Volvo Community Forum. The Forums of the Volvo Owners Club

Forum Rules Volvo Owners Club About VOC Volvo Gallery Links Volvo History Volvo Press
Go Back   Volvo Owners Club Forum > "Technical Topics" > S80 '06-'16 / V70 & XC70 '07-'16 General

Notices

S80 '06-'16 / V70 & XC70 '07-'16 General Forum for the P3-platform S80 and 70-series models

Information
  • VOC Members: There is no login facility using your VOC membership number or the details from page 3 of the club magazine. You need to register in the normal way
  • AOL Customers: Make sure you check the 'Remember me' check box otherwise the AOL system may log you out during the session. This is a known issue with AOL.
  • AOL, Yahoo and Plus.net users. Forum owners such as us are finding that AOL, Yahoo and Plus.net are blocking a lot of email generated from forums. This may mean your registration activation and other emails will not get to you, or they may appear in your spam mailbox

Thread Informations

AC Issue

Views : 572

Replies : 8

Users Viewing This Thread :  

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old Apr 23rd, 2019, 22:30   #1
Turkish68
New Member
 
Turkish68's Avatar
 

Last Online: Jun 30th, 2019 09:44
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Workington
Default AC Issue

Good evening,
I've been a member of the owners forums for a long time. Saying that, I haven't logged in for a long time. I could really use some assistance if possible?
The day before last my AC started blowing warm air. Initially I thought it would probably need its refrigerant topped-up as I can't remember the last time it was done. To my surprise, when a vacuum test was done on the system the results showed there were no leaks with the refrigerant level at 801g out of 820g apparently?
I appreciate you can't really tell much by looking at it but the condenser appears to be in reasonable condition (with the odd fly trapped in the fins) so i thought I'd check the fuse for the compressor. While it hadn't blown, the blades were fairly dirty so I replaced it (position 32, 15a in the engine bay fuse box, next to the water bottle filler)
You can hear the compressor clicking when you turn the AC on and when I set the temp to 'LO' I get the occasional blast of cool air, but it doesn't last for long.
Can anyone confirm if it sounds although the compressor is goosed? or are there further checks I can do to diagnose the fault myself before having to fork out between £400 and £600 for a new compressor?
Thanks in advance.
Turkish68 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Apr 26th, 2019, 15:38   #2
Turkish68
New Member
 
Turkish68's Avatar
 

Last Online: Jun 30th, 2019 09:44
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Workington
Default

Well, having scratched my head and spoken to the local dealership I think I found the cause of the problem. I started thinking that as it's AC there must be a temp sensor in the cabin to tell the system how hot or cold it is. I confirmed this with Volvo and was told it'd be part of the control module which, if damaged would be really expensive to replace (£80 off eBay for a used but good)
While teaching myself how to dismantle the console I realised that my winter windscreen anti ice sheet was still in the little pocket behind the control module......it was blocking a vent! I'll now assume that vent covers the temp sensor.....Item removed and heypresto....ice cold air and pipes!
Assumed the worst and thankfully was pleasantly surprised at an easy fix for a change.
Turkish68 is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to Turkish68 For This Useful Post:
Old Apr 26th, 2019, 20:03   #3
Ian21401
Premier Member
 

Last Online: Feb 11th, 2023 21:32
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Blyth, Northumberland
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Turkish68 View Post
Well, having scratched my head and spoken to the local dealership I think I found the cause of the problem. I started thinking that as it's AC there must be a temp sensor in the cabin to tell the system how hot or cold it is. I confirmed this with Volvo and was told it'd be part of the control module which, if damaged would be really expensive to replace (£80 off eBay for a used but good)
While teaching myself how to dismantle the console I realised that my winter windscreen anti ice sheet was still in the little pocket behind the control module......it was blocking a vent! I'll now assume that vent covers the temp sensor.....Item removed and heypresto....ice cold air and pipes!
Assumed the worst and thankfully was pleasantly surprised at an easy fix for a change.
A great feeling when what you thought was going to be an expensive fix is fixed for free.
Ian21401 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jun 29th, 2019, 13:21   #4
Turkish68
New Member
 
Turkish68's Avatar
 

Last Online: Jun 30th, 2019 09:44
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Workington
Default

An update. The AC started misbehaving again so I stripped the centre console and had a look at the control module. Funny old thing, the temp sensor is not built in like the dealership originally advised when they told me it would be expensive to fix (and they had the parts diagrams). Instead, it appears that somewhere there is a temp sensor that feeds back to the control module by means of fibreoptic? So, another call to the dealership and low and behold a sensor is available for £24+£2 postage. The control module might still be damaged but I'm all about simple to complex in seeking a solution. If dealerships thought that way they may promote customer confidence instead of going straight to the most expensive possible issue!
Turkish68 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jun 29th, 2019, 13:56   #5
Spike56
Master Member
 

Last Online: Today 13:59
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Orpington
Default

Be aware that there is also an external sensor in the passenger door mirror unit. Mine actually displayed 60 degrees outside with frost on the screen! Clashes with the internal sensor and throws everything out!
Spike56 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jun 29th, 2019, 16:21   #6
Turkish68
New Member
 
Turkish68's Avatar
 

Last Online: Jun 30th, 2019 09:44
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Workington
Default

Thanks for the heads up. If that is faulty would the reading on the dash reflect this or would I need Vida to see it's reading?

Last edited by Turkish68; Jun 29th, 2019 at 16:24.
Turkish68 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jun 30th, 2019, 01:56   #7
ferg55
Senior Member
 

Last Online: Jul 4th, 2023 13:54
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: oxford
Default

The reading on the dash will reflect it.

It's a dome shaped sensor pointing out the bottom of the passenger mirror, cheap to replace but a bit fiddly.
ferg55 is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to ferg55 For This Useful Post:
Old Jun 30th, 2019, 08:18   #8
Turkish68
New Member
 
Turkish68's Avatar
 

Last Online: Jun 30th, 2019 09:44
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Workington
Post

Thanks for the information yesterday. I checked the temp sensor in the mirror and it was working. I thought I'd be missing something obvious so it went back out and had another look. The interior sensor was so obvious this time . I was clearly over thinking the simple things when I found the delicate looking orange cable that has no sharp bends in it, that's plugged into the ECC module. I pulled the console apart again and after a couple of mins had the sensor in my hand. A quick check after cleaning years of dust off the fan and sensor wire at the cost of 1 cotton bud, reassembled.....again, and boom, ice cold air and the return of that little puddle under the car after the system has been running.
New lessons learned and something else I now know how to dismantle!

Last edited by Turkish68; Jun 30th, 2019 at 08:22.
Turkish68 is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Turkish68 For This Useful Post:
Old Jun 30th, 2019, 17:30   #9
Spike56
Master Member
 

Last Online: Today 13:59
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Orpington
Default

It's a Volvo!
Spike56 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 15:48.


Powered by vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.