Question:
In "Auto" mode - shouldn't the fan speed be controlled and change automatically by the system? It seems Auto only controls the temperature and not the fan speed or where the air is sent. Is this correct?!?! In a 40k+ car this seems really odd. Just as odd as there not being a synch button for both left and right so that you don't have to adjust both temps (left and right) separately all the time. Come on Mini!

Please tell me I'm not right about "auto" mode.

 

Auto mode controls the air temperature, the vent selection, and the fan speed (and the recirculation if you have that turned on, too). Note, the temperature you select is NOT the temperature of the air coming out of the vents. Rather, it's the desired cabin temperature. That's a common misconception about automatic climate control. It is odd that MINI doesn't have a 'sync' feature.

 

Also odd (and behind the times) that the 2018 CM hasn't adopted all LED exterior lamps.

 

 

Thanks
I've not yet noticed the fan speed change in Auto mode. I'll pay more attention though.

 

Yep - manufactures leave these things to add to facelift models otherwise they wouldn't have anything to improve LOL.

 

I've been playing with this all day. The fan speed does not seem to fluctuate in auto mode.

 

When in auto mode, the fan speed **** controls the relative speed of the fan. Maybe you've got it turned down? Try turn the fan **** clockwise till the third notch is lit up, after hitting the Auto button. See if that results in the fan speed changing. Also, keep in mind that the fan speed won't change instantly when being controlled by Auto mode, except maybe if the selected cabin temp varies greatly from the actual air temp in the cabin.

 

Yes - I've moved the fan speed manually when in Auto to higher speeds which increases the speed. But the whole point is that it does that automatically. Ex I had the system in Auto. Had the fan speed on low (I had to set it there). Parked the car in the hot sun for a few hours. Came back to the car that was roasting. Turned on the car and the fan speed still was where i left if (mind you the system is in auto). I have the temp set to 68, it's 80 out and roasting in the car. The fan speed never increases - after 10 min of driving I just turn up the fan speed myself. In my Audi it would have started blowing cold air at high speed to cool the car off.

 

I think by setting the fan speed manually you override the "auto" aspect of the speed. Otherwise there would be no point in allowing you to be in auto and have adjustments to auto. This isn't an Audi unfortunately when it comes to climate control. It is probably the worst climate system of any car I've driven that is supposedly "auto". My Nissan Murano literally blew this away with hot or cold air.

I hate driving along in the winter with the temp set to 70 and getting a stream of cold air in my face. Have to crank it up to 74 to stop that foolishness.

 

I do notice the climate control isn't very good either. It is a shame but overall I'm happy with the car. I just use 4 degrees in either direction to compensate. 64 during summer and 74 during winter. Also, if you make sure your rear vents are closed it does a better job. I rarely have people in the back so I just keep them closed until I do. This will help a bit with the fan speed.

My only pet peeve with this climate control system is when I turn the left dial I have to also turn the right one to match. I have OCD so not being able to control both with one dial is annoying to me. My Lexus, would allow me to control both with the left side, until someone on the passenger side hit their temp settings. If I wanted to sync them again I simply pushed a "dual" button.

 

IMHO zoned climate control is a gimmick particularly in a car with a small interior volume and greenhouse like the Mini. I doubt you could actually measure different ambient air temps being maintained in the driver and passenger 'zones'.

 

Yep - I figured setting the fan speed myself in auto would overide the "auto" aspect of the speed. I'd assume there would be a way to set it back to full auto - but nope... I turned if off all together then pressed "auto" to turn back on and it just went to the lowest fan speed setting. I tried holding Auto down for 10 seconds perhaps? Nope... I'm quite certain it does not have a full Auto mode where fan speed is controlled. The only thing I figured would be that there is some variable speed at certain settings. So if set to low it will vary the speed but only within a low speed, same with med and same with high - but if that were to be true it would seem to way over-complicate things and who would ever figure that out?! LOL.

 

When in Auto mode, the fan speed **** adjusts the "automatic intensity." BMW has used a similar system for going on 10 years now. I'm not a fan of it, but it is what it is (and I still think it's better than manual climate control). So, if you have the fan intensity set to the first notch when in Auto mode, the fan will never blow at anything but a low fan speed, no matter the temperature differential. Think of the auto intensity as a fan speed limiter (both lower and upper limits) of sorts. So, if you turn the fan **** when in Auto mode to perhaps the third notch, you're increasing the maximum speed at which Auto mode will set the fan to. As cabin temp starts to equalize with what you've set the dials to, the fan speed will come down. Though, there are many other factors such as humidity and the intensity of the sun. All of those things are factored into how fast the fan spins and how cold (or warm) the air coming from the vents is. Setting the temp to 68 when it's 80 outside will likely result in the fan running at high speed for an extended period of time (probably with the recirculate on, too) since that's a large temperature differential, so you're not likely to see automatic fan speed changes very quickly.

And regarding manual mode, the fan speed is actually not manual unless Auto mode is off. Attached are relevant screenshots from the owner's manual.

 

Thanks for taking the time to explain. That makes sense and is what I ended up figuring was how the system works. I think it's a bad system but it is what it is as you said. If it's a 90 degree day outside, temps in the car are 100 degrees from sitting in the sun all day and you have the temp set to 68 with the **** on 1st or 2nd knotch in AUTO mode, my guess is that the car will never cool down to the desired temp because the fan speed will be limited to a lower speed - to me that is not a true Automated climate control system because it requires your intervention on a daily basis to adjust the fan speed to the current conditions - that to me is a manual system. In all my other vehicles with an Automated climate control system I just set it and forget it year round - winter, summer, humid or dry etc...

oh well. It is what it is

 

In my old R56, if it were that scenario, after about a minute of light fan speed it would go full-blast for like 5 minutes until the temp started dropping. Sounds like the same system but on Full Intensity.

I guess if you set your intensity (since you can) to the highest, it will be "full auto" like you want...and get the temp to where you want it

 

Good idea. I'll try that. I hope in full fan speed auto mode the fan will reduce to almost null once the temps reach target.

 

 

Agreed.

 

I have a question for you guys. I bought two brand new Countryman's recently for me and my wife one in January 2019 and March 2019. My Countryman's climate control settings where I can change the temperature setting goes my changing in increments of 1 (i.e. 61,62,63,64,etc. As for my wife's new car that I bought this Friday, the dual climate control setting is going by increments of 2 (i.e. 60,62,64,66, etc.). We ordered the same exact car, but different exterior trims. I can't find anything in my manual or the settings in the vehicle where I can change anything for that. My local dealership says that some vehicles comes in twos and some comes in ones, but it is hard to believe that there are inconsistencies between the vehicle build.

I was wondering if any of you out there know how to change that.

 

I don’t have an F60, but FWIW I do have a 2019 F57 and it’s dual-zone climate control adjusts in 2-degree increments. The climate control in my 2018 BMW X2 adjusts in 1-degree increments, but the climate control in my 2015 BMW i3 adjusts in 2-degree increments. I can’t figure out why the difference!!

 

I like where you said "...not many people actually use automatic climate control properly anyway." That is truth right there. I have 18 F60 JCW to which I traded in a 14 Audi S4 (big mistake) earlier this year and I cannot stand this auto intensity and want my auto climate control back. You're right most people screw up the Auto Climate control and go manual because they touched the dial in auto mode, but that is probably why MINI did this. I want auto climate control so that I don't need to touch a d**n thing based on the weather outside. I am finding so many poor things with how the F60 is setup. Also, as stated in an earlier thread, can we change the programming of the two degree increments to one degree? This drives me bonkers not to mention where it was also mentioned earlier that you can't synchronize both driver and passenger zones. Most of the time, it is only me that is driving.

 

My 2019 adjusts in one degree increments.
The intensity programming is actually BETTER than in my Audi/VW's. In those, you would get in the car and the fans would automatically start blowing at full intensity on a hot day.
In the MINI, you use the big center dial to set your MAX intensity. If you like allowing to blow at full blast, turn the dial all the way to the right. If you want more subtle fan pressure, turn it down to the left.
Either way, the Auto Climate Control will run at the max you set it to, until its able to hold the temp at lower fan speeds.

Any car will always need minor adjustments. Sometimes you just feel hotter/cooler and need a different temp setting. Ask my wife.