Aircon and Leather or not

Cant make my mind up if I can do without aircon and leather - narrowed my selection down to a couple with the above but they are a good 1 to 1.5k more than those without and that money would be good to spend on mapping.

Its been such a long time since I didn't have aircon that I really cant remember life without it. I know the windows wind down and there's the flap things at the front but is that really enough.

Do you guys swelter in your cabs or are you all as cool as cucumbers

:beer2:

What age are you looking at? Air con is better in the newer ones. The TD5 or older you have an extra shelf to bash your knees on.

Colour of the car makes a huge difference ref internal temps
My 90 dark green/blue swelters inside, my s2 white roof sides much cooler.
Leather in def not a good idea, get it wet takes serious drying out

Looking at 2004 90 county sx td5 - never gave colour a thought - looking at a blue and black one.

Thanks for the replies - appreciated

Wouldn't be without air when travelling in my fender with my tribe. I have the 'poor'
TD5 air, but even driving in 38 degree heat it gives a nice cool flow.

Haven't missed it to be honest. Don't have it in either of mine. But don't do safaris either!

Air conditioning is great when the car has been standing in the sun on hot days and makes a big difference to the comfort of my TD5 in the summer. I used it quite a bit last year, but not so much this year. Leather I'd not be so keen on. I replaced the seats in mine and selected black vinyl because it is nice and easy to clean and it doesn't matter if you get in with wet and muddy clothes if you've been out in the rain.

Mine gets quite warm when it's sat in the sun due to all the glass, but I've found that by opening the sunroof, front vents and maybe the rear sliding windows the hot air soon gets blown away.

The only time I've missed having air con is in the winter. Strange though it might sound, it dries the air which helps a lot with demisting the windows.

FlyingPete said:

Mine gets quite warm when it's sat in the sun due to all the glass, but I've found that by opening the sunroof, front vents and maybe the rear sliding windows the hot air soon gets blown away.

The only time I've missed having air con is in the winter. Strange though it might sound, it dries the air which helps a lot with demisting the windows.

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Heated screen will sort that out, got one in my series brilliant

I thought I'd miss the aircon, but I don't. Open the flaps and the window a bit, make sure you're traveling in non-restrictive clothes. Shorts and wicking-t-shirt for example. The air turbulence is surprisingly refreshing and "basic".

As above I miss it most in the winter for demisting . A heated screen is on the "to do" list.

I don't miss it in the summer as I like driving with the window down.
The key is to open the front vent as well as it cuts down on the buffeting considerably.

I rarely venture onto the motorway with it. But once on the way back from the landrover show at Peterborough I needed air con as it was very hot and I had to make a choice between the heat or the noise and being blown about. But that's the only time in the summer.

Don't do aircon !! Live in France, go to Morocco in the height of summer just open the front flaps and get used to the heat !!

We are turning into a race of puffs that can't cope with the heat in summer and then have to put the central heating on full blast in winter !

I confess I used it a couple of times in July, especially after I got it fixed at the last service, but in the 3 years I have had the XS I have rarely used it.

I recently bought some these vent demister thingies after I saw the chap at Newbury NEW PAIR Land Rover Defender side window + windscreen demister 90/100 TD5/300TDI | eBay which woork quite well at clearing the side windows.

As for demisting in winter, I have never really found a/c to work in the 'fender, given that the A/C in a TD5 is a completely seperate unit to the heater. so your knees freeze while the feeble heater just gives up trying to heat the chilled air.

Remember that the A/C is an internal recirc device whereas the heater relies on sucking external air through the heater matrix, so unlike a modern (puma) unit you can never really dehumidify the air.

As for the leather seats, fortunately when I got my 110 XS it had seat covers which I have never removed, ergo I have never even seen the leather as I am frequently filling the motor with crud for the tip (or at least swmbo does)

The heated screen is a fairly good device when they work properly, but mine does tend to work in patches, ironically clearing a 1ft strip right in front of the driver last (The main stealer refused to look at it as it was not covered by LR extended warranty)

In summer I just open a rear window and the front flaps as previously indicated and it defugs the 110 quickly. Dont know how Puma drivers live without the flaps. The dog loves sniffing through the dash when they are open too.

I would recommend fitting heated mirrors though as they are great at clearing spray as well as frost.

As the only cars I have owned with air con were rovers, MGs a freelander and a P38 Rangie. I can say that ive never understood what all the fuss is about. Doesn't seem to make any difference.

Then got an A4 Audi. It's like a bloody fridge could do with a heater in the middle of summer. Really must try and work out the controls but they are more complicated than most starting with the name: 'climate control' then presenting you with a lot of buttons none of which can just be held down and none of which can be read without crashing the car.

Thanks for all the info guys - really appreciated and very useful - might just take a punt at one without aircon and go back to how things used to be.

Plus less to go wrong

KillaJoules said:

As for demisting in winter, I have never really found a/c to work in the 'fender, given that the A/C in a TD5 is a completely seperate unit to the heater. so your knees freeze while the feeble heater just gives up trying to heat the chilled air.

Remember that the A/C is an internal recirc device whereas the heater relies on sucking external air through the heater matrix, so unlike a modern (puma) unit you can never really dehumidify the air.

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That's quite interesting actually. My last car was a fiesta where both heating and AC could be used with fresh or recirculated air. The heater matrix was just in line after the AC system, so heated up the cold, dry air. Sounds like the land rover setup isn't that well designed!

Boxer said:

As the only cars I have owned with air con were rovers, MGs a freelander and a P38 Rangie. I can say that ive never understood what all the fuss is about. Doesn't seem to make any difference.

Then got an A4 Audi. It's like a bloody fridge could do with a heater in the middle of summer. Really must try and work out the controls but they are more complicated than most starting with the name: 'climate control' then presenting you with a lot of buttons none of which can just be held down and none of which can be read without crashing the car.

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On the A4 press auto on the panel and just adjust the temps and leave all the other buttons alone, I actually think climate is a pain in the arse a twiddly knob is so much user friendly.

FlyingPete said:

That's quite interesting actually. My last car was a fiesta where both heating and AC could be used with fresh or recirculated air. The heater matrix was just in line after the AC system, so heated up the cold, dry air. Sounds like the land rover setup isn't that well designed!

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Lol, apparently the Puma has a proper heating system with integrated A/C as you would expect in any modern car. This is why the bulkhead vents are sealed up and the dash changed to have proper vents that can blow at the face and windows.

Rumour has it that the heater can actually heat a 110 SW up in winter over a period of weeks

As for the TD5 Defenders, the A?C is a Heath Robinson affair bolted under the dashboard (I believe it is originally from the old RRC). It is completely seperate from the standard heater system with the fan and heat exchanger in the passenger footwell and your vents accross the bulkhead blowing at your knees.

Remember the dash is still basically no more than a tarted up S111 dash with the heater located in the engine bay inside the passengers wing.

Consequently an A/C equipped motor has significantly less leg room in both footwells.