Hello and and the other necessary salutations - OH my dog, HELP!
For the love of all things involving my sanity, could SOMEONE tell me how, without physically sticking my head (my husband's head) next to the part and looking at the end of the compressor in my Volvo can I tell if the type I have on my vehicle is the THICK REAR HEAD or a THIN REAR HEAD?!
I had it at the (non Volvo) dealer and the service manager gave me the diagnosis and knowing my desire to purchase the parts on my own, described in detail what to order: one compressor kit, nothing less and nothing more, gave me the link to the site he uses. I NEED TO ORDER this and get it taken care of before I melt -
but according to his recommended site and every place I have looked, there are TWO types of compressors - there is rear head types thick or thin, but NO ONE can tell me how to determine if I need the THICK rear HEAD or THE THIN rear HEAD. I expressed this to the service guy and he told me he wasn't sure without looking at the actual compressor in my engine, but assured me the parts site would have customer service that could either tell me or tie it to my VIN. NOPE, their response was 'We don't know without looking at your actual compressor, but try looking at some of the part numbers and trying to match them online somewhere'. I found on one site that I sure hope is reliable, that by typing in my VIN I get redirected to the compressor order page which has an extensive list of compatible parts for my vehicle, and the one it that diagram shows the thick rear head. I saw on one site BOTH the thick and thin recommended.
I need to place this order for the kit ASAP because I am now so far behind on this repair that it is well into the warm months and I still am not able to use the AC or the defrost. I figured the ordering of the part would be the easy part.
Before I place the order for the THICK rear head compressor and its 'kit', where can I confirm that this is in fact the one I need?

 

I have never heard of that, but that's what happens when you want to order aftermarket parts. The dealer can order the correct one from the VIN.

 

Even if you attempt to order the part from Volvo, it isn't clear. I did find the correct one according to my VIN, but wanted to be positive that was the one - according to the EU Parts man, the 5 cylinders have one type and the 6 have the other.

 

Yes, the 5 cylinder one is different than the 6 cylinder. That's what the VIN is for. Sometimes there are chassis breaks. Trying to find it yourself may not be straightforward. But a simple call to the dealer is all that's needed.