Hi
today -10 degrees cold. Started engine and put climate control on Max (AC on, fan on max). After cleaning off the frost and snow got back inside the car and noticed the fan is barely blowing on a Max setting. The motor work (judging by the sound). Tested different settings for the fan - no difference, the same very weak air flow. The sound of the motor changes depending on the setting. The situation was the same after and hour of driving and the outside temperature increasing up to -2 degrees.
Is it fair to assume the fan motor is working? What could go wrong with the fan?

It would be great to make sure the issue definitely needs the attention of a garage before paying £200 for the diagnostics only. Hopefully, this is something simple that Ic ould fix myself. The receptionist at the volvo service dpt suggested it could be lack of gas (whatever that could mean).

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

 

Did you manually turn the fan to max or is it on auto and you set it to the highest temp? If it is on auto, the fan wont blow max speed unless the car is properly warmed and even still I don't think my car blows the fan at max speed on auto except with AC in the summer.

 

to Dingus1
Thanks. I tried: auto (when chosing the mode Max - one click switches On everything), manual Max - tapping Max on the grading scale for the fan blow strength. The key point is that the air flow is the same no matter what mode and how I choose. The situation remains the same running engine for about an hour. There must be something wrong (=not working) ... i guess

 

Does the fan change speeds or sound when you dial it up? Any changes when you redirect the airflow (say to the floor vents or dash vents?) Thought here is if your fan sound changes but the airflow does not, you may have debris clogging the cabin air filter/intake (I've had a mouse/chipmunk decide that's a nice place for a nest...). Any other signs of a fault code? On older models the REC and AC switch lights would blink to indicate a fault code. Anything change if you turn on/off the AC and REC switches in manual mode?
Next steps would be to check/replace the cabin air filter then have a shop scan the ECC (climate control computer) for any fault codes. Note that not all home OBD2 scanners can read the "chassis" code set that reports ECC issues so you may need to find a Volvo friendly shop for diagnostics. Last thought is to check fuses (see the owners manual or google for which location)

 

Thank you for the detailed response and suggestions. Will follow.
No on-screen messages about faults in the climate control. The sound changes when dialing up the fan speed. No changes when redirecting the flow. The filter has been replaced at service. But makes sense to check - just need to find out how-to instructions (any advice here?). AC or REC ON/OFF does not make difference on airflow speed.
Good idea about OBD2 scanner. I don't have it. But, perhaps, a garage friendly to me will have it.

 

if you are hearing the fan change speeds but dont feel the flow at the vents change, that suggests either air can't get into the fan (ie clogged intake) or the "doors" that control the air flow path are not actuating properly. The ECC would likely create a fault code if one of the control motors that actuate the doors wasn't working or perhaps got disconnected from the door (say the connecting rod came off) so that's where getting a scan is a good next step after checking the cabin air filter/intake. Here's something for the 2018s that will likely be the same as for your model


I'd also look down from under the hood by the cowl cover as that's probably where the fresh air is drawn from (ie top of the firewall)

 

Thank you. Very useful.
Seems OBD2 is a must have device.