How to quickly cool down your car in hot weather

There's nothing more British than whinging about hot weather – it seems a point of national pride that we can go from 'when will it ever stop raining?' to 'my floral borders are wilting' faster than a Bugatti gets from 0 to 62mph. And with just as much turbo sucking noise through our teeth.

Our aversion to extreme heat is also why it's well worth learning how to cool your car down quickly after it's been sitting in the sun. Here are our top tips for getting your car cooler than a polar bear's feet in a Shoreditch rooftop pool. 

Fan the interior using the doors

You've probably worked out by now that air-con takes a while to kick in, so before you even fire up your car's engine, drop all the windows on one side of your car, then vigorously and repeatedly open and close a door on the other side to waft the hot air out of the cabin. Yes, this probably looks a bit mad in a National Trust car park, but people have seen worse – trust us. By using the door as a fan you'll move huge volumes of air through the cabin quickly, expelling the worst of the stale heat.

Switch on your air-con… but do it properly!

Now start your engine and whack the air-con on with the windows open. Some modern cars have an AC MAX button, so press that if you have one. Otherwise wind up the fans to maximum, make sure you're drawing outside air in (and not recirculating the hot air in the cabin!) and set the temperature to low (or Lo, if you share a passion for biblical phraseology with most car manufacturers). Once the internal air temperature starts to cool off, put the windows back up.

Once your windows are up and the air's cooled off a tad, change back to recirculation – this ensures you're cooling pre-cooled air rather than trying to constantly cool hot air from outside. It's also better for your fuel economy!

Remotely cool your car

It's worth noting that a number of high-end and electric cars have the option to cool the cabin remotely. This is normally done using an app which can set the car's cabin to hit a certain temperature at a certain time, although some older cars and campervans have separate keys to do the same thing.

Consider buying a car with ventilated seats

If you run a bit hot like most of the team here at Motorpoint, it's worth knowing that ventilated seats are becoming increasingly common on affordable cars. They do the opposite job of heated seats, using fans to blast cool air through pinprick holes in the seat fabric to cool your beans. You'll find ventilated seats on high-spec versions of Kia and Hyundai models, as well as the occasional Vauxhall.

How to stop your car from getting too hot

The easiest way to quickly cool down your car is to not let it get too hot in the first place. Here's how to do that:

• Park in a shaded area – trees can provide good shade (be careful of sap though), or use your garage if you have one. A cooler car can save you the time of having to get rid of all the hot air before your next journey
• Use a sunshade – available for your windscreen, they can help keep the heat from the sun out of your car. They are readily available online or any shops that sell car accessories
• Have your air-con serviced – maintaining your car’s air conditioning helps keep it running more efficiently. This means it will be more effective at cooling your car down. Many garages should be able to service our air conditioning. You should always consult your car’s handbook to see how often this should be done
• Cover your seats – darker colours absorb more heat and unfortunately, most cars come with black seats that will heat up. If you haven’t got lighter colour seats consider fitting paler coloured seat covers or covering your seat with a lighter towel that will stop it getting so hot
• Leave windows ajar – leaving your windows open a crack can help air circulate inside your car and prevent hot air from building up inside. Remember to only leave them open a small amount so thieves can’t gain access to your car and ensure the car is locked and alarmed
• Wipe down key touch points – sitting in the sun all day can really heat up your steering wheel, steering controls and gear stick. Using a damp cloth to wipe them down can cool them enough to handle more safely

Stay cool – and stay safe

Now you know how to cool your car as quickly as possible, take some time to find out how to drive safely in hot weather.