Hi
I have 2001 s60 and when idling with air con turned on, the air con tends to draw major power from the engine causing the revs to dip in and out and all power seems to be drawn to the air con. Once air con turned off no problems. can any one help?
Cheers
Baldybonce

How badly do the revs drop ?
Does it feel as though it could stall ?

Could be that the ETM needs cleaned.

HI TRIED CLEANING NO IMPROVEMENT i HAVE BEEN TOLD IT COULD POSS BE THE AIR CON COMPRESSOR ANY THOUGHTS PLEASE

Well cleaning the etm solved a similar problem for me.

I suppose it could be the compressor - although if it was I would think it would be possible for someone to check it.

You probably wouldn't have to change the compressor either - I think the clutch could be changed separatley.

Could it be the alternator? - what happens when you switch on things like the rear demister along with the heated seats etc?

Thanks
Dont think it is alternator tried turning all eectrics on, lights heated seats, rear screen heater etc and no problems, turned them all off, then air con on and dipping revs and power dip again.

Any other ideas to what my prob could be?

does anyone know best place for a new or 2nd hand air con compressor? as volvo dealers want astronomical amount of money and they will not give me a part number. I can only get part number by removing old compressor.

Not sure what to suggest really.

If it's not a loose or dodgy connection or a relay causing the drain then it could be the clutch on the compressor.

But I would visit someone that deals with vehicle refridgeration or air-con as I doubt you would need to replace the whole compressor, after all the main part of it is just a belt driven mechanical pump. The only electrical part is the clutch that privides the drive through the pulley to the pump, and that could probably be replaced withoult even taking the compressor off the vehicle or disconnecting the any of the pipework.

I've seen it done on other vehicles where the clutch has failed (including Volvo's) but not sure about the S60?

My car was in the shop today with the same problem. The dealer tells me that the ETM should be replaced, and...shock... is calling the rep for authorization to replace it at no cost. 2001, 130K. So methinks that Volvo knows about this issue and is quietly replacing the ETM. Check with the dealer before spending time and $$.

Yes, Volvo has been replacing ETMs for a long time. They are now warranteed for 200,000 miles / 10 years (someone correct me if I am wrong on this).

I have just never heard of an ETM ~ AC connection before. I suppose that if the ETM is really bad, and hiccups, it will cause problems for the AC. I cannot imagine that the engine draw for the AC causes the ETM to go bad. Just a thought.

Ergo, sounds like a straightforward fix.

I wouldn't have thought that either Pentheous - but before I removed and cleaned my ETM the idle was quite rough and was close to stalling at times.
Also the revs did seem to drop more when the AC cycled on/off.

I don't think the AC causes the ETM to go bad - but if the ETM is all gunged up I think it struggles with the slight increas in load when the AC cuts in.