Climate control 'default' settings?

[highlander]

It's quite a complex piece of engineering to stuff into the engine bay (what with there already being an engine in there), and yet another thing on a car that can (and reasonably often does) go wrong.

[FarmerPug]

it never went wrong on my dads avensis

[Welly]

I used the Volvo's dual-zone settings for the first time over xmas on a long motorway run and it worked well (kept me slightly cooler than the passengers whilst I was driving and being stressed out by Fog and other idiot drivers).

Apart from the cost of the compressor, condenser, evaporator and all the plumbing there's also the cost of the Climate ECU and sensors - it's a very expensive option.

'Basic' air con without the automatic control is cheaper but pretty crap tbh, only any good on hot days with full cooling.

[FarmerPug]

when your buying a new car add all the options, thats what id do, it would make it more expensive but there would be no regrets about forgetting options. But really i prefer a trim level system than options because i cant afford new cars and on the second hand market its easier to search for a high end trim level than a car that has all the options.

[mjb]

why dont all cars have it as standard, its one thing i always deem an essential extra especially if its offered in a car. Dual zone though is even better.

There's a lot of carefully routed pipework involved (in the 406 you'd need to remove almost everything in the engine bay to retro-fit or replace it!), there's the condenser (radiator) which needs mounting, the compressor (pump) which is bloody expensive, the drier, the valves, the condenser (proper dashboard out job to fit/change), the control panel, the temperature sensors, humidity sensor, daylight sensor...

[FarmerPug]

and why did some d9s not have climate control i thought it was standard but i seen a few without it, would you want one without it?