IS the air conditioning supposed to be turned off before you turn the car off ... and why?

Answer 1

It should be turned off a couple of miles before you shut the car off due to moisture in the system not drying out if left on when you shut it down and it will form mildew and mold in the system and start stinking badly when you turn it on and it can't be good for you breathing that air either.

Answer 2

Good question :)) I always shut my air conditioning off before I shut down the engine I never thought about it though..its like the lights or the radio ....the lights you have to shut off because you can drain the battery to be safe i shut everything off my car is a 2004 but to be safe I shut everything down :)) Next time I go to my dealer I will ask this question or the men on my block that love their cars they will be able to tell me haha when in doubt shut everything down better to be safe then sorry when your car has some kind of malfunction :)))

Answer 3

I believe it depends entirely on the type of car. Some Europeans cars don't required to do that. Never less is a good practice for old cars.

Answer 4

GG just for the sake of conversation it really does not matter.. old guys like myself like to turn everything off before shutting down the engine.. just habit i guess,, thinking that you don't want any systems engaged on the next start-up... l

Answer 5

Hi giraffe,

As most of our friends told..it is to avoid the sudden load on teh engine.it is good practice to switch off A/C before you start the engine.

regards,
Nataraj
Bahrain

Answer 6

really it should be off before you turn it on so you don't put unneeded strain in the engine at start up. when you start the car the ECU regulates the rpms to warm up the engine, so when you turn on the car the ECU ups the rpms to compensate for the a/c load so if it is on when you start the car it will over rev and waste fuel and put wear on the engine shortening the life of the car, so it is a good idea to turn it off when you turn off the car just to be safe.

Answer 7

I'm sure in newer cars their computer tells them to turn off the A/C, disengage the A/C compressor, even though the switch is on when starting.

....I'm sure older cars do it too.

Answer 8

I can't think of any compelling reason you would have to do so. Those vehicles with climate control that you set and forget are always on with no problems to the engine or system.

Answer 9

When you turn the car back on the air conditioning would be too big a drain on the battery

Answer 10

Turn off you A/C so that its off next time you start your car. If the A/C is on, it puts extra strain on your engine/starter and causes unecessary wear. Hope this helps.