Remote start and heating the interior

So I ran the test again...
Seat heater on high (3leds). Also turned on the passenger front seat to the same.
Steering wheel heater on.
Blower set to high, temp high, defrost/foot setting, recirculate.
Lastly pushed the mirror defrost also for shits and giggles.

Remote started the truck, let time run out, minute later restarted a second time, let that expire and checked the truck.
Seats were mildly warm, nothing on the steering wheel, forgot to check the mirror. Warm in the cab. So my seat heaters do heat without anyone in them but only ever so slightly. For running the truck for 20 minutes I'd think that they would be blazing hot. In order to make sure my mind wasn't playing tricks on me I had to touch the back seats then the front to actually tell they were warmer, which they were.

I'm wondering if mine aren't heating up so well because my truck is a hybrid. Perhaps the systems shut down when the battery kicks in and the engine shuts off to conserve battery. I'm sure the seat heaters draw a good amount of power.

 

mine is a hybrid

 

My 2013 ford f150 lariat that i traded in for my '24 1794 had a setting of items to turn on when remote started. I miss that
And no subscriptions for remote start and navigation
You can warm up your seats, warm the cabin, defrosters
In the winters, you got into a toasty car or a frosty car in the summer

 

Ok, so I tested this on mine this morning - '22 Canadian, LTD TRD OR, not hybrid.

Parked the truck last night, settings when I turned it off.
Seat Heater on High (3 bars) and steering wheel heater on. HVAC on manual, set to 20C windshield & foot setting and rear defroster turned on.

A few Cm of snow overnight & morning temp at -6C - Mirrors left in the folded out position.

I started with phone app this am, and got to the truck about 6-7 mins later. Looked in window & lights were on for the seat & steering wheel heater. Rear window defrost light was off.

Opened & checked - seat cold, snow fell in on it a bit & no melting at all - felt with back of hand and felt cold. Steering wheel also felt cold. Mirrors appeared to have been defrosting, so maybe it comes on based on outside temp when remote started? When i started it after opening door, turned Rear defroster on and started cleaning window, the windshield was thawing under the snow load. 5-7 mins of snow clearing & got in the truck - seat was hot, steering wheel was hot.

So it seems for mine, the seat & steering only work on actual start & not on remote start even though the lights are on. I need a better check on the rear defrost, but the light is off on remote start so ill need to get a frosty mirror morning and try and watch to see if any melting is happening.

 

Kia's response to why there seat heaters don't come on with remote start was the elements burn out without an occupant. Absolute BS and doesn't explain why some trucks are heating properly and some not. I guess people need to start checking their software versions?

 

I have tried leaving setting in both Auto and Manual and the truck is still cold every time. I will try leaving it in window/foot mode with the fan on high. Its just ridiculous you would have to sequence it like you're restarting the module in Apollo 13 to get it to work right.

 

It's not working. And good luck with a dealer, you have to leave it with us over night so we can test it cold in the morning...

 

MTP, I did same setup as you in my Limited OR.
Made sure climate control not in Auto.
Next morning, I remote started from the phone and let run till it shut itself off (about 10 minutes).
Steering wheel and seat were ice cold.
Maybe they changed something in 2024 model year?
Or maybe a hybrid vs non-hybrid thing?

 

I use an electric box heater sitting on the console & the electric cord goes out the back seat door to an extension cord. I have an outdoor timer that starts the box heater about an hour or 2 (depends on the temperature) before I get in the truck. It takes me approximately 25 seconds to unplug the cord, open the back door, toss the cord inside and when I hop in the drivers seat, I start up the truck & move the box heater to the back seat area. Saves on gas & my truck is nice & toasty when I head off to work. It also melts the snow off the windshield. I just drive the first hundred yards at a slow speed the get everything in the engine up & running.

 

I leave the system on auto, but set the heat to a temp I wish, turn on the seat heater and steering wheel heater and everything is warm after I remote start and get to the truck 5-10 minutes later.

 

Question: How long does your truck take to respond to the remote start app commands? My wife's Kia Telluride takes about 20-30 seconds to respond to the door lock command (at home on our acreage so doors aren't normally locked), then it again takes 15-30 seconds to respond to the actual start command.

I know, first world problem, but inconvenient enough that I don't use it that often, plus the shutting off after 10 minutes is again very frustrating. These randomly assigned values don't make any sense.

If the Tundra behaves similarly then I would look for an aftermarket remote start, but will these even work with these new "connected" cars.?

 

it depends on the cell signal in the area you are in on both ends.

around Chicagoland its fast, but we have ultra cap 5G everywhere. When I go up fishing in northern MN, not so much but it does work

so nobody is going to be able to tell, but take a test drive from the dealer and have them try it where you will be using it

 

mine probably takes 10ish seconds to fully go through and notify me the truck has started. I only have to hold it down for like 2 seconds and then the progress bar auto loads the rest of the way on its own. Door lock is probably 5 seconds.

 

This is my experience too. In fact, I actually drove 20 minutes with the driver and passenger seat heater on. No one was sitting in the passenger seat. My seat was nice and toasty, and the passenger seat was totally COLD!

 

This is so weird to me that it's so complicated...no vehicle I've ever owned have I even had to think about this. If it's X ambient temp, it cools, if it's X ambient temp it heats AND turns on both seat heaters when remote starting. GMC, Ford, VW, etc. Making me question trying to pick up a 25 tomorrow, lol.

 

Probably a country thing cause in CANADA your ass has to be in the seat. Same as the stupid tow mirrors platinum and above

 

The shut off thing is for carbon monoxide. If you accidentally start it in your garage you don’t off the family.

 

Wow! That's right up there with the back seat reminders. The dumbing down of society is complete.

 

It’s more nuanced than you think. I know someone that had this happen. His fob had a press-and-hold-to-start key fob and something was placed on top of his keys. His carbon monoxide alarm went off and he went into the garage and found his vehicle running.

it’s actually being reported a lot more now:
https://www.wbrc.com/2019/11/06/remote-start-vehicles-present-carbon-monoxide-danger/

The family next door to me in 1986 died from CO poisoning when the flue to their water heater got blocked. CO is no joke.

New tech introduces new risks. Companies learn and adapt. Chrysler had people being run over when exiting their vehicles because their dial-type transmission shifter wouldn’t provide enough indication if it didn’t go all the way into Park. They changed the design.

 

I get that and not trying to diminish if anyone was hurt and yes I guess it's possible for a remote to be accidentally pressed. Don't most remotes need a multiple press? And seriously, it's sad that 28 people have died, but in 19 years. So, because 1.47 people have died every year, the millions of us who have lived our lives with a little common sense, and functioning CO detectors! have to put up with essentially a useless feature now due to that very small number of fatalities.

It's regularly -30C (-22F) for months at a time. Running a car for 10 minutes doesn't accomplish much. Or in the summer it can get up to 40C (100F). We have to leave our dogs in the car occasionally so leave the car running with the air conditioning on, how long do you think the dogs are going to survive in 100 degrees with no air conditioning? And yes we normally start the car manually and make sure the air is running and lock the doors with a second fob (Tundra related content) before leaving the dogs but have on occasion thought we would only be minutes somewhere but ended up taking longer so would then remote start the car.

All this to say, I stand by my first post.

 

I am wondering if the vast differences in this thread account for hybrid vs non hybrid? We have the hybrid and cannot figure out how to heat the truck beforehand. Heat is on, seats are in, steering wheel is on. After a short period of time the engine shuts off and so then what the heck is the point if a remote starter at all in the hybrid? I feel like we have to be missing something.

 

if the hybrid model doesnt run the ICE motor at start up, then your not going to build heat, its that simple.

otherwise , seems odd

my truck, seats, wheel get warm

 

I wouldn't be so sure about that actually. I don't know anything about the Tundra hybrid but my wife has a BMW hybrid and it kicks on environmental (heat or A/C depending on what's required) under a remote "start" command and does not start the ICE.

 

You ever watch Idiocracy? It has been accelerated.

 

Idiocracy is probably the best predictive programming out there. Still have hope for Starbucks.

But back on topic, all my heated stuff works fine with remote start. Maybe it's just too cold where some of y'all live and it needs more time like 20 min or more where an aftermarket starter might be worth it.

 

Just build a heated garage, and BOOM all these problems go away

 

heated garages rule , love mine

 

I had a 2010 F350 that had an OEM electric heater. Blew instant warm air when started

 

That's a great idea, wonder why they don't do that.

 

It seems as yet another lack of engineering on Toyos part- hmmmmmmm- lets have an app that you must pay $ for to remotely start your truck, it's doesn't provide climate control, it doesn't warm the freezing seats, the truck turns off when you touch the door handle...... So why does Toyo even have remote start? I think the concept there is aS dumb as a rock. Or the consumer who pays these obnoxious morons for crappy, unthoughtful engineering. My buddy's Ram you remote start, jump in & take off, not my Tundra, remote start, touch door handle yup- truck shuts off!