A Couple New Owner Issues/Questions

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cassiri

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We just completed a long road trip with our new QX. All went very well except a couple observations have me concerned.

1. The A/C system is erratic. Most of the time it works fine to cool the car and then will randomly turn way too warm. I have to turn the temp down 5 degrees or so to compensate. I am used to my other vehicles being set on 71 or so and never adjusted. With this I am bouncing between 63 and 68 to keep it correct.

2. The nav/stereo system buttons lock up. It has happened twice requiring turning the stereo off and it comes back.

Other than that, it was a very capable and smooth cruising machine as we had hoped.
 
I have not noticed those issues with either features.

where are you driving that u need the AC this time of year??? Even Death Valley is a cool 78 this time of year!!!
 
1 -- Totally agree on the temperature. At any temperature setting, the cabin is literally five degrees hotter than any other vehicle I've ever had. It's usually set at 63-64F now.

2 -- Perhaps you're referring to the "Nanny" "feature" where the Nav and some stereo functions are locked once you start moving? A huge annoyance. I know there's a workaround with a Prestigious Society box.
 
are we talking about the 2011-12 qx or a (new to you) older qx?

i have a 2012 q and have not experienced any AC issues. im in LA and it was mid 80s this past week and i had the AC on in stop and go traffic and it was flawless. at times once the cabin was at the right temp, i would forget the AC was running because on auto the fan speed will trickle to a whisper but keep the ambient air adjusted.

when it senses higher sun load it will kick in a faster fan speed and increase or decrease the temp to keep the cabin at the temp set relative to outside/sunload.

did you have anything covering up the sensor on the dash? there is also a sensor on the dash just near the ignition switch that monitors cabin air. make sure this is not blocked. if its malfunctioning this can cause issues.

as for #2 yeah could be the lockout controls. the prestigious box is super pricey. you can make up a relay system for about 25 dollars US in parts. I have this system and i flip a switch and i get instant use of the functions that are locked out when the car is in motion.
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My vehicle is a 2012 with about 3k miles on it now. The A/C or I should say climate control issue is at various temps, not just when I need a/c. On our road trip it was freezing outside and the system was determined to blast hot air on me even though the cabin was plenty warm. It didn't seem to know when to stop. It isn't as simple as a weak a/c, it is just truly inaccurate and inconsistent. I think I am noticing that whether it is sunny or not makes a difference. Maybe a malfunctioning dash sensor???

As for the lockout on the nav, I am familiar with that from my lexus. The issue I am referring to is exactly like those times when your desktop/laptop freezes up and just stops responding. No amount of button pushing got it to respond. I had to power off the nav (while the car was still running thankfully) and it worked just fine after that.
 
thank you for the clarification. I also do not mean to insult your intelligence at all. ive got the same vehicle fully loaded 4X4. 3300 miles on the clock.

ive not seen that happen to the HVAC system. if you have it on auto the AC (compressor) is running so even if you have the temp set higher, the AC will run to keep moisture out, etc. you may mean "AC" as meaning cold but thats what I mean when i say AC. :D
could be a faulty sensor for sure. there are 3. one in the front grille area outside, the sunload sensor on top of the dash, and the one near the ignition button.

heat is not really supposed to blow out the top vents when on auto, it always blows to the floor vents unless manually changed to use the top. same for the back part of the cabin.

also your idea of temp may be different than the systems idea of temp so theres that also.

the nav issues ive not ever seen. i had a nissan armada 2008 and had the same HDD system in it. never saw it lock up.

upon start up on the Q, the nav system is all ran off a hard drive so it takes a good 60 seconds for the system to load up presets, read the IKey (if you have the IKey setup to adjust controls), etc. so if you have phone books installed, lots of POIs saved, address book entries, etc this all takes time to load. but once the car is in motion, you should not see any lag or delay at all.

since the car is new, id take it right back into the shop and explain to them about the HVAC issue. they can connect the consult up to the ECM and adjust temp crossover settings if need be to make the temp system work better for your personalized tastes.
 
Whacko AC

Cassiri I have a 2011 and I think the HVAC controls are way too over engineered with about 3500 miles now. It seems the passenger side vents always blow cooler. I plan to take a thermommeter to test next spring.
I have to dial the setting down to 60, and they both go cold, and then bring the temp up to a desired level, say 69 or 70.

It seems if its really cold outside, the heater works very well in the QX. If its Hot outside, it cools really well, but if its somewhere in-between, hell I might well roll down the windows, LOL :rolleyes:

If you want just fresh air (through the cabin filter) what you do, is set it to vents or floor, whatever you like, then turn the fan off, it should display that climate control off. Then press the air intake button, and it will display 'Fresh air' , and a gentle air will flow in from outside. (whew)
I live in the mountains with low humidity and its cool in the evenings and fresh air is all that needed. Its just Cold here now, so it works like a champ now, for Heat.
Like I said, It does 'Heat' well, and it does 'Cool' very well, anything in-between, I think its way over engineered. I would like to have a talk with their engineers and ask them 'What the hell were you thinking'? It makes the controls for HVAC in my IS350, look simple: like my Jeep !

Whatever Mark advises, he is correct. Mark has helped me understand things with the QX. I would be surprised there is a faulty sensor, but it could be.
so far the QX has been rock solid, Like a tank.

Keep posting your questions we'll try to help you
 
thanks for the thoughts. I too am doubtful it is a sensor and likely a bit of overengineered software as you say. Unfortunately in Texas we see extreme temps on both sides and not enough of those roll the windows down days. I typically leave the system to auto in my other cars and set it on 70 degrees.

Like you said, the heat is very effective and so is the cooling of the a/c. Regulating a constant temp is not effective.

Loving the ride so far though and will work through this on my first service visit.
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i agree japan really over-engineered the HVAC! hope the system settles down for you eventually...
 
I have a 2012 and have the same "hot" issues. I have found that this is only a problem when the heating mode is set to blow out the dash vents. If you change the mode to just floor, or defrost and floor, the temperature control works very well. Strange that it is not engineered better, but now that I know which mode to put it on, it works fine!

Mark
 
So you override the "Auto" setting? I'm hoping that will not be my long term solution. I too noticed when it was really cold out, it would blow very hot, not warm air out of the driver's dash vent near the window yet the vents in the middle were warm. This even with both driver and passenger settings being the same.

I will say the other thing that helped slightly was to make sure the rear temp setting was the same as the front. Doesn't fix the overall issue, but makes it less noticeable.

I have had issues with Mercedes and Lexus vehicles in the past that could not be resolved. I am hoping this isn't my first with an Infiniti. Fingers crossed.
 
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