Systems and methods for controlling a vehicle HVAC system

A climate system for conditioning a compartment of a vehicle, comprising:

• a temperature sensor configured to measure a temperature within the compartment of the vehicle;
• a first compressor powered by an engine of the vehicle to compress a refrigerant while the engine of the vehicle is on;
• a second compressor driven by an electric motor to compress the refrigerant;
• and
• a controller electrically coupled to the first compressor and the second compressor, and configured to:
• establish a pre-conditioning temperature of the compartment that defines a user desired temperature;
• obtain the measured temperature of the compartment from the temperature sensor;
• calculate a thermal load of the compartment based at least partially on a difference between the pre-conditioning temperature and the measured temperature;
• determine whether the thermal load exceeds one or more predetermined thermal load threshold;
• in accordance with a determination that the thermal load exceeds the one or more predetermined thermal load thresholds, activate one or more of the first compressor and the second compressor to compress the refrigerant for cooling the compartment, wherein:
• in accordance with a determination that the thermal load exceeds a second predetermined thermal load threshold less than a first predetermined thermal load threshold, the controller is configured to activate only the first compressor to compress the refrigerant for cooling the compartment.