Auxiliary Heater Retrofit

Z

z4n

Registered User
Joined
Nov 15, 2018
Messages
23
Reaction score
2
Points
3
Location
UK
hi all,

I am brand new on this forum although I have been reading for quite a bit.
I finally bought my first Audi . An A3 S-Line 8V FL 2.0l 190Ps just a week ago.

It’s an Audi approved used from 2018 in very good conditions. Now, the auxiliary heater. I understand being in the UK is for some reason a good enough reason not to have it but unfortunately not for me
I have been asking the dealer to retrofit it and even if I was willing to pay for it they said Audi doesn’t provide it for my car, which I am sure it’s a lie.

I have done research in this forum but I am quite confused about it. I am searching for a way to install it or at least find out how hard it is.

I believe I could , with some hackery, at least get the fan to activate remotely so is it not just the case to install the heater element itself?

https://m.autodoc.co.uk/nrf/12875526

Any advice would be really appreciated , especially if any of you has done the job on a similar car to mine.

Thanks
 
Why is an auxiliary heater so important? I find that the heater is very quick to get hot on my S3 so I don’t really see what advantage would be gained with an auxiliary heater. My old car, on the other hand, was very slow to produce warm air.
 
I knew this was going to turn into a discussion about why you need it . I’d like to avoid discussing why and instead finding out more about it if that’s ok.
After all, cold is a subjective thing isn’t it?

Peace
 
z4n said:
I knew this was going to turn into a discussion about why you need it . I’d like to avoid discussing why and instead finding out more about it if that’s ok.
After all, cold is a subjective thing isn’t it?

Peace
Click to expand...

No no I’m not arguing. Just saying the heater does heat up fast (unlike other cars I’ve had) which might save you hassle and expense. There’s a thread about a heater matrix fault which goes into some detail about getting to the heater and mentions where an auxiliary heater goes if one were fitted. Might be some info of use in that thread
 
I see. Thank you. I might have a look at that.
 
Last edited:
Sure why not. It would be interesting to lnow what they say.
My dealer in Epsom said they wouldn’t do it . Not even for that price.
 
z4n said:
hi all,

I am brand new on this forum although I have been reading for quite a bit.
I finally bought my first Audi . An A3 S-Line 8V FL 2.0l 190Ps just a week ago.

It’s an Audi approved used from 2018 in very good conditions. Now, the auxiliary heater. I understand being in the UK is for some reason a good enough reason not to have it but unfortunately not for me
I have been asking the dealer to retrofit it and even if I was willing to pay for it they said Audi doesn’t provide it for my car, which I am sure it’s a lie.

I have done research in this forum but I am quite confused about it. I am searching for a way to install it or at least find out how hard it is.

I believe I could , with some hackery, at least get the fan to activate remotely so is it not just the case to install the heater element itself?

https://m.autodoc.co.uk/nrf/12875526

Any advice would be really appreciated , especially if any of you has done the job on a similar car to mine.

Thanks
Click to expand...
I'm sure my friend has the auxiliary heater but his is a diesel. It's in the dash and blows out warmer air at start up prior to getting the car engine hot. He says it can be activated by MMI only on his car.
So I would say it could be retrofitted but probably a very big job.
 
Jcbmally said:
I'm sure my friend has the auxiliary heater but his is a diesel. It's in the dash and blows out warmer air at start up prior to getting the car engine hot. He says it can be activated by MMI only on his car.
So I would say it could be retrofitted but probably a very big job.
Click to expand...
Yeah I had it in my 2L tdi, you could switch it off and on within the MMI. Always had it activated so not sure what the difference was.
 
Yes this is what I am trying to find out.
But yes what you describe is exactly what I am after.
 
On top of that I believe you can also schedule it with myAudi app remotely through your phone
 
josul said:
Would heated seats be an easier option?
Click to expand...
Yes I am considering retrofitting them as alternative.
But the OEM solution is too expensive and the “universal” retrofit is not very elegant. On top of that I don’t really look forward to have my seat fabric removed and reapplied to add the panels inside.
 
Looked at this before for my a6 and it’s a very expensive retrofit. There’s the unit itself which I think kufatec sells for about £2k then you need the remotes with the extra buttons. Audi prices for remotes are like £200+ each. Then labour on top of all that.
Svenedin, the s3 heats up really fast compared to other cars I’ve owned. Think this is to do with the exhaust manifold is built into the head so this helps. My old diesel cars I will be 4-5 miles down the road before I get some heat whereas the s3 I get a little warm air by the time I get out my street.

Alternatives are the aftermarket solutions. Webasto makes some and there are other makes.
Essentially there’s a heater connected to your coolant pipes and it warms the coolant before you drive it. Some are connected to electrical outlets and some can draw fuel from your tank to burn. So when you get in and fire up the car it’s all warm and defrosts almost instantly.
 
z4n said:
Yes I am considering retrofitting them as alternative.
Click to expand...
I get it if you dont want to go into detail as to why you are looking into this and thats cool, but sometimes it helps others to assist.

Heated seats are a must when you have leather seats in the coming weather! Although if you just feel the cold more then I think they get toasty really fast, in fact I always turn mine off or down as it just gets too hot for me. I would be looking at these over the auxiliary heater.

If its an issue with just your hands then how about a heated steering wheel?

To heat the car up before getting in then how about a remote starter? I think there are laws on not being in the car with the engine running so it might be best to have your own drive for this one! Something like this:

https://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threa...rt-released-in-the-uk-whos-buying-one.158982/
 
MMI app remote control is car specific. My Q2 has the aux heater, I can't control it via the app. I was told that you need a certain package to be able to control certain aspects of the car to get this kind of access via the app. Mine has tech advanced and still doesn't have it. Apprantly you can tell if you have the SOS button near the interior light switch or something. This indicates a higher level of tech! I swear seeing the aux heater on the Audi configurator at around a grand?
 
I’m not at all familiar with this, but could someone tell me where the power comes from. Presumably it’s either plugged into the mains, or uses the battery. If the latter, how does the battery hold up?
 
Its a battery powered heating coil. My last 2 Golf had one, both TDi. It did worked well but it would only activate if the climate control was on, the outside temp was less than 3c and the battery had more than 50% ? charge. In reality it's only active for a few minutes until the coolant reaches a given temp.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jcbmally
Right - so it doesn’t heat the interior, just the engine.
In that case I would think that the speed of heating up the interior once you get going would be marginal, bearing in mind that the A3 heats up the interior so quickly anyway.
 
No, it heats the air blown into the car interior. It covers the time until the coolant temp is high enough to heat the cabin.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jcbmally
Thank for all the info guys.

Yes heated seat seem to be a better option in the end.
I am not obsessed with the auxiliary heating, I just need something to heat up the car quickly in the winter. I thought having something to remotely heat the car before going in it which didn’t even have to have the engine running was a pretty cool idea(assuming battery wouldn’t drain too quickly).
But obviously heated seats as plan B is definitely a good alternative.

With heated seats again my main worry is about having somebody to take all the fabric off the seat to insert the heated panel. I am afraid of what happens if the job is not done perfectly.

My car is used but definitely “like new” still.
 
z4n said:
Thank for all the info guys.

Yes heated seat seem to be a better option in the end.
I am not obsessed with the auxiliary heating, I just need something to heat up the car quickly in the winter. I thought having something to remotely heat the car before going in it which didn’t even have to have the engine running was a pretty cool idea(assuming battery wouldn’t drain too quickly).
But obviously heated seats as plan B is definitely a good alternative.

With heated seats again my main worry is about having somebody to take all the fabric off the seat to insert the heated panel. I am afraid of what happens if the job is not done perfectly.

My car is used but definitely “like new” still.
Click to expand...

Would it not be better trying to source a second hand set of seats with the heating elements already built in?
You see them on eBay and some of the European breaker sites with while interior to match
 
z4n said:
Sure why not. It would be interesting to lnow what they say.
My dealer in Epsom said they wouldn’t do it . Not even for that price.
Click to expand...

I asked but the retrofitter said they had never done one and didn't seem at all keen to do it.
 
z4n said:
This is very interesting thanks! It seems to work with petrol as opposed as being battery powered

I’ll ask for a quote. Is your friend happy with it?
Click to expand...
This was a few years ago. His one plugged in the mains instead of burning diesel/petrol but his smug face every morning getting to his warm car said it all.
Eberspacher(sp*) was the other brand.
They are fairly simple from what I gather. Essentially cut a coolant pipe and connect heater inline and it heats the coolant up. When you start the car heater has warm air straight away.
 
z4n said:
hi all,

I am brand new on this forum although I have been reading for quite a bit.
I finally bought my first Audi . An A3 S-Line 8V FL 2.0l 190Ps just a week ago.

It’s an Audi approved used from 2018 in very good conditions. Now, the auxiliary heater. I understand being in the UK is for some reason a good enough reason not to have it but unfortunately not for me
I have been asking the dealer to retrofit it and even if I was willing to pay for it they said Audi doesn’t provide it for my car, which I am sure it’s a lie.

I have done research in this forum but I am quite confused about it. I am searching for a way to install it or at least find out how hard it is.

I believe I could , with some hackery, at least get the fan to activate remotely so is it not just the case to install the heater element itself?

https://m.autodoc.co.uk/nrf/12875526

Any advice would be really appreciated , especially if any of you has done the job on a similar car to mine.

Thanks
Click to expand...
https://www.calix.se/en/products/cab-heaters
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

U
Audi A3 2017 Auxiliary Heater
Replies
3
Views
2K
Harvey
Harvey
R
A3 heater
Replies
3
Views
835
Rivaglen
R
N
Heater issue
Replies
0
Views
396
neiller
N
Gareth123
Heater matrix
Replies
0
Views
771
Gareth123
Gareth123
A
Audi a3 heater
Replies
3
Views
778
Shortyian
Shortyian
Top
Back