Hey people. I have a 03 MSC and am having an issue with power loss with the AC on. I know some loss is totally normal, but this is so bad I almost stall the car when I try to drive away. in addition I can hear a spinning or whering sound that matches RPM when I have AC on. I only use it when I have somebody in the car but would like to know what is up anyway... so, any knowledge would be awesome. thanks!

 

Your spinning/whirring sound is probably just your blower motor or compressor. Obviously hard to tell how serious your issue is over a text conversation, but to me it sounds normal. Spinning the compressor creates additional drag on the motor and you'll need more throttle to overcome it when starting. The W11 is not a torquey motor anyway; most cars you can just roll off the clutch with little throttle to get started on a level road, but in the MINI you'll stall every time.

 

Moving you to the Stock Problems/Issues section.

To me "huge" would mean the car cannot get out its way. Is this what it is doing and does the AC still blow cold air?

 

I don't use my AC on a regular basis, but when I do I notice a difference in power off the line initially. But if i continue to use it during a heat wave it seems to get much better. Maybe it learns- or maybe I learn to tip in more throttle on launch. Maybe just stick with it for a while to see if it improves?

 

Ya on launch the power is WAY down. But that is only half my worry. The other is the noise. Im like 99% sure its not the fan... It only happens when I use he AC and the pitch changes with engine RPM not with blower speed. could a freezing pulley be the cause, both for taking so much power and making this noise? it kinda sounds like a classic "spinning part wearing out" noise.

 

 

I have the same issue with Scarlet, low power and a low howling noise. Power seems to kick in like a turbo around 3500-4000 rpms. Sux, gets close to 100 degrees and I'm just leaving it off and having fun while I sweat....

 

Just want to bring this back from the dead. Also agree with the other people who are having the issue - power loss is expected when using A/C, but I need to pop the revs up to 2500-3k just to get moving. It's night and day.

I also have the whirring, seems to go away in higher gears whether it's road noise or not drowning it out I'm not sure. I'll often turn the A/C off at stop lights just so I can accelerate normally and not hear that damn noise, then toss it back on when I'm up to speed. It's 100% related to compressor in some way.

My first thought was also an a/c pulley or clutch issue, but not sure if that makes sense because I don't understand it fully. I want to say it's something with the compressor itself rather than the pulley because I think the pulley/clutch assembly is just engaged/disengaged and my A/C blows cold so that's functioning.

 

Hi all,

Just moved to Tucson from Syracuse. Hardly ever used the AC in Syracuse but since being in Tucson it is almost on all the time. I have experienced all the same issues as the OP. I am figuring that it is all normal. I grew up in South Africa where small displacement engines on cars where quite normal, when the AC kick on you could definitely tell. Got to remember that it is not the same as 6.6L diesel I have in my truck!
When stopped, I make sure to leave the line with just a little more throttle. As for the noise, I only notice it under high RPM like CSP noted, it goes away as soon as you turn the AC off. I am thinking it must reverberate through the cabin via the open air ducts? My solution is to turn up the stereo.