I have recently bought a used C-class, C220. There are three buttons between the fan speed and directional knobs which I do not know what they do.
The bottom one I made out is air recirculation.
The middle one has "EC" written on it.
The top one I have no idea.
Can anyone help please?
Thanks,
Garrison
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The switch marked "ec" is usually the air-con economy button , when cold air is not required press this to disable the air-con , also saves on fuel
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Garrison
The top button is for the heated rear window. The middle button is for economy mode (EC) and has no cooling effect. The bottom button is for recirculation.
Didn't they supply an instruction book?
Happy motoring.
Don
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The car did not come with the handbook.
So can the air con be switch off completely?
Many thanks,
Garrison
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Garrison, yes it can be turned off but see HJ's faq's regarding air con and the dangers of under use. It may pay you to leave it on. I have not turned off my aircon for months now (through the winter) and have not noticed any signficant impact on fuel consumption
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Demists and keeps damp out of the car, too. Used to think it a fad, until I had it; now a necessity and on a lot.
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"So can the air con be switch off completely?"
Er yes, actually .... but *not* permanently. Since your question implies you may not be a long term air con user, do a search on the subject, and take careful note of the fund of good advice you will find.
DD
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HJ said, some time back, that the aerodynamic drag caused by having a window open for cooling used more fuel than having a/c on and the window shut.
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Honest John's advice to prevent expensive (and often smelly - due to bacterial growth) damage through under-use: run the a/c on full blast once a week for about 15 minutes minimum, then switch it off and turn on the heater to dry out all the channels and prevent bacterial growth.
Ideally - especially as it's effects on fuel consumption are negligible - use it more often.
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How do I know if the air con is on? Should the EC button be pressed or not?
I always have air con switched on all the time but on all my cars there is a "A/C" button or a snow flake button. The C-class has neither.
Many thanks,
Garrison
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That is because it is on by default... to turn it off (for this trip only) you push the EC button I think yo my be able to get the dealer to reverse this by some sort of reprogramming but I would not advise it The AC on my 1989 Range Rover has almost never been turned off and has never needed service not even a re gas
~R
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On the Audi a led lights up in the middle of the ec switch when the air-con is OFF. fuel consumption must be increased when the air con is used on a very hot day , by how much in my case i couldn't say, but the compressor can sometimes be felt loading up. It makes no sense to me to have the aircon on all the time , why wear out the compressor and the cooling fan? , yes ensure the system is used a mentioned above to keep the system healthy.
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On a warm day turn the temp to cold, then switch one way for five minutes, then the other way for five minutes. You'll soon find out which way is 'on'.
V
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