Interior Condensation

[Speedy]

Hi All,

I bought a Mazda 3 Sport back in July and now that the weather has gotten colder I have noticed condensation/fog on the inside of my windows (while the car is off). Has anyone else experienced this problem?

I love my car but this problem is becoming annoying.....the dealership can\'t find anything wrong. :p

[bluntman]

You\'re going to have to provide more information (what time of day this occurs, did you just come from the gym, etc), but it sounds normal (ever seen Titanic?)...cold outside, warm inside. The warmer air is going to condense on the colder glass. Keep the vent selector on either of the last two options. Probably the only thing you can do to prevent this is to buy yourself a Mercedes S class with double glazed windows.

[Speedy]

It happens most often at the end of the work day (5-6pm) after the car has been sitting in the parking lot all day. A co-worker has the same car as I do and does not experience this problem. It doesn\'t happen everyday.

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Originally posted by Speedy


Hi All,

I bought a Mazda 3 Sport back in July and now that the weather has gotten colder I have noticed condensation/fog on the inside of my windows (while the car is off). Has anyone else experienced this problem?

I love my car but this problem is becoming annoying.....the dealership can\'t find anything wrong. :p

do you smoke inside the car? have you cleaned the inside of your windows since you got the car?

if you do smoke, it creates a film on the windows that moisture condenses to easier.

if you don\'t smoke, but haven\'t cleaned the windows (and they\'re not tinted), the plastics evapourate and also causes a film on the windows.

try cleaning your windows and see if you still have the problem.

[bluntman]

Also, do you leave your air recirculator selector (the one beside the defrost button) on recirculate (amber light) or fresh air (green light)? Mine is always on the fresh air setting and I\'ve never had any condensation on the inside of the windows.

[Speedy]

Thanks for the quick replies. I don\'t smoke and the last time I cleaned the windows (inside) was about a month ago. I will clean all the windows tonight and see if it helps.

Could this interior moisture become a larger problem?

[majic]

turning A/C on might alleviate the problem as well as NOT blasting hot air (you wnat to equalize the outside/inside temps)

also.. maybe you\'re just hotter than your coworker :D ;) :p

[Speedy]

I usually leave it on the fresh air setting.

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Originally posted by Speedy


Thanks for the quick replies. I don\'t smoke and the last time I cleaned the windows (inside) was about a month ago. I will clean all the windows tonight and see if it helps.

Could this interior moisture become a larger problem?

next set of questions :D

do you have rubber floor mats or are they the stock carpet mats? has there been a lot of melted snow being brought into the car?

reason i ask is because the windows won\'t fog while the car has been sitting unless there is humidity inside the car. this moisture in the air could be coming from water either trapped in rubber floor mats or soaked into the carpet.

[Speedy]

I have rubber car mats.
I don\'t know what the source of the moisture is? The problem first occurred before the first snowfall.

[bluntman]

Originally posted by Speedy


I have rubber car mats.
I don\'t know what the source of the moisture is? The problem first occurred before the first snowfall.

Am I on Candid Camera?

[majic]

i still think the owner is REALLLY hot :p

anyway.. maybe there\'s some moisture inside (ie. got in during a car wash due to poor door seals).. or does it happen on days you haven\'t finished your coffee/tea/water

there\'s GOTTA be some source of water in there..

it happened to me once but it was more like frost on the inside and it was due to me blasting HOT air on the windshield while driving and then i turned the car off and the windshield cooled of quite rapidly.. condensation + cold weather caused it to ice over..

now is it all windows? particular sections of windows?

[majic]

this post is sooooo getting most posts per minute :D

[bluntman]

Originally posted by majic


i still think the owner is REALLLY hot :p



Like this?
http://imgsrv.gsol.it/upddv/snew/paris-hilton.jpg

Or like this?
http://www.foodhistory.com/foodnotes/leftovers/tabasco-image.jpg

[Speedy]

Its happened on the front windshield, moon roof, and on the back window (hatch). But it does happen more frequently on the front windshield. I try not to leave unfinished water bottles, coffee cups in the car.

:D

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Originally posted by bluntman

Am I on Candid Camera?

http://forums.maxima.org/images/smilies/spit.gif http://forums.maxima.org/images/smilies/rofl.gif

[majic]

Originally posted by Speedy


Its happened on the front windshield, moon roof, and on the back window (hatch). But it does happen more frequently on the front windshield. I try not to leave unfinished water bottles, coffee cups in the car.

:D

sorry these conditions do NOT narrow it down to any concrete answer.. i think i will need to test drive your car... i\'ll prolly need a week with it.. full tank pls :D

front wshield - vents
moonroof (warm air rises)
hatch.. at the top? did you heat the hatch (defroster)?

the theory seems to point out at you wnating to be warm in your car and mother nature playing a trick on you.. ;)

lets play 20questions :D

[Speedy]

lol.....well I do like to be warm......:)

I guess I am desined to live with this condensation......:(

[everfeb]

Originally posted by Speedy


It happens most often at the end of the work day (5-6pm) after the car has been sitting in the parking lot all day. A co-worker has the same car as I do and does not experience this problem. It doesn\'t happen everyday.

Try this...a minute or 2 before you arrive at your destination TURN YOUR FAN OFF AND
ROLL A WINDOW DOWN MAYBE A 1/4 WAY. This will get rid of a lot of hot humid air inside
your car. When you arrive at your destination...leave a couple of windows rolled down a
crack and when you get out of your car, pause with the door wide open for a few seconds.
Sounds like you build up a lot of heat and humidity inside the car on your way to work
then lock it all inside the car when you get out. Another thing I regularly do when I
first get into my car is leave my door open while I\'m doing my startup routine and breathe
in the direction of the open door. If it is not safe for you to leave the door open then
roll down a window and breathe at the open window. I even go so far as to leave my window down 1/4 way for the first few minutes of my drive and breathe into my mitts or out the window instead of
expelling my hot humid breath onto the freezing cold windshield. I also drive the first few
minutes without my fan on then turn it to 1 then after a few more minutes to 2. Also, I try to not use the floor heat setting or any setting to the right of floor. [edit Jan 15/06...after making this original post I discovered that at -1c or colder my A/C does not come on (even if I wanted it to) so it is not necessary to avoid \"floor\">\"defrost\" settings in -1 or colder temps. I still do not use these setting though as I like to try to keep my windshield as cold as possible as long as possible.

This may all sound goofy but even in -40 I almost never get any condensation or fogged up
windows when I am alone. When I have 3 or 4 passengers breathing all over my cold windows
I sometimes do but it\'s hard to ask them to breathe into their mitts.
:D Hope this helps. We do have to THINK A LOT MORE when driving in cold weather. In warm
weather just jump in and go...not so when it\'s cold.

everfeb