Technical Woeful demisting, it won't be long.

[Moimo]

My car GP 1.6 mjet I love, it has many plus points but clearing the windscreen in the cold weather is not one of them. I have cleaned the window, used stuff from my motorcycle visor, changed the pollen filter, tried all variants of heat, no heat, recirculate etc but really it is all unsatisfactory. If I could get in drive for two miles and the temp gauge heads upwards but the reality is get in and drive to the end of the estate, hit any button, climate, fan speed, aircon, recirculate and bang instant white out. My plan is to fit an aux heater, 3kw, have it on a timer so it warms the coolant for a period to be determined once fitted, it won't need to be on long as as soon as the gauge climbs just a small amount the window clears, but with stop start traffic it just doesn't heat up. I shall install it and after some testing probably fit a socket externally somewhere so it will just get plugged in and the timer will do the rest.

Does any one have any experience of fitting something similar, they have circulation built in but with the stat closed I wonder where the best place to cut into the system, happy for answers to be generic rather than my vehicle specific, may seem excessive but I don't think I can do another winter, I have considered a heated windscreen but they are very expensive, on fords they are brilliant, or happy to listen to anything else that's likely to solve this issue, thank you

 

[Moimo]

My car GP 1.6 mjet I love, it has many plus points but clearing the windscreen in the cold weather is not one of them. I have cleaned the window, used stuff from my motorcycle visor, changed the pollen filter, tried all variants of heat, no heat, recirculate etc but really it is all unsatisfactory. If I could get in drive for two miles and the temp gauge heads upwards but the reality is get in and drive to the end of the estate, hit any button, climate, fan speed, aircon, recirculate and bang instant white out. My plan is to fit an aux heater, 3kw, have it on a timer so it warms the coolant for a period to be determined once fitted, it won't need to be on long as as soon as the gauge climbs just a small amount the window clears, but with stop start traffic it just doesn't heat up. I shall install it and after some testing probably fit a socket externally somewhere so it will just get plugged in and the timer will do the rest.

Does any one have any experience of fitting something similar, they have circulation built in but with the stat closed I wonder where the best place to cut into the system, happy for answers to be generic rather than my vehicle specific, may seem excessive but I don't think I can do another winter, I have considered a heated windscreen but they are very expensive, on fords they are brilliant, or happy to listen to anything else that's likely to solve this issue, thank you

I found this on simulate mode does anyone know if this would help, I take it this does not deactivate the egr valve just a part into the inter cooler, finally can MES deactivate the egr valve

 

[Eklipze3k]

You mention climate, which suggests that your car has AC. AC is perfect for demisting as it removes the moisture, so - assuming we're not talking about frosting on your windows - just switch on the AC, it seems counterintuitive to use something designed for cooling when it's already cold but it works. Also, as you have climate, set the temperature to something reasonable (18-20 is good) and turn the AC on.

 

[puntofan01]

If you have the automatic climate control, it has a maximum demist 'mode' which is generally very effective. It might just be that as yours is a diesel, it takes longer to get some heat in the cabin.

 

[Moimo]

You are absolutely right about the auto demist button, it works really well, but from cold as I guess it is reliant on sensors telling it the water is warm enough to engage the fan which then allows the window to clear, which sadly only happens after about 2 miles of school run (20mins stop start traffic) a good 30 mins of static running having just been switched on, or 3 mins if you can actually drive the car, what I need is a 2 mile private drive before I get to the public road. If you override the auto fan setting then the glass just whites out with mist, guess it's the joys of winter lol.

 

[aurick86]

... If you override the auto fan setting then the glass just whites out with mist...

That is the reason why it doesn't start on auto... if the correct variables are not met it will cause more harm than good.

If you live in a house and can actually drag a cord out to the car then i suggest a block heater.

3kw is way to much. I understand it will require something like a pump, a controller ... etc. That just ads complexity (read failure points)
3kw in a heating element if a lot of heating... will easily age surrounding parts like hoses very fast.
Something like a 400W block heater will be enough (if now to much) , it can be powered on by based on time and temperature

Low cost example: https://bigdanzblog.wordpress.com/2014/12/10/turning-on-a-diesel-block-heater-based-on-time-and-temperature/

You could make it a lot better preobably anywhere between 25-50% with something like a Arduino and some sensors/relays. You could monitor actual engine coolant temperature...you could calculate optimum time to start heating the engine based on external environment temperatures+ engine temperature...could even add some automatic correction variables.
This would make a nice project for somebody living in a house, with some desire to learn.