Just wondering if anyone has experienced this situation. Since the weather here has been very cold and snowy, I noticed that the rear window defogger is on even when the climate control/fan switch is "off" and the air director switch is on "floor" mode and the rear defog switch is "off". Reminds me of my Nissan's heated mirrors that were always "on". This would cause a constant drain on the electrical system and maybe take a small bite out of FE especially in winter. Maybe I missed something about this in the owner's manual.

 

I think its not actualy on. I believe the metal of the rear window defroster is just transfering cabin heat to the window.

Maybe I'm wrong though. Maybe it does bleed a small amount of engery.

I do know though if I actualy push the defroster button it definately has an effect vs. not pushing the button.

 

tbaleno, thanks for the reply.

Yes, I guess this could be possible in some instances. I hadn't thought about it. Although it was 14F this morning, the sun may have heated the interior of the car a little and transferred heat to the defog filaments. One thing I didn't take note of was whether or not the snow was melting when I got into the car before turning the key on. Further investigation is needed. Possibly when it's snowing at night??

 

Naaah.



Take it from someone who's had a car with a dead rear window defroster ("oh sure - we can fix that for you.... we have to replace the entire window, the defroster, and the connector to the radio.") Those cold, dead wires don't transmit any heat from the cabin

 

I guess one way to test that is to unplug its connectors.

 

Excellent idea. I'll give it a try. I'll hook up my amp meter in series with one of the leads and see if there's any current flowing when all the switches are off.

 

ralph_dog,

I drove the HCH the other day and noticed what you described. I had the defrost "off" yet it was acting as if it were on.

 

Looks like just another one of those annoying "Honda has to do the thinking for you" situations.

 

Yep......I agree. Too many "auto" processes going on out of the user's control.

It was too cold this am to do any checking with the meter, +5 F. Maybe tomorrow.
I was just concerned that a relay was stuck or something. According to the owner's manual, the rear defog is supposed to auto shut off after about 10 minutes. Doesn't say anything about auto turn on. Hope I don't get too obsessed about it.

 

i went out to scrape the car off when i left work, i turned it on and let it run a few minutes while i scraped. i did not turn on the rear defogger, but it certainly was on. the snow was starting to melt before the scraper even did anything. i could see the lines from the wires. what gives?