Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

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wonderloaf
Joined: Mon 02 Aug, 2010 20:55
Posts: 518

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Basingstoke

Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by wonderloaf »

Hi all, quick question - is it OK to run the engine without the air conditioner belt? I've got a bit of a grinding noise (sounds like a bearing about to go) on startup which goes away once warmed up, seems to be coming from around the air con compressor area and thought if I could run the engine with out the belt it would eliminate whether or not it's a problem with the compressor or the belt tensioner. If it's OK to do and the noise disappears I might just leave the belt off until next spring when I've got more money to properly sort the problem out!
2001 Titan Silver 2.2 Sport
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BladeRunner919
Joined: Fri 17 Feb, 2012 20:18
Posts: 2225

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by BladeRunner919 »

If it only runs the aircon compressor, then it's fine.
wonderloaf
Joined: Mon 02 Aug, 2010 20:55
Posts: 518

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Basingstoke

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by wonderloaf »

Wow, that was a quick reply :thumb: Seems to be that way so I'll remove the belt. The compressors not working so it's not doing any good anyway!
2001 Titan Silver 2.2 Sport
alec.m
Joined: Tue 05 Oct, 2010 19:01
Posts: 552

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Lymington

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by alec.m »

Do you have a secondary air pump? They make a similar noise when failing and that goes away when warm, usually 90 ish seconds later.
wonderloaf
Joined: Mon 02 Aug, 2010 20:55
Posts: 518

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Basingstoke

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by wonderloaf »

alec.m wrote:Do you have a secondary air pump? They make a similar noise when failing and that goes away when warm, usually 90 ish seconds later.
That's another candidate that I've been reading about, but according to RealOEM I don't have one ... it says 'No parts found matching your car.' I'll take a look tomorrow just to confirm though.
2001 Titan Silver 2.2 Sport
alec.m
Joined: Tue 05 Oct, 2010 19:01
Posts: 552

  Z3 roadster 2.8
Location: Lymington

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by alec.m »

You can't miss it if you have one. It's quite big. A picture of it and where it is is on the following post.
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=43360
wonderloaf
Joined: Mon 02 Aug, 2010 20:55
Posts: 518

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Basingstoke

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by wonderloaf »

alec.m wrote:You can't miss it if you have one. It's quite big. A picture of it and where it is is on the following post.
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=43360
As the great Alan Partridge said ... 'Ahaaaa'. So that's what it looks like, don't think I've got one of those I'll check tomorrow when it's light. I'll also have a proper listen with a special listening device (long handled screwdriver) to see if I can narrow the location down a bit.
2001 Titan Silver 2.2 Sport
mrscalex
Joined: Fri 13 Mar, 2015 09:14
Posts: 910

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by mrscalex »

The good news is there are tons of very useable compressors around for £20-£30 second-hand. But it will need fitting by an aircon specialist because of discharging and charging the refrigerant. You may want to think about a flush while you're at it. I have a decent spare compressor I can let you have for what I paid for it - about £25 I think.

The other thing to look at is the pusher fan as the bearings can go on that. But on mine it seized after a few minutes rather than the other way round. I bought the compressor in readiness and then found out it was the fan.
ImageImage
2001 Z3 2.2 Topaz Blue (Trudy) - Keeper rebuilt from a write-off
2002 Z3 2.2 Titan Silver (Cookies) - Keeper rebuilt having been bought with a seized engine
2002 Z3 3.0 Sapphire Black (Peanut) - Keeper awaiting rebuilding having been bought as an abandoned project
Plus Willy, Kodak & Maycee - All 2.2 Sport projects. Yes, 6 is a lot of Z3s :)
Always happy to try and help with spares :)
wonderloaf
Joined: Mon 02 Aug, 2010 20:55
Posts: 518

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: Basingstoke

Re: Air conditioner belt - ok to run without?

Post by wonderloaf »

mrscalex wrote:The good news is there are tons of very useable compressors around for £20-£30 second-hand. But it will need fitting by an aircon specialist because of discharging and charging the refrigerant. You may want to think about a flush while you're at it. I have a decent spare compressor I can let you have for what I paid for it - about £25 I think.

The other thing to look at is the pusher fan as the bearings can go on that. But on mine it seized after a few minutes rather than the other way round. I bought the compressor in readiness and then found out it was the fan.
Cheers, I'll bear your offer in mind, haven't quite bottomed out the aircon problem yet so don't know if it's the compressor at fault. At the moment the clutch doesn't kick in and the relays and switch seem to be OK but haven't got any further than that.

The noise is the worrying thing at the moment, I'm hoping it's just the belt tensioner, that would be a nice cheap easy fix.
2001 Titan Silver 2.2 Sport
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