Rear AC question

[MikeyJukes]

Having the same problem with my S Trim, and by the looks of this thread it looks like a lot of folks with the LX and S trims are experiencing the same thing.

Whenever we start our car after an extended period of time, the rear climate control automatically turns on despite locking rear controls and turning off rear vents the previous time we were in the vehicle. Starting to get annoying to turn this off every single time we get in the car. Hoping Kia finds a solve for this soon.

 

[Jasondorin]

Rear ventilation turned back ON yesterday. I had one of my kids in there. Maybe the car is using the rear occupancy sensor to only turn the rear ventilation ON if there is actually someone there. That would be clever and awesome in my opinion. I'll do more tests in the next days.

any update? its a good point and i can try and test too, but from what i remember the rear temp never goes on when just hitting the 'sync' button

 

[stbentoak]

It would be smart that the car would use the rear occupancy sensor and turn the back climate off when no one is sitting there. I'll do some tests this evening.

Why would that be? If it’s 100 deg in the whole car, wouldn’t you want to cool the whole car as quickly as possible?

 

[Redbeard]

Why would that be? If it’s 100 deg in the whole car, wouldn’t you want to cool the whole car as quickly as possible?

That would be great but the AC is turning on when it's 70, 40, and probably in the dead of winter

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[stbentoak]

That would be great but the AC is turning on when it's 70, 40, and probably in the dead of winter

If its not DEMANDING air, then it COULD just be circulating non air conditioned air, or potentially heat if needed.... We better be sure of what its really doing before we deem it a problem....

 

[Redbeard]

If its not DEMANDING air, then it COULD just be circulating non air conditioned air, or potentially heat if needed.... We better be sure of what its really doing before we deem it a problem....

It's a problem. Kia recognizes this is an issue and they claim to be working on it but have no fix. It's not just circulating air. The AC is on. Not just fan and not heat.

 

[FireMartZ]

Why would that be? If it’s 100 deg in the whole car, wouldn’t you want to cool the whole car as quickly as possible?

Assuming there is only one A/C unit, if its sending cold air in the back, that means I have less cold air for me in the front. If I don't have passengers in the back, I don't really care for the back of the car to cool down, I only care about me, in the front.

If I have passengers, then I don't mind sharing the cool air with them.

If there is more than one A/C units, then as you said, they should all turn on to cool asap.

 

[FireMartZ]

any update? its a good point and i can try and test too, but from what i remember the rear temp never goes on when just hitting the 'sync' button

I need to do more tests, but for now, it seems the rear ventilation will turn back ON if:
- it was ON when turning off the car AND
- someone is sitting on the rear bench (didn't try with 3rd row).

But if you have no one sitting in the back, they will not turn back ON even if they were ON the last time and since they are now OFF, they will stay OFF the next time no matter if someone is sitting in the back.

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[Jasondorin]

It's a problem. Kia recognizes this is an issue and they claim to be working on it but have no fix. It's not just circulating air. The AC is on. Not just fan and not heat.

How do you know they are working on it? Would love to tell my dealer

 

[Redbeard]

How do you know they are working on it? Would love to tell my dealer

I had it in about a month ago at my dealer. They tell me they reached out to Kia and opened a service ticket. About 2 weeks later they reported back that Kia is aware, there is no solution but the service ticket is still open. Unless my dealer. is lying to me and never reported this directly to Kia.

 

[Jasondorin]

any update? its a good point and i can try and test too, but from what i remember the rear temp never goes on when just hitting the 'sync' button

Hi All. So I am at my dealer (in New Jersey) and of course the rear control works perfectly when here :-( but he understood the issue I was having. He will talk to the regional rep here but said Kia are all over the Telluride to make sure everything is addressed asap. He did say the entire temp control is digital so it might be a software update and thats it.

 

[FireMartZ]

I need to do more tests, but for now, it seems the rear ventilation will turn back ON if:
- it was ON when turning off the car AND
- someone is sitting on the rear bench (didn't try with 3rd row).

But if you have no one sitting in the back, they will not turn back ON even if they were ON the last time and since they are now OFF, they will stay OFF the next time no matter if someone is sitting in the back.

Started the car this morning with passengers in the back. Climate stayed OFF. I turned it ON (on auto, but I don't think this is important) and then each time I turned the car OFF, then ON later today (always with passengers), the rear ventilation turned back ON automatically.

I'm now pretty convinced that the rear ventilation will turn back ON only if there is passengers in the back IF it was ON the last time your turned off the car. If it was OFF, then no matter if you have passengers or not, the rear ventilation will stay OFF.

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[Jasondorin]

Started the car this morning with passengers in the back. Climate stayed OFF. I turned it ON (on auto, but I don't think this is important) and then each time I turned the car OFF, then ON later today (always with passengers), the rear ventilation turned back ON automatically.

I'm now pretty convinced that the rear ventilation will turn back ON only if there is passengers in the back IF it was ON the last time your turned off the car. If it was OFF, then no matter if you have passengers or not, the rear ventilation will stay OFF.

I am not so sure, as that is not the case with my EX. I will keep trying though and curious to see if a notification comes through from Kia corporate.

 

[cliffnerd5]

Started the car this morning with passengers in the back. Climate stayed OFF. I turned it ON (on auto, but I don't think this is important) and then each time I turned the car OFF, then ON later today (always with passengers), the rear ventilation turned back ON automatically.

I'm now pretty convinced that the rear ventilation will turn back ON only if there is passengers in the back IF it was ON the last time your turned off the car. If it was OFF, then no matter if you have passengers or not, the rear ventilation will stay OFF.

I am leaning toward this. I typically drive alone, or with my infant in the rear seat. On occasion my wife is back there as well and I have turned on the air a few times on warm days and it has never been on when my wife is back there. I always have to go and turn it on again. But she almost never rides back there for two trips in a row. I will test this tomorrow though.

 

[FireMartZ]

I am not so sure, as that is not the case with my EX. I will keep trying though and curious to see if a notification comes through from Kia corporate.

I have a SX (Canadian version). EX could be different.

 

[Jasondorin]

So for me, its not working...kids in back or not. But when I took it to the dealer on Friday it worked 3 times in a row with no one in the back, just the mechanic and I sitting in the front. And to be clear, "not working" for me means that the only way to turn on the rear temp is by pressing 'rear' then onscreen controlling what I want; and if I turn of the car with both zones on, when I turn it back on, only front zone comes up. And finally, pressing the 'sync' button does NOT turn on the rear like the instruction manual suggests.

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[cliffnerd5]

Yeah. I would be fine with it not coming on or staying on if 'sync' turned all on at same temp. But it does not

 

[Jasondorin]

Agree. The dealer on Friday kept saying the way it worked made sense and basically we agreed that the 'Rear' button is just to get the UVO screen to pull up the digital rear controls. Just seems like a lot of steps. My 10 year VW minivan I sold to trade in for the Telly was easier...

 

[ernysan]

S model here Having same "issue" have to turn it OFF rear AC every time I start the vehicle (having or not any one at the rear seats) Until I read this post I notice that's not normal Please keep posting updates of this matter

 

[Jasondorin]

I just re-read the instructions again regarding temp control in both of the manuals (full length and quick start) in the attached and maybe it is suppose to work as I am experiencing it...but hard to say for those with the S where it does not re-set on restarting the car....hard to know