The uv photolysis of the Ar-HCl cluster is studied applying an exact time-dependent wave packet method in three dimensions, assuming zero-total angular momentum. The photodissociation process is found to occur via two different fragmentation mechanisms, depending on the initial excitation energy of the cluster. One mechanism leads to total dissociation of the complex, producing three fragments, Ar-HCl+hv-->H+Ar+Cl. The fragmentation dynamics in this case is governed by resonance states at relatively low energies of the cluster, in which the H atom collides a number of times with Ar and Cl before dissociating. Manifestations of these collisions are found in the final kinetic energy distribution of the photofragments, which is redshifted in the case of the H fragment, and blueshifted in the Ar and Cl cases. The second type of mechanism consists of a fast and direct photodissociation of the hydrogen, leading to a partial fragmentation of Ar-HCl into hot H fragments and bound Ar-Cl radical molecules. This mechanism dominates at higher energies, which are those mostly populated by the wave packet initially prepared in the present calculations. The experimental implications of the results are discussed.