hey all- wondering if i could get some advice on this one. just got a 1990 240 and spent all last week getting her up to speed. when i bought her i noticed a faint grinding noise from the ac compressor when i turned the ac on. no big deal, since i really rarely use it. so i decided to take her on a maiden roadtrip(philly/north carolina). after an 8 hour drive to NC(car ran beautifully) i start to hear a really loud grinding noise coming from the compressor with the ac off. belts are still turning, although the "faceplate" to the compressor pulley kinda just floats there. noticed that the belt from motor to compressor has a little bit of slack. car still starts and runs fine. searched the forums.. clutch assembly, bearing, or compressor? ac still puts out cool air. my question is this: am i gonna hurt anything else by continuing to drive like this? i can wait till i get home to fix her if its just noise.

thanks in advance,
sb
somewhere north carolina