Weird fog-like buildup on the inside of my windshield
So, I just bought a 2015 Ford Focus SE Hatchback the other day, and earlier tonight while I was driving back home in the dark and rain I noticed(Primarily when there was oncoming traffic) there was this strange fog buildup on the inside of my windshield and was wondering what it could possibly be. I looked around a little and this seems to be related to a possible leak in my heater core? Sounds like an issue that wouldn't be happening with such a new car, and I don't smell any antifreeze or anything like that while it's running or have the heat up. Defrost didn't do anything to solve this issue either. Car is still covered under manufacturer's warranty + extended warranty, so taking it into the dealership isn't a problem but it's something I would prefer to avoid having to do since I just purchased the car Friday. Any help or tips would be grateful.
Posted Jan 9, 2017, 5:38 AM UTC
Maybe you didn't set your heater/ A/C to the right temperature and setting?
It was happening at all temperature settings regardless of if the defrost was on or not, and it's too cold to even consider using the AC since I live in coastal Washington.
My dads Accord kinda happened to have this problem until I played around a little bit. I hit the A/C to dehumidify the air and it worked out for me.
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I'll take a look for a setting like that then, and see if that solves the issue. The strange fog layer combined with rain, glare from other headlights, and the roads not being well marked at all made for a not so pleasant drive.
Yeah I feel ya. Sometimes for me full blasting the window heater without anything else would work but at times I'd have to hit the A/C while using the heater.
Does your car's air smell even a little like pancake syrup? If you aim the vents at the windows and force the AC to off, can you fog the windows quickly? Just so you know, many modern cars turn the AC on automatically when you turn it to defrost.
If it gets worse, or just doesn't get better with the AC forced on, you could have a heater core crapping out. Does your rig have an aftermarket sound system?
Nah, there isn't any sweet odors coming from anywhere. Car is rather new, so I don't think it would be the heater core going out on me. Think it's just something to do with the defrost setting not working as well as it should. I'll give it a few more night drives and see if the problem persists further. If it does, I'll just take it into the shop and make the dealership sort it out since it still has the manufacturer's warranty for another 5k miles and I purchased the extended warranty due to all the electronics.
It's pretty new, yeah, but that's why I asked about the sound system. Crappy installers can run ground paths that run across a heater core and murder it.
They try to electrically isolate the heater core because running a ground path through it will cause electrolysis, basically where aluminum heater cores will be eaten away slowly, causing leaks. It can progress pretty quickly, but if you don't smell syrup, you're fine.