2011 VOLVO XC90 air conditioning

Introduction
Environment
14
Volvo and the environment
Volvo is committed to the well being of its cus-
tomers. As a natural part of this commitment,
we care about the environment in which we all
live. Caring for the environment means an
everyday involvement in reducing our environ-
mental impact. Volvo's environmental activities
are based on a holistic view, which means we
consider the overall environmental impact of a
product throughout its complete life cycle. In
this context, design, production, product use,
and recycling are all important considerations.
In production, Volvo has partly or completely
phased out several chemicals including CFCs,
lead chromates, asbestos, and cadmium; and
reduced the number of chemicals used in our
plants 50% since 1991.
Volvo was the first in the world to introduce into
production a three-way catalytic converter with
a Lambda sond, now called the heated oxygen
sensor, in 1976. The current version of this
highly efficient system reduces emissions of
harmful substances (CO, HC, NOx) from the
exhaust pipe by approximately 95 – 99% and
the search to eliminate the remaining emis-
sions continues. Volvo is the only automobile
manufacturer to offer CFC-free retrofit kits for
the air conditioning system of all models as far
back as the 1975 model 240. Advanced elec-
tronic engine controls and cleaner fuels are
bringing us closer to our goal. In addition tocontinuous environmental refinement of con-
ventional gasoline-powered internal combus-
tion engines, Volvo is actively looking at
advanced technology alternative-fuel vehicles.
When you drive a Volvo, you become our part-
ner in the work to lessen the car's impact on
the environment. To reduce your vehicle's
environmental impact, you can:
•Maintain proper air pressure in your tires.
Tests have shown decreased fuel econ-
omy with improperly inflated tires.
•Follow the recommended maintenance
schedule in your Warranty and Service
Records Information booklet.
•Drive at a constant speed whenever pos-
sible.
•See a trained and qualified Volvo service
technician as soon as possible for inspec-
tion if the check engine (malfunction indi-
cator) light illuminates, or stays on after the
vehicle has started.
•Properly dispose of any vehicle-related
waste such as used motor oil, used batter-
ies, brake pads, etc.
•When cleaning your vehicle, please use
genuine Volvo car care products. All Volvo
car care products are formulated to be
environmentally friendly.
RecyclingAs part of Volvo’s commitment to the environ-
ment, it is essential for the vehicle to be recy-
cled in an environmentally sound way. Almost
the entire vehicle can be recycled and for that
reason, the vehicle’s final owner is requested
to contact a Volvo retailer for information about
approved and certified recycling facilities.

02 Instruments and controls
Center console buttons
02
64* Option/accessory, for more information, see Introduction.
G026944
Active Bending Lights*The beams of these headlights
adjust laterally to help light up a
curve according to movements
of the steering wheel when the
vehicle is turning. This function
is activated automatically when
the engine is started and can be deactivated/
reactivated by pressing the button. The indica-
tor light in the button is on when the function is
activated, also see page 67.Rear seat air conditioning*This button controls the
optional rear seat air condition-
ing system.Folding door mirrors*Press the button and release it
to fold the door mirrors in or
out. On certain models, when
the button is pressed, there
may be a long pause before the
mirrors move. Pressing the but-
ton again during this pause may erase your first
button press. If this happens, wait ten seconds
and press the button one more time.
The mirrors cannot be adjusted during the first
ten seconds after they have been folded out.

03 Climate
Climate control system – general information
03
94* Option/accessory, for more information, see Introduction.
Condensation on the inside of the
windows
Keeping the insides of the windows clean will
help reduce the amount of condensation that
forms on the windows. Use a commercial win-
dow cleaning agent to clean the windows.
Ice and snow
Always keep the air intake grille at the base of
the windshield free of snow.
Cabin air filter
Replace the cabin air filter with a new one at
the recommended intervals. Please refer to
your Warranty and Service Records Informa-
tion booklet, or consult a trained and qualified
Volvo service technician for these intervals.
The filter should be replaced more often when
driving under dirty and dusty conditions. The
filter cannot be cleaned and therefore should
always be replaced with a new one.
Sensors
The sunlight sensor on the dashboard and pas-
senger compartment temperature sensor in
the ECC control panel should not be covered
in any way as this could cause incorrect infor-
mation to be sent to the ECC system.
Parking the vehicle in warm weather
If your vehicle has been parked in the sun in
warm weather, opening the windows and
moonroof* for several minutes before driving
will help release the warm air from the passen-
ger compartment. When the engine is running,
close the windows and moonroof and use the
recirculation function for several minutes to
enable the air conditioning to cool the com-
partment as quickly as possible.
Windows and optional moonroof
The ECC system will function best if the win-
dows and optional moonroof are closed. If you
drive with the moonroof open, we recommend
that you manually adjust the temperature and
blower control (the LED in the AUTO switch
should be off).
Acceleration
The air conditioning is momentarily disen-
gaged during full-throttle acceleration.
Climate control maintenance
Special tools and equipment are required to
maintain and carry out repairs on the climate
system. Work of this type should only be done
by a trained and qualified Volvo service tech-
nician.
Refrigerant
Volvo cares about the environment. The air
conditioning system in your vehicle contains a
CFC-free refrigerant – R134a (HFC134a). This
substance will not deplete the ozone layer. The
approximate amount of R134a contained in the
system is a follows:
6-cylinder engine
Single A/C system: 1.5 lbs (700 g)
Dual
1 A/C system: 2.2 lbs (1000 g)
8-cylinder engine
Single A/C system: 1.5 lbs (700 g)
Dual
1 A/C system: 2.3 lbs (1050 g)
The system also uses PAG oil.
1Includes the optional rear A/C system

03 Climate
Electronic climate control (ECC)
03
98* Option/accessory, for more information, see Introduction.
Overview
AC – (ON/OFF)
Recirculation/Multifilter with sensor*
Recirculation
AUTO
Air distribution
Passenger compartment temperature sen-
sor
Defroster windshield and side windows
Rear window and door mirrors defroster
Heated front seats*
Temperature passenger´s side
Temperature driver´s side
Blower
Blower control for rear climate system*
Functions
A/C – ON/OFF
•The air conditioning functions only at tem-
peratures above 32°F (0°C).
•While the Defroster function is selected,
the air conditioning is temporarily activated
to dehumidify the air, even if you have man-
ually switched the air conditioning off. Thiswill only function if the blower is not
switched off.
Press the switch to turn the air conditioning on
or off. The "ON" or "OFF" LED will light up to
indicate if the system is switched on or off.
Other functions will still be regulated automat-
ically (if the AUTO switch is on).
Interior air quality sensor*
Some vehicles are equipped with a multifilter
and air quality sensor. The filter separates
gases and particles, thereby reducing the
amounts of odors and contaminants entering
the vehicle. The air quality sensor detects
increased levels of contaminants in the outside
air. When the air quality sensor detects conta-

03 Climate
Electronic climate control (ECC)
03

99
minated outside air, the air intake closes and
the air inside the passenger compartment is
recirculated, i.e. no outside air enters the vehi-
cle. The filter also cleans recirculated passen-
ger compartment air.
When the ECC system is in the AUTO mode,
the green LED will be on.
Recirculation
Press this switch to engage the recirculation
function (air in the passenger compartment
recirculates – no fresh air enters the compart-
ment). The LED in the switch will light up to
indicate that the function is engaged.
•Use this function if the outside air is con-
taminated with exhaust gases, smoke, etc
or to heat/cool the vehicle quickly.
•Recirculation should not be used for more
than 15 minutes. If your windows begin to
fog or mist, make sure that the recirculation
function is switched off.
•Selecting Defroster automatically
switches recirculation off.
•Timer mode activation: (Vehicles equipped
with the Interior Air Quality system have no
timer mode) Press and hold the recircula-
tion button for at least 3 seconds to acti-
vate a recirculation timer mode. The amber
LED in the recirculation button will flash 5
times to show that the timer mode is being
activated. In timer mode, each time therecirculation button is pressed, the climate
control system will recirculate the air in the
passenger compartment for
5 – 12 minutes, depending on the outside
air temperature, and then revert back to
fresh air.
•Timer mode deactivation: Press and hold
the recirculation button for 3 seconds. The
amber LED in the recirculation button will
illuminate steadily for 5 seconds to show a
return to "normal" mode.
•In normal mode, when the recirculation
button is pressed, the climate control sys-
tem will recirculate the air in the passenger
compartment until the recirculation button
is pressed again.
•Timer mode memory: If the vehicle is
turned off while timer mode is active, timer
mode will still be active when the vehicle is
restarted.
AUTO
This function automatically regulates the
Electronic Climate Control system so that
the selected temperatures are maintained.
The blower, heating, air distribution (air
flow), air conditioning, and optional air qual-
ity sensor are controlled. If you prefer to man-
ually set any of these functions, the remaining
functions will still be controlled automatically.
Pressing the AUTO button overrides any set-
tings that were previously made manually.
Air distribution
G027267
•Air flow to windows
•Air through panel vents
•Air through floor vents
Press AUTO to automatically regulate air flow
or press any combination of the controls
shown in the illustration to manually adjust air
flow. An LED in the switch will light up if an air
flow control has been pressed.
Passenger compartment temperature
sensor
Measures the temperature in the compart-
ment.
Defroster
This function defrosts/deices the windshield
and front side windows. The LED in the switch

03 Climate
Electronic climate control (ECC)
03
100* Option/accessory, for more information, see Introduction.
will light up to indicate that the defrost function
is engaged.
•Blower speed increases automatically and
the air conditioning will switch on (if not
already on and if the passenger compart-
ment blower is not turned off) to dehumid-
ify the air in the passenger compartment.
•Recirculation will not function while defrost
is engaged.
The climate system will return to its previous
settings when the defroster function is
switched off.
Rear window and door mirror
defrosters
This function defrosts/deices the rear window
and door mirrors. The LED in the switch will
light up to indicate that the heating function is
engaged. For additional information on this
function see page 74.
Never use ice scrapers made of metal as they
can easily scratch the mirror surface.
Heated front seats*
1. Press the switch once for maximum seat
heating. Both LEDs in the switch will be lit.
2. Press the switch a second time for comfort
heating. One LED in the switch will be lit.3. Press the switch a third time to turn the
heating off completely. The LED will go off.
The seat heating for the passenger seat should
be switched off when the seat is not occupied.
Heated rear seats (XC90 Executive*)
G030976
Button for rear seat heating
Heating for the respective outboard rear seats
can be switched on or off with buttons on either
side of the center console (see the illustration).
To switch on rear seat heating:

Press the button.
> The symbol in the button will illuminate.To switch off rear seat heating:

Press the button.
> The symbol in the button will go out.
Temperature
These controls are used to individually set the
temperature for both sides of the passenger
compartment. Please note that the compart-
ment will not be heated or cooled faster by set-
ting the temperature higher or lower than nec-
essary.
Set the control to the temperature you prefer.
Blower control1
Turn the control clockwise to increase or coun-
terclockwise to decrease the blower speed.
Pressing the AUTO switch will automatically
regulate blower speed and override manual
adjustment.
Turning the blower control counterclockwise
until an orange LED comes on will turn both the
blower and the air conditioning off.
Blower control for rear climate
system*
Turn the control to increase or decrease blower
speed.
1See also see page 94.

06 Starting and driving
Economical driving
06
142
Economical driving conserves natural
resources
Better driving economy may be obtained by
thinking ahead, avoiding rapid starts and stops
and adjusting the speed of your vehicle to
immediate traffic conditions. Observe the fol-
lowing rules:
•Bring the engine to normal operating tem-
perature as soon as possible by driving
with a light foot on the accelerator pedal for
the first few minutes of operation. A cold
engine uses more fuel and is subject to
increased wear.
•Whenever possible, avoid using the vehicle
for driving short distances. This does not
allow the engine to reach normal operating
temperature.
•Drive carefully and avoid rapid acceleration
and hard braking.
•Use the transmission's D (Drive) position
as often as possible and avoid using "kick-
down" to help improve fuel economy.
•Do not exceed posted speed limits.
•Avoid carrying unnecessary items (extra
load) in the vehicle.
•Maintain correct tire pressure. Check tire
pressure regularly (when tires are cold).
•Remove snow tires when threat of snow or
ice has ended.
•Note that roof racks, ski racks, etc,
increase air resistance and also fuel con-
sumption.
•At highway driving speeds, fuel consump-
tion will be lower with the air conditioning
on and the windows closed than with the
air conditioning off and the windows open.
•Using the onboard trip computer's fuel
consumption modes can help you learn
how to drive more economically.
Other factors that decrease gas mileage
are:
•Dirty air cleaner
•Dirty engine oil and clogged oil filter
•Dragging brakes
•Incorrect front end alignment.
Some of the above mentioned items and others
are checked at the standard Maintenance
Service intervals.
CAUTION
Drive slowly and carefully if going through
standing water (i.e. flooded roadways, etc.).
Damage to the engine could result if excess
water is drawn in through the air intake sys-
tem. Never drive the vehicle in water deeper
than 18 inches (48 cm).

09 Maintenance and servicing
Working on your vehicle 09
212
Belt check
Check the belt regularly to make sure it is in
good condition and is clean. A worn or dirty belt
can cause poor cooling and low alternator out-
put as well as impair the operation of the power
steering and the air conditioning unit.
NOTE
The drive belt is equipped with a self-ten-
sioning mechanism and requires no adjust-
ment between changes.
WARNING
The engine must not be running when this
check is performed.
Check coolant level
The cooling system must be filled with coolant
and not leak to operate at maximum efficiency.
Check the coolant level regularly. The level
should be between the MAX and MIN marks
on the expansion tank. The check should be
made with particular thoroughness when the
engine is new or when the cooling system has
been drained.
Do not remove the filler cap other than for top-
ping up with coolant. Frequent removal may
prevent coolant circulation between the engineand the expansion tank during engine warm up
and cooling.
Changing coolant
Normally, the coolant does not need to be
changed. If the system must be drained, con-
sult a trained and qualified Volvo service tech-
nician.
Do not top off with water only. This reduces the
rust-protective and antifreeze qualities of the
coolant and has a lower boiling point. It can
also cause damage to the cooling system if it
should freeze. Top off with Volvo Genuine
Coolant/Antifreeze only (a 50/50 mix of water
and antifreeze.
CAUTION
The cooling system must always be kept
filled to the correct level. If it is not kept filled,
there can be high local temperatures in the
engine which could result in damage. Dif-
ferent types of antifreeze/coolant may not
be mixed.
WARNING
Never remove the radiator cap while the
engine is warm. Wait until the vehicle cools.