heated passenger seat when not sat on?

My understanding is that heating the seats is a more efficient way to heat the cabin.
I think I have read that to conserve battery power, some keep their heat setting very low and have all the seat heaters on, even when driving solo.

Well, the current behaviour kept the kitty carrier warm the other day. That wouldn't have been possible if it wouldn't turn on without a passenger in the seat.

Nice to preheat before picking up a passenger...

Vitaman said:

My understanding is that heating the seats is a more efficient way to heat the cabin.
I think I have read that to conserve battery power, some keep their heat setting very low and have all the seat heaters on, even when driving solo.

Click to expand...

They aren't a more efficient way to heat the cabin, but they are a more efficient way to heat you.

The difference being using the seat heaters to heat the air of the cabin then relying on the air to heat you is no different than using the central heater to do the same. However, using the seat heaters to directly transfer heat into your body will be more efficient, as you aren't heating all that air and car parts that will then lose that heat through convection outside.

"They aren't a more efficient way to heat the cabin, but they are a more efficient way to heat you."
That makes more sense.
Do they really work? Or is it a matter of having your seat toasty warm and your nose and lips freezing cold?

I've always wished the seats would turn on remotely, along with the cabin heater using the phone app. Unfortunately, the car needs to be 'on' for them to work so this means your butt needs to be planted on the ice cold seat first. It would just be nice to slide onto pre-warmed seats on a freezing day.

Vitaman said:

"They aren't a more efficient way to heat the cabin, but they are a more efficient way to heat you."
That makes more sense.
Do they really work? Or is it a matter of having your seat toasty warm and your nose and lips freezing cold?

Click to expand...

I think that's going to depend on the person. My wife loves heated seats and is quite happy with a cooler cabin and a warm seat. Myself, I can't stand them, I use my heated seats just long enough to take the chill off, but as soon as I can feel the heat I shut them off because it just feels unnatural to me.

What would make them much better though would be if they were paired with a heated steering wheel... it's all fine and dandy to have your body heated from the seat, but if you can't feel your fingers... (and a car relying so heavily on touch screen controls really discourages wearing gloves while driving!)

Vitaman said:

"They aren't a more efficient way to heat the cabin, but they are a more efficient way to heat you."
That makes more sense.
Do they really work? Or is it a matter of having your seat toasty warm and your nose and lips freezing cold?

Click to expand...

They would work far better in conduction with a heated steering wheel. I use them but my hands get cold, nose and lips don't have a problem. In any event the defrost has to be activated every so often to keep the condensation at bay, so the cabin air is never that cold to start with. I find that turning the seat heaters off as soon as I start to feel the heat works best. This is definitely a YYMV situation.

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Forty Creek said:

I've always wished the seats would turn on remotely, along with the cabin heater using the phone app. Unfortunately, the car needs to be 'on' for them to work so this means your butt needs to be planted on the ice cold seat first. It would just be nice to slide onto pre-warmed seats on a freezing day.

Click to expand...

The best thing is to pre-heat the car, which warms the seats as well. Then turn on the seat heater if you start to feel chilly. You can go quite a ways before having to turn the cabin heat back on.