General Misting up

[Bolty]

My Stilo gets very steamed up inside at the moment, the other day I did a three hour drive and had to have the air con blasting at the screen for the whole journey! What could be causing this?

 

[johnson550]

You probably need to keep the windows open a bit when you have the heating on let the damp air escape.

 

[Deckchair5]

Aircon should get rid of moisture in seconds, provided it's working properly. So I'd look for source of excess moisture and it doesn't take much to make a car steam up.

I'd check for a blocked drain pipe at the heater (often blocked with leaves etc). Try poking a large and long tie wrap up the drain from underneath the car and see if water runs out.


This is the water collection tray at the base of the aircon heat/vent unit.
Look for a drain pipe from underneath the car directly below where the heater would be. Look for water coming out with aircon switched on

Also fairly common is water in the boot. Check your carpets for your wetness

A grim possibility is a leaking heater matrix as that's a pig to change

 

[jim cooper]

I agree about a leak somewhere, probably in the main cabin or perhaps the boot. Look under the carpets for wet patches. In the boot a lot of water can get past the rubber grommet for the wiper arm if it is not tight against the glass. It ends up running through the hatchback and wetting the boot carpet.

 

[Bolty]

Thanks chaps, I'll check these areas today and let you know what I find

 

[vladof]

You should also never put the climate system on air recirculation as this can cause the problem you experience as well.

I went for a 300 mile trip and forgot it on, didn't really understand why there's so much moisture in the car, didn't put the AC on but unpressed the air recirculation button and presto in 5 minutes no more foggy windscreen.