With my MY07, when on auto the heater would set the fan speed dependent on the differential between the actual temperature and the desired temperature. So if I turned the temp up to max the fans would speed up, similarly if I turned the temp to cold.

I've had my MY11 for a couple of weeks now and when on auto the fans don't seem to come on at all. It's been to the dealer over the weekend for some FBH work and I asked them to look at the auto setting and the fans. They tell me the fan control was changed for MY11 and MY12 to be more 'subtle'. I had a quick play with a MY12 today and to be fair its fans didn't come on much when on auto and the temp was adjusted.

So is it true that there is a significant difference between earlier models and the MY11 regarding the auto use of heater fans? MY23 D350 HSE
On my 7th RR plus various other JLR vehicles

Queried this too in relation to the previous one (2008 model) - very little air seems to come out of the dash vents.

This evening it was on Auto when I got in it - lots of fan noise and little air from the vents. I turned the fan speed up and down manually then switched back to Auto - fan noise barely audible, and still not much coming out of the vents.

I have an 11.5MY and have done exactly the same things as you...!

The fans are very quiet and settle down to a whisper very quickly. They also adjust the temperature very gradually.

The cabin temps are fine though.

What would you expect? This is the world's finest vehicle and it would be boorish to subject the driver to a cacophony of air...!

This is normal and is generally seen as a genuine enhancement as in theory it achieves the same with less noise.

You might still expect a blast of hot air when the temperature is turned up, fans on full manual and dash vents selected.

MY11+ owners. What happens on a hot day when you return to your RR and the heating control is on auto? Does it gently blow cold air or do the fans kick in or do you have to press the max A/C button to cool things quickly? This is the question I posed the dealer yesterday without a satisfactory response. MY23 D350 HSE
On my 7th RR plus various other JLR vehicles

If the ambient temperature is greatly different to the selected cabin temperature the fans come on at full briefly but quieten down quite quickly as the temperature normalises.

I think the vents have been plumbed to minimise turbulence and be as quiet as possible so even on full chat they are fairly quiet. They are certainly a lot quieter than the fans in the RRS.

It's the little things that make it so great.