Today’s feature ought to be standard equipment on all cars sold in colder climates. Do you ever have those days and weeks when you’re in and out of the car for errands, business calls, or as Mom/Dad’s taxi? And the seasonal weather ranges from chilly to temperatures that make winter in Edmonton seem tropical? Wish that you had a way to keep at least a bit of heat in the cabin, if only to take the edge off before the heated seats kick in? Well, Mercedes created a solution. In the 1990s they introduced the ‘REST’ feature as part of the climate control system in passenger cars. When activated, this button would circulate the hot engine coolant through the heater core for approximately 20 minutes after the vehicle’s engine was shut off. In turn, the cabin of the car would not cool off as quickly, thus increasing the comfort of the passengers. Simple and effective.
As with most things Mercedes, the feature was introduced as standard equipment on the flagship S-Class, and became later became standard or optional equipment on lower models depending on their trim level and market. For example, it was standard equipment on all Canada/US market W210 E-Class models, but not in the EU. The REST feature is comparatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and in our humble opinion we’d like to see it in more brands. It’s a good interim step between freezing vs. full remote HVAC a la Tesla.
