I originally bought this car for my wife back in 2005. As many of you know, it sat for almost 3 years before I recently dropped a brand new engine in it. We just took it for a quick 600 mile trip over the last 24 hours and noticed a few things that my wife doesn't remember from when this was her daily driver.

1) Does the car not have an alarm if the seatbelt is not on? Either the driver or passenger.

2) Is Auto and recirculate for the A/C supposed to shut off after a certain amount of time?

3) Why does the rear defroster automatically come on when its below or close to freezing? We didn't notice this on this trip, but i noticed this during the winter...the car is kept in my garage, so no need to defrost, but it automatically turns on. I understand the concept and forward thinking, but is it supposed to do this?

4) Is it typical for the rain sensing wipers to go faster than really needed when there is only a mist? It's quite annoying.

5) Is 26 mpg (computer) good for 80mph cruising?

Thanks.

 

1) Does the car not have an alarm if the seatbelt is not on? Either the driver or passenger.

The beltminder can be switched on or off, so I guess it's now off on your car.

2) Is Auto and recirculate for the A/C supposed to shut off after a certain amount of time?

If you press and hold the recirc button for 5 seconds it will "latch" on and not time out.

3) Why does the rear defroster automatically come on when its below or close to freezing? We didn't notice this on this trip, but i noticed this during the winter...the car is kept in my garage, so no need to defrost, but it automatically turns on. I understand the concept and forward thinking, but is it supposed to do this?

Yes that is normal. They all do that.

4) Is it typical for the rain sensing wipers to go faster than really needed when there is only a mist? It's quite annoying.

Yes.

5) Is 26 mpg (computer) good for 80mph cruising?

Seems fairly average to me. My old X-Type would get better economy at 60mph, faster than that and it would start to get thirsty.

 

I only have input on 4 and 5.

My auto wipers always go at an appropriate speed for the amount of rain. They speed up when it starts to down pour hard, and slow down when it lightens up, and they of course stop if I go under a bridge or into a tunnel.

26 mpg is about what I get at 80 mph.