Misty Zafira

[vickyarcher]

My husband has got a 56 reg Zafira that seems to mist up very easily and takes ages to clear.
As an example, this morning it was dry and about 7C, there was dew on the car. He got in and other than the dew, the screen was fairly clear. Started the engine and used the wipers. Screen starts to mist up. Turn the vent to screen, heat to full, fan to 4 and switch A/C on - screen instantly mists up so you can't see through it.
3 minutes later, a hole starts to appear in the mist which then takes another 4 minutes to get to a hole that you can (safely) see through to drive. About another 5 minutes before the screen is completely clear.
Again, this evening, having to drive round with A/C on, fan on at least 2 and vent pointing at screen to keep clear. Park up for 10 minutes, get back in and the rear screen and the rear side windows are misty and the front screen is misty round the edges.
Are all Zafira's this bad for ventilation or is it just this one?
We did have it through last winter (from late November) and we don't remember it being this bad, although it wasn't great then.
Carpets aren't wet and haven't carried anything that might cause damp in the car.
Is it something to put up with, something that isn't right or does anyone have any tips on how to get away in the morning without it misting up so much?
Thanks.

[Tricky791]

I've found a similar but not as bad problem with my previous aircon cars.

The best way I have found is to zap the aircon on full cold to demist windscreen and then once engine has warmed up, turn it to warm.

Not having these probs with my Zaffy though.

On a 56 plate you should take it to your dealer and get them to check it out under warranty.

Tricky

[V6Sintra]

Yes I agree with tricky. From cold use AC to clear screen then as heater /engine starts to warm then turn off AC. inside the heater there are 2 small radiators the AC one is called a condenser this obviously gets cold. On a cold morning if you are using the heater and AC not only are you trying to warm the cold air drawn from outside you are also trying to cool it as well with AC and the heater has to work even harder to try and raise the temperature this is also going to give increased condensation.

[bungle666]

also try changing the pollen filter!!! my astra used to be bad for this, and it didnt have air con!!! changed the filter and problem solved!!! my current veccy is suffering from the same problem and thats the first thing i gonna do!!!!!


bungle

[bhelpuri]

I agree, try the pollen filter first. I had the same problem and changed mine yesterday.It was black and blocked. Having the fan on full with the blocked filter was the equivalent of less than number one on the fan motor speed control.
I tried the halfords one but does not fit perfectly. It is worth buying from vx for 2 quids more.

[gatecrasher3]

Daft as it sounds a good cleaning of the glass will make a huge difference as well (as long as it's not the pollen filter).

[KitS]

Vicky,

How about trying the air-con/heater on re-circulate for a bit?

My Zaffie A GSi did that sometimes and my current 1.8 Dual does it as well. I found the re-circ trick is the fastest, and warmest, way of sorting it.

[tompointer]

The aircons cooling unit switches off if outside temp' is low,the aircon only dries out the air.So if the heaters on and its cold outside the aircon will not try to cool it down.
My zaffy 06 seems prone to condensation,iv'e also tried it on re-circulate which makes things worse.
Using the aircon does clear things after 4 mins or so.
I'd dread to think what it would be like if the a/c packed in,i'd probably need a snorkel.
As others have suggested i've not tried replacing the pollen filter,if it does cause this prob,vx should change it more frequently when serviced.
I have to admit my previous cars fan blowers were more powerfull and a/c were more efficent on a cold day.
(I've also followed the handbooks inst'ns on demisting and defrosting the windows,also my carpets are dry).

[itaylort]

Just out of interest can you feel the air coming out of the demister vents near the windscreen?

Ian

[waynephatg]

Agree with all above. It is worth checking that the air recirculation is not stuck on, as that will aid steaming up.

[Mike_gsi]

I used to have a seat alhambra and on the galaxy forum they used to have a similar discussion and one member said that you can buy stuff to go on the inside of your screen, can't remember whats its called but its made by the people who do the RAIN-X stuff and supposed to work a treat!

[V6Sintra]

you can buy stuff to go on the inside of your screen, can't remember whats its called but its made by the people who do the RAIN-X stuff and supposed to work a treat!

Sounds like the stuff I used to use on my motorbike helmet visor to stop it misting up. When I used to ride bikes. I can't remember what that was called either!

[AutoZaf]

Found that in my Zaf, having the blower on and the recirculate button on too will cause fairly rapid misting if the AC is not also on. But it doesn;t act this way during the summer.

Turn off the recirculate and AC, just have the heater of max temp and the blower on 3 or 4 initally. Mine then clears fairly quickly throughout the car.

[thefordprefect]

Old thread but thought I would add this:

Just looked at the pollen filter - bone dry, no evidence of water. BUT the recirculate gismno (big half dome on top of fan) is sticking shut or open. it was open when I checked = recirculate. It should not have been!

In window mode this recirc should not happen anyway. I guess this could be cause of problem - internal damp air (caused human occupation - not leaks any where) will be blatted againt cold glass with inevitable results.

If it is the pollenfilter does anyone have an explanation?

pushing/pulling the "dome thing" reactivates the circuit and it will open/shut a few times before stopping.

If leaving it shut fixes the misting I will get back
Mike

[tezza74]

Sounds like the stuff I used to use on my motorbike helmet visor to stop it misting up. When I used to ride bikes. I can't remember what that was called either!

i know it sounds silly but when i had my bike i used washing up liquid worked a treat.

[davedoitall]

I think you are all missing the point. If you use your air conditioner in the winter condensation forms on the heat (cold) exchanger. When you put the heater on with a cold morning the condensate evaporates from around the heat exchanger. With the heater on the initial warm air is almost saturated with the condensate and then when it hits the windscreen it immediately condenses on the inside of the windscreen. Normally particularly in the summer the condensate drains out through a drain pipe onto the ground. You may have noticed this on dry summer days. It is possible that this drain pipe freezes with extremely low outside temperatures and won't necessarily drain properly unless the car is very warm. If you are to use the air conditioning it is most likely that it will make the effect of windscreen condensation much worse, particularly if you are doing lots of short journeys in the cold using the airconditioning. I would suggest it better not to use it unless you are regularly doing long journeys with the heater on. The aircon although appearing to solve the problem is more than likely making it much worse the following day.
I would definitely not recommend using recirculation. It is important that all moist air is removed from the inside of the car otherwise next time it will be even worse.

[grampy]

I had a problem with my previous Meriva with screen misting, I first noticed it last autumn after carrying my fishing kit. The screen would mist up and nothing would clear it, neither having the blower on full,or having the ac on. The only way was to drive with the windows open. Until I realised that the moist air must be in the heating or ac hoses, so I drove the car until the heater was hot opened the windows and put the fan on full to expel the moisture from the system, this I found worked.

[thefordprefect]

In window mode this recirc should not happen anyway. I guess this could be cause of problem - internal damp air (caused human occupation - no leaks any where) will be blatted againt cold glass with inevitable results.

If leaving it shut fixes the misting I will get back
Mike

The car has turned from steamy bathroom mode back to normal.
The recirculation control has been left in non-recirculation mode until the operating mechanism is replaced (probably never!)

It's worth checking that the recirc mechanism works (it only takes about 10 minutes to get the glove compartment removed. then press the recirc buttonb a number of times to check that mechanism doesnt stick.
Mike