, so I’m assuming that it’s a fault.
 
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Quick update - I spent some time on Friday talking to a tech at my local dealer and he confirmed that there were some early new model HS's made where one of the machines assembling the cars may have been poorly configured, and a pipe which allows to A/C to drain could have been caught between the engine subframe and the body. If this happens, the car will mist up and the A/C won't operate correctly.

He suggested that I run the A/C for 10 minutes and check underneath the car for a pool of expelled water. I did so, and no water appeared, so this may be indicative.

My car is booked in for a diagnostic session later this month, and hopefully we'll be on our way to a fix.

More news as I get it.
 
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Upvote 0
DickBrowne said:
one of the machines assembling the cars may have been poorly configured, and a pipe which allows to A/C to drain could have been caught between the engine subframe and the body.
Click to expand...
That's possibly something you could check yourself, if you are so inclined. Perhaps even fix it with a short length of suitable diameter fish tank hose.

Still get the proper hose at the service, as the proper hose will likely cope better with engine heat. But meantime the A/C can operate properly.
 
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I’ll be honest, even though I’m a competent engineer and have restored cars and motorbikes in the past, I’m not sure what the hose will look like, other than trapped!

The car is in thee dealers on the 17th, so that’s not too onerous a wait, and if it proves not to be a trapped hose, at least it’s in the right place for a proper look-see
 
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Another update - my local dealer did a marvellous job with the car, updated the software and so on in a very short time. The car was at the dealer for around half a day, and had a proper checkover whilst it was there.

I spoke with the master technician when they called to say that the car was ready and he confirmed that there were no faults found which could lead to misting. The AC was working fine, the levels were good, the drain pipe was unrestricted, there were no misplaced seals and the foam under the carpets was all dry. I couldn't have asked for a more thorough inspection, or a more comprehensive report and conversation; although the result wasn't what I wanted, the inspection was thorough and my confidence was high in the team looking after me.

All of which leaves me with two mysteries. Firstly, what caused the car to steam up in the first place? That question would be more urgent, if it were not for the second mystery - since I've had my car back it's been horribly cold, it's been horribly wet and yet I have had no steaming up whatsoever.

As mysteries go, I'm happy to live with this one, if it continues as is...
 
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Mine is a 2023 phev and I leave my temperature on 19 deg aircon all year round and the air coming in from outside on rainy days. If no rain I just leave it on normal recirc, aircon demists the window a lot better than heat, If it mists up when starting driving I just push the piano demist button for a couple of mins until the car demister takes over. When I first bought the car I noticed it was set to 22deg as standard. I am in NZ and we get our fair share of rainy and foggy days as well.
 
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I had this problem when we first got our new hs trophy. Couldn't work out why it kept steaming up but after reading these posts checked the settings and realised that the heating was set auto and to recirculating. Changed it to draw air in from the outside and it has dramatically improved the situation.
 
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