Recirculation Annoyance.

[bingbangbong]

My RX450h has the feature (which I think is present on all Lexus), where if the cabin is hot when you get in and start it, the air recirculation switches on. This is the most annoying thing in the world for me. I'd rather open the windows for a bit and blast the heat out before letting the AC get me below ambient. However it seems some software guy somewhere thinks this is a good thing to do.

So, anyone know if it is possible to disable this feature and if so how?

[Neil Morphett]

It's not unusual; most climate control systems I've had (previous BMWs and Audis) do this as it is usually the quickest way for the aircon to cool the car down (i.e. suck the hot air out of the car and cool it, rather than pushing cooled external air in to fight the hot air). Probably the ultimate best way is, as you say, open the windows to get some breeze going, or open the windows/roof as you unlock the car.

There are probably more annoying things in the world... ;)

[bingbangbong]

There are probably more annoying things in the world... ;)

It's me, I know, what is annoying is that I cannot seem to be able to disable it.

[MartyCee]

On the the dashboard there's a swith named AUTO for the system, directly below that is a switch named OFF, press that & the system is off while you drive with windows, sunroof etc open - no point in freezing the world..... If you turn the system off when you leave the car it won't fire up when you start up. Alternatively, for the more demanding, press the CLIMATE button below the map screen & you can configure the system to suit your needs, temp, airflow, fan speed (which I suspect is the real reason for your question as it can be full on under Auto, & even if the aircon is running or not. Problem solved? Maybe not! A solution to make it workable? Probably!

[bingbangbong]

Thanks for the reply Marty, it's not the automode I am talking about but the fact the car will switch to recirculate irregardless of any settings if the temp goes too high with the AC on, this normally happens when the car sit in the sun for a while.

I've now found the fix. The car can be set-up with the option of the air con switching to recirculate regardless of the switch setting if the car is over a certain temperature. It can be disabled but required the dealers programming dohickey.

It's one of the Lexus Personalised Settings the rest of the world gets offered but we don't seem to get in the UK.

http://www.lexus.com/pdf/service/RX400h_LPS.pdf