[hawke]

I downloaded the UVO Eco App to use with my 2018 Niro PHEV. Everything seems to work fine except for setting the vehicle climate. Most of the app reviewers complain the climate function doesn't work for them too. Is there something all of us are missing about the climate functionality or is this function simply unworkable?

 

[egmacrae]

I didn't have a problem setting climate control in my PHEV from the app, I'm using an iphone 5S. Where my problem lies with the app is that I can only use it once and then it won't work and then I have to delete the app and then re download it. Anybody have any clues on why this is??

 

[jmurphEV]

I downloaded the UVO Eco App to use with my 2018 Niro PHEV. Everything seems to work fine except for setting the vehicle climate. Most of the app reviewers complain the climate function doesn't work for them too. Is there something all of us are missing about the climate functionality or is this function simply unworkable?

The app works fine with my PHEV including the climate control, but you have to make sure the vehicle is locked when you try it. I forget sometimes and it's annoying because there's no indication in the app that reminds you to lock it, it just fails.

 

[hawke]

Why The Flashing Car Lights During Climate Operation?

Thanks so much Jim for the information. I locked my Niro and the app's climate settings worked perfectly. My follow-up question is why do the front and rear orange car lights flash during climate operation? I cooled and heated the vehicle to test the app and ran each for a few minutes but the orange lights didn't stop flashing. Is this built into the remote climate functionality and if so, why?

 

[jmurphEV]

Thanks so much Jim for the information. I locked my Niro and the app's climate settings worked perfectly. My follow-up question is why do the front and rear orange car lights flash during climate operation? I cooled and heated the vehicle to test the app and ran each for a few minutes but the orange lights didn't stop flashing. Is this built into the remote climate functionality and if so, why?

I'm not sure why the flashers are on when the climate is activated remotely, but it's definitely a feature. Probably some safety thing.

 

[spankym]

I'm pretty happy with the app and it always seems to work for me. The only thing that bugs me a bit is when heating it turns on the steering wheel heater and rear defrost automatically. It would be nice to be able to select those on and off. It would also be nice to select the seat heat.

Perfect for me would be to just heat the drivers seat and steering wheel for a few minutes before getting in the car in the morning many days

 

[Mal]

Reviving an old thread. I have been using the app quite a bit. It is a bit buggy and certainly not up to Tesla standards but it works. My battery range is more often incorrect than correct and often trips don't download but both problems seem intermittent. I have tested the climate setting but won't use it much until I figure out the HVAC system in normal operation....

 

[Dougiefresh]

I have an I phone 5S and I log into UVO using the fingerscan feature. When it's working correctly it populates user name and then asks for fingerscan. Sometimes UVO will ask for user name and password. When this happens it fails to log in (despite entering correct credentials). Has anybody had a similar experience?

 

[lafe005]

It is a bit buggy and certainly not up to Tesla standards but it works. My battery range is more often incorrect than correct and often trips don't download but both problems seem intermittent.

You guy's in the states are quite lucky to have this app, up north, the app for PHEV is still horrible. i have mine since december 2018 (one of the first 10 phev sold in canada), and i still does not have the same version that all new PHEV has now, no charging info, connected or not etc.. opened a ticket at Kia Canada, and since 2 weeks, noooo response from them yet.!

I have tested the climate setting but won't use it much until I figure out the HVAC system in normal operation....

HVAC system ?? Cold or hot climate ?

 

[Mal]

Probably deserves a separate thread but I have trouble figuring HVAC out. From OFF if I start the fan I expect air from vents neither heated or cooled. I get heat or cool depending on temp set. IC starts and I get heat from the vents or the AC starts and cools the air. IF the AC runs, the AC light doesn't light.

Even after reading the manual, I've taken to setting a temp, deselecting recirculation and just letting it do its thing.

 

[deltasmith]

I hadn't noticed that, although I stopped running the fan as often because it drops the estimated EV range and we were coming into the cool season when I first came to recognize that, so I haven't needed the fan much.



I think if you set cabin temp to lower than outside air temp, but don't start the AC and don't select the defogger (which starts the AC but doesn't tell you it's doing that), you should get outside air temp. If you set it warmer than outside air temp, then yes - it's likely to blow heat if it has any (if the ICE has run enough to make heat).

 

[yticolev]

Probably deserves a separate thread but I have trouble figuring HVAC out.

I've owned it for over a year, and I still don't understand it. Nor why modern cars have changed from easy, nay intuitive use, to a system whose main goal appears to take control away from you. At least three steps to just get outside air in without a change in temperature with the fan off. You want outside temperature? You first have to set the thermostat to the outside temperature. Which turns the fan on. Want to change which vents the air is coming from? Turn on the fan first.

One big insight that might help someone, you can turn ADS (auto defog system off) and regain some control over air conditioning (I like it off for efficiency). AC can be on when AC light is off. Crazy Koreans! If my window fogs up such that I require AC (has not happened in forty years of driving), well that is what the AC button is for.

 

[deltasmith]

I've had a few cars that would turn on the AC automatically whenever the defog was on, and at least a few of them would fail to light up an indicator light to let you know that AC was running. With conventional cars, you can tell its running because the compressor kicks on, the RPMs change, the radiator fan might run more frequently, or you can put up the hood and observe that the compressor is spinning.


While turning the AC on for defogging (even in the middle of the winter) is sometimes beneficial in that it dries out the air and defogs more effectively, there's a second reason why you might want to let this happen. Everything I've read suggests that you should run the AC every few months for at least a few minutes in order to prevent the seals from drying out and then leaking refrigerant, leading to costly repairs. The system is charged with both a refrigerant and lubricants, and if they don't circulate occasionally, apparently this is leads to premature failure of the seals. I hired an AC guy to check out my home AC system last year and he told me the same thing: run it a few times in the winter if you want to prolong the life of the system.


With that said, I agree with your point: it would be nice to just be able to turn on the fan and get some air circulation without having to put a lot of thought into it.

 

[jmurphEV]

I've owned it for over a year, and I still don't understand it. Nor why modern cars have changed from easy, nay intuitive use, to a system whose main goal appears to take control away from you. At least three steps to just get outside air in without a change in temperature with the fan off. You want outside temperature? You first have to set the thermostat to the outside temperature. Which turns the fan on. Want to change which vents the air is coming from? Turn on the fan first.

One big insight that might help someone, you can turn ADS (auto defog system off) and regain some control over air conditioning (I like it off for efficiency). AC can be on when AC light is off. Crazy Koreans! If my window fogs up such that I require AC (has not happened in forty years of driving), well that is what the AC button is for.

I'll second (third?) this. I've come to the conclusion that it's just not possible, short of the elaborate machinations you describe, to simply turn on the fan and bring fresh air into the car. It's one of the only gripes I have about the Niro. Even my 2005 Audi, which has automatic climate control has a nice Econ button that lets you just run the fan without A/C. How hard would it have been to give us one on the Niro?

It seems an odd omission for a car focused on maximum efficiency.

 

[Mal]

Boy, do I feel better. I've been operating heavy equipment with lots of computer controls yet the HVAC has me confused. Glad to know I'm not the only one.

So, let me get this straight. Turn the fan on, just the fan, and you get heat or AC if the temp set is different than outside? Set the inside temp to the outside temp, turn the fan on and if the inside temp goes up x deg, the AC runs with no light. Temp goes down x deg the ICE starts for heat? ..... good grief. AC is a 10% hit, ICE burns gas. Is there a way to just fresh air thru the fan with no AC or heat?

I haven't figured it out.......

 

[deltasmith]

According to the manual, if you dial in heat on the climate control and the coolant temp is cooler than 57 degrees F (14 C), the ICE will start. So if you don't want the ICE to run, dial the temp on the climate down below ambient temp, so that the climate system doesn't think you are trying to heat the cabin.



In most conditions, the AC won't start automatically if you just have the fan on. So an easy way to maintain this in summer weather is to just turn the climate temp all the way down to min, turn the climate system Off, and then turn the fan on.


The condition where the AC might start automatically, without giving you an indicator light, is when you put the climate system in the defog configuration. So don't use that one if you don't want the AC to start. And if you occasionally forget these rules and the AC runs for a few minutes every month, that's actually good for your AC system, so don't fret the few pennies lost. But don't drive around all summer in defog mode (I usually notice when I've made this mistake because the air coming out the vent is cooler than it should be for no AC running).

 

[atc98092]

I have both the Uvo Eco app and the Kia Access app on my iPhone. Both seem to communicate with my car without issue. But both annoy me that they don't refresh the connection when I load the app. After it loads, I still have to hit refresh to see the current status. Communication appears to be very slow, as sometimes the refresh takes almost 30 seconds. Yes, that's a long time when you want to check battery charge or change the door lock or climate settings. Is it just me, or do others see the same sort or performance with the apps?

 

[brandent]

According to the manual, if you dial in heat on the climate control and the coolant temp is cooler than 57 degrees F (14 C), the ICE will start. So if you don't want the ICE to run, dial the temp on the climate down below ambient temp, so that the climate system doesn't think you are trying to heat the cabin.



In most conditions, the AC won't start automatically if you just have the fan on. So an easy way to maintain this in summer weather is to just turn the climate temp all the way down to min, turn the climate system Off, and then turn the fan on.


The condition where the AC might start automatically, without giving you an indicator light, is when you put the climate system in the defog configuration. So don't use that one if you don't want the AC to start. And if you occasionally forget these rules and the AC runs for a few minutes every month, that's actually good for your AC system, so don't fret the few pennies lost. But don't drive around all summer in defog mode (I usually notice when I've made this mistake because the air coming out the vent is cooler than it should be for no AC running).

But that's just it. You don't 'dial in heat'. There's no functional way to tell it to use heat or cooling. It picks one. It's the worst automatic climate control I've ever seen....and considering I own a Ford, that's bad. The buttons mean absolutely nothing relative to whether it thinks you want heat or air conditioning or just vent. It is picking based not only on the temperature INSIDE your car, but also OUTSIDE. This is intuitive if it's cold out or hot out but the issue doesn't lie in that. It's when it's sorta neutral out. If it's 50 degrees outside in March but the car sat in the sun and the interior is nice and warm if you turn on the climate control it'll think you want heat and fire up the gas engine. Your choices are crank it all the way to the coldest temperature or try to take it over manually but it won't let you actually decide to engage heat or not heat even in manual settings. It is a very regular thing to tool around town in a borderline outside temperature where the outside temp is cool but with sun the inside temp is quite warm so you either want just plain vent or a little AC. The Niro in that situation seems to oblige with AC, but also starts the gas engine because it figures you're going to need heat due to the cold temp outside.

Oh and also the thing seems to think under no circumstances other than full blast do you want a little fan. This whole setup is a mess.

 

[yticolev]

Take a look at your battery charge status when you turn on the AC. If low, the engine will come on since there is now a new load on the battery. Easier to do if stopped, if moving, a slight change of incline may also trigger the engine coincidentally.

As far as I know, the engine never turns on because of a predicted heat call from the HVAC that is off or actively using AC. It may turn on when you are at highway speeds and a combination of low engine temperature and low outside air temperature may show a need to warm the engine for best efficiency, not heat the occupants.

 

[Michael Jones]

Reviving an old thread. I have been using the app quite a bit. It is a bit buggy and certainly not up to Tesla standards but it works. My battery range is more often incorrect than correct and often trips don't download but both problems seem intermittent. I have tested the climate setting but won't use it much until I figure out the HVAC system in normal operation....

I have an I phone 5S and I log into UVO using the fingerscan feature. When it's working correctly it populates user name and then asks for fingerscan. Sometimes UVO will ask for user name and password. When this happens it fails to log in (despite entering correct credentials). Has anybody had a similar experience?

The new Kia Access with UVO Link app works a lot better, though with an iPhone 5S, you may have some issues still because of your hardware. The UVO Eco app will not be receiving anymore updates and all users should migrate to the new app.

If you have issues with the app or would like to suggest features or updates, email [email protected].