this post was submitted on 12 Jun 2026
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So it doesn’t turn off the A/C as long as you shut the sliding door when you get out. I do understand that it’s a hassle to have to close the door after you grab the package at every stop. But you have to close the door anyway before driving. Although I’ve seen many times drivers just keep the door open the entire time they’re driving around a neighborhood with multiple stops.
On the other hand, maybe drivers do that because they are being timed by the second, so not having to close the door saves a second or two every stop.
Yeah, I'm as much for Amazon burning down with Bezos locked inside as anyone else, but this one is actually reasonable.
You want to turn on your AC, close your fucking door, you damn maniac.
I think we all know why they dont close those doors no? Like its completely common knowledge at this point that delivery drivers get monitored down to the second and that if they dont save every bit of time possible they will get their pay cut or fired for not meeting quota. The technical solution to this is just an automatic door or curtain system that doesnt cost time to open/close but still keeps the hot air out. The moral solution is to just outlaw micro management and monitoring of delivery drivers.
I can hear my dad yelling
Ah, childhood.
Me running the A/C with the windows down:
Wondering how much the AC could even do if the door is left open. But maybe the hassle is also having to turn it on again every time?
Yeah, I think it’s more energy-intensive to keep turning the A/C on and off again and again, but there’s definitely a point where it’s more wasteful if the door is kept open long enough and it’s more friendly to the battery (and environment) if you turn it off. But it’s a moot point here because as long as the driver is delivering that door will have to be opened again and again and they’ll need the cabin cool either way.
The "turning thing on and off Uses more energy than just leaving it on" thing is largely a myth based on a complete misunderstanding of how most electronics work and a lack of understanding of thermodynamics.
Most electronics (even light bulbs) do have an energy spike at power on but the spike is measured in milliseconds (if that).
Yes but there is an external factor involved here: leaving the door open for extended periods of time. If we’re talking about energy saving for the battery, and you can probably extend that to the environmental effects as well, at some point it’s more cost effective to turn the A/C off. I’m not gonna argue if 30 seconds is that point, people who know more can confirm that.
Now obviously what they are NOT taking into account is driver comfort and the fact they are literally being timed down to the second with their deliveries to the point they leave the door open just to shave off a couple of seconds on each stop.
Yeah I'm...not disagreeing with any of that?
Your AC turns itself off and on repeatedly through it's normal running cycle to prevent frost building up - your fridge and freezer does this as well.
Yes, but it does that with the doors generally closed most of the time. An A/C that has to keep turning on and off way more frequently because it gets warmer immediately due to a door being open more than closed is different.
AC units without inverters specifically
I see plenty of Amazon vans driving around neighborhoods with the side door wide open…
Couldn't they automate the door so it closes on its own?
Next headline: Amazon driver suffocates to death after van door closes on their neck.
I do this job, so if you left the door open you would get fired, but every DSP is different and some are more lax. Some vans don’t even have cameras in them.
A friend of mine delivers for Amazon now and hates it.
Can confirm, they expect so much of drivers. He is constantly told that he isn't fast enough doing over 150 packages every day.
Maybe they should have something like those magnetic self-closing mesh curtains that go in front of open patio doors? Obviously something more solid than mesh - like clear plastic sheets, but it would provide a significant conservation of the cool air while allowing the quick in & out access the drivers need. Similar curtains (more like hanging strips & without the magnetics) are routinely used in the food industry for walk-in refrigeration & freezer units.
The door should be motorized, idk if it is though. When they came out I saw a video on the truck from Doug Demuro and I think when it's put in park the door from the cab to the cargo area automatically opens to save like a second per stop. So the side door could definitely have like a button you press when you get out to shut it while you walk away.