[BlueNote07]

For a few years the AC has sounded rough on my 2007 Note. 2 years ago I started to smell hot rubber; over the last month there has been a nasty grinding noise when when we start the car, and this week the battery light has lit up in the dashboard. (If I'm totally honest, I tried to drive anyway and the car stopped after a mile. Silly me.)

We've regassed the air con twice during this period, and I'm pretty sure that the gas has been dumped twice.

Popping up the bonett, I can see that the rubber drive belt that drives the alternator and the air conditioning compressor is missing. This has caused my battery to go flat, and my car to stop. The aircon compressor makes a grinding noise if I reach under the car and turn it round by hand.

It's time for me to get a new car but that might take a few weeks to sort out. I'm wondering if I can fit a belt in a way that bypasses the optional AC compressor? The RAC man showed me the two belt routings for the car: with and without aircon (pic of his screen attached). I'm worried that the belt tensioner will be wrong in my model, and push the wrong way. Any views?

 

[BlueNote07]

It seems the answer is yes. The non-AC versions probably have a different bolt to allow easier adjustment of the tensioner, but my car has come back from the mechanic running nicely with a shorter belt at the right tension.