Climbing Up Hill with A/C On

[ilango[speed thirst]]

Many of us have driven in hills.


The thing is do you climb hills with the ac ON

Drivers here do not switch on the ac while climbing hill saying it will affect engine , break them cease them etc.

Even in my recent trip in ac tempo traveller the ac was switched off while climbing.

Even the driver of a relative's innova , switch off the ac and climb the hills.




I know its like a strain to the engine as it is already climbing hills.

But in my trip , say in our estilo , or in marina , or in recent munnar and kodai trip in the vista i always drive with the ac on .

It just a small additional strain , i do accept , but the engine is designed to take them easily and no where in manual its printed to switch off the ac and climb them!


And in recent vista trip , it was 7 people in car with ac! the milage was 13kmpl in hills (up and down), so is that a big strain?

 

[Zinam]

Technically speaking its yes !

But practically speaking the strain on engine is negligible.

As the latest engines are deisgned in such a way to produce more torque even in stressful conditions.

Even I drove with AC on my Trip to Munnar with fully loaded and suprising 14kmpl was acheived.

According to me, its based on the inclination of the steeps which you are climbing.

AC plays a major role there. You can easily feel there is less stress on engine, if you turn off the AC!

 

[raj_5004]

it depends on the engine & the power it produces. in a small diesel engine (less than 80 bhp), you may need to switch off the engine.

in innovas & taveras, the engine strains to climb hills with 5 passengers, so its better to switch the AC off.

 

[cooldhaya]

Hmmm even i see many people switching off the AC when climbing uphill. But we till now has never did that right from our Sierra , Safari and now Verna. I never got the feeling of engine getting strained , maybe just a few downshifts required sometimes!


Our Safari climbs uphill with even 7 people on-board with AC ON even in 3rd gear with ease , have did this once!

In our recent trip to Munnar and Kodaikanal with a fully loaded boot , 4 people on board and AC ON , my Safari returned 12.35kmpl.

Even my Verna climbed uphill with five people on board and a fully loaded boot and AC ON with ease , just a few downshifts sometimes though!

 

[mukeshus]

I have never felt the drop of power with Ac on on Ghat sections.
And with this specific mentioning by ilango near Ooty, I have not used AC there as Ooty is so cold.
During my normal mangalore drives i travel with AC on 100%.

 

[ilango[speed thirst]]

So we can conclude that this is belief of the drivers .

 

[cooldhaya]

Yes but maybe some cars could not climb easily with AC ON as Raj mentioned.


So what about petrol cars now? Do they feel strained or are they normal?

 

[jalex]

Speaking of Petrol cars,the Alto and the 800 has a secret weapon. The A/c switch works as Nos too. Just drive an Alto uphill with the A/c on. Then turn it off while climbing (Now you have activated the Nos.) Your car will start to surge ahead.
Jokes apart,the 800 and the 800cc Alto both struggle when the Air conditioner is on and you're trying to climb a hill or overtake another vehicle.

 

[Auto Hub India]

My own experience and technique

Hi Tainz, interesting topic indeed.
I want to discuss about this from my own experience on North-east roads. I have driven Gypsy,Zen and Alto on the hills. Though the climate there is pleasant but sometimes its needed to switch on the AC. Whenever I drive uphill with AC ,suppose I have started the uphill with 3rd gear and optimum speed, the distance which will be covered with AC on 3rd gear before shifting to 2nd gear(due to elevation) will be deffinitely lesser than distance covered with AC off. So when its needed to shift to 2nd gear with AC on, I used to shift to 2nd gear and at the same time I put off the AC but the blower is on and with cabin air circulation mode. I press the accelerator and gain enough rpm to shift back to 3rd gear and then again put on the AC till I again need to shift back to 2nd gear.

This way I used to reduce stress on engine and initiate smooth drive with nice mileage. I have suggested same option to others and they were benefited. I would like to request you to give it a try while driving on hills.

 

[Neil.Bhujbal]

Driving with AC ON in hilly regions doesn't affect the engine health wise neither break them nor cease them.They are built to take a lot more.

Switching off the AC while climbing the hill just takes around 5-6 % of engines load away where as the rest of 94% still exists.

But it definitely comes handy when you want to overtake on a hilly road.

 

[javabrown]

i agree with Neil, I used to switch off the AC in my Indica earlier as when climbing a hill the extra power always makes a difference, especially when overtaking. With Scorpio I have never felt the need to switch off the AC but still sometimes due old habit switch it off and enjoy the extra power at your disposal.

with AC off I feel more confident while overtaking on climbs.

 

[mukeshus]

i agree with Neil, I used to switch off the AC in my Indica earlier as when climbing a hill the extra power always makes a difference, especially when overtaking. With Scorpio I have never felt the need to switch off the AC but still sometimes due old habit switch it off and enjoy the extra power at your disposal.

with AC off I feel more confident while overtaking on climbs.

But if you maintain the correct RPM, Turbo will remain on and you never feel the same.
Why sweat when engine can bear a lot more than that.

 

[ilango[speed thirst]]

Except in indica , i felt every car didnt show up the strain.

Even when a indica show the strain , it can climb at good rate with ac on ,

Many drivers belief is this and even when we explain , they are in fearto practice that

 

[javabrown]

if the vehicle has momentum then there is not much strain to the engine so AC ON does not affect much, but if you have to brake or slowdown your vehicle because of some slow moving truck ahead, then there would be heavy strain on the engine.

Especially on ghats your car needs to be really quick to overtake, so that you overtake before the next blind spot comes up.

PS : Its not question of sweating, I love driving on ghats like charmudi or shiradi ghats with windows open to feel the crisp freshness of air.

 

[mukeshus]

if the vehicle has momentum then there is not much strain to the engine so AC ON does not affect much, but if you have to brake or slowdown your vehicle because of some slow moving truck ahead, then there would be heavy strain on the engine.

Especially on ghats your car needs to be really quick to overtake, so that you overtake before the next blind spot comes up.

PS : Its not question of sweating, I love driving on ghats like charmudi or shiradi ghats with windows open to feel the crisp freshness of air.

Sorry for OT.
How is the road condition of Shiradi Ghat???
As i have never done trip from that stretch on my hawk.