2000 S70 air conditioning periodically failing

[rickc]

This problem is killing me....
My wife's volvo has had intermittent issues with the air conditioning unit for the past 2 years. Periodically (and occuring more frequently), we will be driving the car with the AC on and then wham-mo - 3 things happen:

1. air blowing through the vents is cut in half
2. is not cold anymore
3. a noticeable low rumbling can be heard that seems tied to the blower

To correct this problem, I shut off the AC for 30 seconds and turn it back on and it seems to work normally again until the same thing occurs randomly every 30 min - 1 hour.

I took it into the Volvo repair shop when it stopped working all together a couple of months ago. The lights started blinking on the front controls and the AC would not turn on at all. Drove it into the dealership the next day without an appt. But, the shop couldn't get to my car (go figure - I guess the Volvo repair business is REALLY GOOD). On my way home, the AC started working again AAARRRGH!!

Can anyone guess what the heck is going on??

Much obliged.
Rick

[Tsquared]

I had a similar thing happen to my 96 850 for the past 2 years. I have the manual AC controls. It was intermittent and could be corrected by switching off the AC switch and turning it back on. I haven't had the problem since I replaced the AC/re-circulate switch 3 months ago. The dealer charged about $110 for the switch module.

I was planning to pull the switch and clean the contacts - it is spring-loaded. When I opened it up parts went flying. I spent 10 minutes looking of all the parts before I gave up and went for the phonebook to try and locate the part. Out of 4 local dealerships, only one had it in stock.

It was not hard to change out. Remove the knobs. Remove the two retaining screws behind the temp control knobs. Remove faceplate, There is a black tape around the outside of the cover that holds the switches in place. I pealed it back, removed the switch module. I then removed the wire connectors and proceeded to destroy the module. With a new module it goes back together very easy in reverse order.

I don't know if you have the same problem. But it sounds like it.

Good luck,

T