I have an 85 740 GLE non turbo and I need a torque converter for it. I found someone selling a 90 trans and TC but the transmission is an 03-70L. Different than the tranny in my car which I believe is an ZF 4HP-22. I'm not certain of this but found online specs for 85 740 and it calls out this tranny. The dealership says there were more than one automatic transmission for this year and model. I've also found someone with a trans and TC out of an 86 t40 turbo, which I believe has a different transmission than the non-turbo. My question is basically are the torque converters compatible or are they transmission specific? Also if the turbo transmission has less miles on it than mine, is it possible to swap the tranny's without much difficulty?

 

AW70, AW71 (the best), AW70L and AW71L will all swap into your car. The ZF is scarce now(they don't hold up) and the internals are not compatible w/ the AW's. All the 740 AW's are externally identical dimensionally. Get all the linkages to the shifter with it as they may differ from the ZF. Transmission cooler lines may be different as well. Also, I'd get the front, short portion of the drive shaft as that is the portion Volvo altered for different transmissions. The "L" denotes a lockup torque converter and is generally preferred for highway use but as never been a deal breaker for me. 71's were mainly found in turbo cars, they are much stronger than 70's but 70's are fine for a stock, non-turbo car. I recently sold an AW71 to a turbobricks buddy for $100 so even from a salvage yard they aren't too expensive...couple hundred bucks at most. Be sure to get some sort of warranty as it may be d.o.a. As I have space, I buy complete cars off of craigs list and disassemble them. I bought a complete 91 740T for $200...hit in the front. Got a bunch of parts for me, sold the tranny for $100, the turbo for $50, the exhaust manifold for $50 and the wheels for $100. If you can do it, it's a great way to get parts for your car.

 

Thanks for your reply. I've found an AW71 in an 86 GLE turbo. Figure I'll pull that and swap it into my car. Is there anything besides the drive shaft and linkage I need to worry about? Flex plate?

 

Pretty sure the flex plate is the same but it wouldn't hurt. I would guess the cooling lines may be a bit different. It'll be a bit of work but after it's done you'll be pleased.

 

Thanks for the info. Just got done putting the AW71L into my car. Seems a whole lot more solid than the ZF. Everything went pretty smoothly. I have only one question. The AW has an electrical connection. I'm pretty sure it's for the overdrive and somewhere I saw that you can hook it up to hot to keep the overdrive engaged. Is this true? Otherwise I think my gas mileage is gonna be pretty low.

 

Rather than wire it up, you may want to just bypass the solenoid. IPD has a bypass kit they sell for ~30 bucks. Not sure the part number but I'm sure you can find it.

I have heard of other just filing a notch in the plate on the solenoid that does the same thing. Cheaper than getting the plate from IPD. Search the boards for more info.

Roll away...

 

+1. One of the minor annoyances of the ADubs is the OD solenoid has to be energized for the OD to engage. It's pretty simple to make a small harness and relay setup combined with the shifter button to get it to operate properly but if you don't pull a trailer, it may not make much difference. Unlike a lot of American vehicles, the AW doesn't shuttle between 3rd and 4th much around town. Pretty much pops into 4th around 40-45. So...the simplest thing would be to get the plate from IPD. It's $40. Here's the link http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-200/Transmission-&-Drive-Train/Automatic-Transmission/Automatic-Over-Drive-Solenoid-Bypass-Kit/p-69-266-672-1891