Air conditioning

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Tuesday – Air Conned?

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Jeremy – Gone are the days of annoying rattles from the dashboard and squeaks that drive you mad on even the shortest of journeys. My father seemed to suffer more than most – every car he owned had a habit of developing a rattle from somewhere deep in the heart of the trim.

Thankfully, that’s one trait I haven’t inherited but there is something quirky about the Mazda2 that I have never experienced in any car before.

It started today when I was driving up a long, steep hill towards Painswick, in Gloucestershire. With temperatures touching 30 degrees all week, the air conditioning has been on for every journey.

So, as I wound my way up and into the Cotswolds, I noticed the air con only kicked in for short bursts, which is perfectly adequate to keep the cockpit cool. However, every time it did come on, there was a noticeable drop in power from the engine.

I know air conditioning can increase fuel consumption because it draws so heavily on the engine but I had no idea it would also have such an impact.

And now that I have noticed it is happening, I can’t seem to ignore the power loss! Just like one of the annoying rattles, the 2 has a small Achilles heel that isn’t going away anytime soon. Now, where’s that squeak…

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Saturday – Biblical Heatwave

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Jeremy We’ve just enjoyed a game of tennis in sweltering heat and then slumped into the Mazda2 for a comfortable drive home. How the rubbery ginger did we ever survive ten or 20 years ago without air conditioning?

We just expect city runabouts to come equipped with cold air these days and the 2 is no exception – let’s face it, driving around London without it would almost be unbearable.

The Mazda has an especially good air con unit that is so powerful it even reaches those in the back seats. And because the cabin is pretty compact, it doesn’t take long for the whole car to cool down in an English summer heatwave.

The present weather reminded me of a story about a guy who got frostbite in his toes after driving up the M1 with the air con blasting at his feet! Remarkable? Well, maybe after 40 days of this sort of weather it might be more commonplace…

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Tuesday – Sunny CR-V

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Jeremy Having spent most of the year frustrated by the bad weather, I’m not going to say this current heatwave isn’t welcome. And while in some respects, it would be lovely to own a convertible, I’m actually very happy to be sat in a Honda CR-V.

There have been many soft-tops in the Taylor garage but with temperatures touching 30 degrees today, I can’t understand why anybody would want to sit in an open car and sweat as they turn pink in all the wrong places.

Here’s a fact. The Brits buy more convertibles than Spain, France and Italy put together. Why? Because it is so hot in those countries that you would rather sit in air conditioned bliss than turn lobster in a convertible.

Besides, the glass roof on the CR-V lets in plenty of natural light and when it becomes too warm, two screen glide in from the front and rear to keep the sun out. The Honda is also blessed with one of the most powerful climate control systems I’ve encountered.

The only feature that’s lacking is an air conditioned glovebox to keep my dog’s bottle of water cold…