My 1984 242 is a daily driver, and despite the farm fresh paint (fading) and munched drivers seat, the body's in great shape & I've gotten tons of positive comments the past 2 years. It's my second 240, love it, but now this non-mechanic has a problem.

Problem: ocassionally won't go into third gear.
Engine: 3 + OD, automatic, approx 300K miles.
​​​I've had it 10-12 years.

It typically runs smooth, no major jerking, no grinding of gears. Once every few weeks when I'm sitting at a stop light there will be a minor surge. A few months back it was running rough in the AM, and I realized I hadn't checked the transmission fluid in years. Ugh! I put maybe 2.25 quarts in, then she ran fine. There ocassionally is a little rattling sound under the transmission / engine area when going up a grade and trying to accelerate. I have no idea what that is.

I've read several posts here. I know I need a new OD Relay switch, but that's a separate issue. (No clicking, OD engages, or not, on its own accord.)

Are the only possibilities - kick down cable or new tranny? I don't need a big expense! I can't ever recall replacing the KD cable. The fuse I checked relates to the OD function. I'm just trying to get educated on the topic.

A local dismantler has an AW71 from a Turbo that allegedly has 125,000 miles on it, $420 total. One year warranty. Would that work on my 240? And would that likely be an L (improved) version?

Also, people have said - make sure to get the TC. Is the TC inside the transmission, or is it a separate unit?

My current plan is the get an OD relay switch and kick cable from IPD, and take it to my mechanic Tuesday morning. (Is it OK to continue driving it gingerly?)

Thank you all in advance.

 

 

If you have a bad OD relay (meaning when you push the button it does not click and the light does not come on, to tell you that you have turned overdrive OFF or the light is stuck on) I trust you understand that the relay is supposed to supply power all the time to the solenoid with the key on and that's the default, whenever the car is turned on the relay is on, light is off and 4th gear is possible. When you push the button to turn the light on - the relay cuts power to the solenoid preventing it from shifting in 4th and turns the light on. Many things go wrong (at this age) other than just the relay. (solenoid or wiring). If you buy a new relay and it does not fix it - you are out the cost of the relay and installation.

The cheapest thing to do - is bypass the overdrive solenoid on the trans. Easily done by removing the solenoid and with a dremel tool grind a slot between the 2 oil passages to allow oil to flow all the time. (then reinstall the solenoid using just the outer oring, cut the wire and remove the relay if the light bugs you) Then when the trans decides to shift into 4th - it will. You will no longer have the ability to downshift manually from 4th to 3th (and you probably never did that anyway unless trying to decelerate in the mountains and not overheat your brakes)

The kickdown cable is easy to check/test. They commonly stick - that is visible/testable by simply opening the throttle all the way (under the hood with your hand) and watching the kickdown cable retract back into the outer cable. If it sticks - you can undo it from the throttle roll and spray (between the inner and outer cables) with the penetrant/lubricant of your choice - trying to get some lubricant down into the cable. (much cheaper than replacement.)

If you think your trans is not shifting into 3rd - you can simply leave the kickdown cable disconnected and you will find (if working normally) the trans will very quickly shift 1,2,3,and 4th if solenoid is allowing oil to flow.

As far installing a used transmission - First thing - you have a used transmission already. That's the one that's already in your car and there's no guarantee that the used one you have put in will be any better than the used one you already have - there may be a taillight warranty on the used trans - but I doubt they will pay time and material to put it in.

To answer your most expensive question - an aw71 from a 4 cyl Volvo will bolt right in. Still might need a new kickdown cable depending on what car it came from. The torque converter is generally assumed to be part of the transmission and I've never purchased a transmission (new, used or rebuilt) where it was not included.

 

Pragmatic question - if lubrication of the cable works, which would be great, how often will that need to be done?

Spoke with a young mechanic tonight (30?) in person. He seemed disintered in the need to lube the kick down cable. The bottom of the cable has some slack. He thinks the transmission might be overfilled, and suggests a transmission service.

Thanks for feedback in advance.

 

Update: A young mechanic took a peak and suggested the transmission fluid was possibly overfill(ed). So I removed some TF by repeatedly putting the dip stick in, cleaning it off, and re-inserting it again & again, maybe 30 times. Since then ... knock on wood... no problems getting into 3rd gear.

Will soon have new front strut mounts installed, possibly OD relay, oil change, and considering a TF and filter change. But I see YouTube videos and articles claiming if old TMs haven't been serviced in years, inserting new TF can damage the transmission? Thats over my head.

 

1. Why do you think there is a problem with the front strut mounts? That's not a common 240 problem. (it's certainly a common problem on many other newer Volvos)

2. Why replace the overdrive relay? When the wiring is probably shredded and the solenoid is probably bad - AND the cost to simply bypass the solenoid is almost free.

3. Certainly new fluid can cause problems. If your transmission is so worn that it's only working using the old fluid that has no lubricating qualities left - New slippery fluid might cause a worn out transmission to slip! And DON"T try to take the transmission oil pan off. The only filter is a metal screen and unless shredded is not changed. When the trans oil pan is removed - most people will try to get the dipstick loose/off first. DO NOT try that! You will end up with a stripped dipstick tube that will never seal again - and I don't think you will find a replacement. (pan and tube) Simply remove the trans drain plug, drain, reinstall (with a new sealing washer) and refill with 3.5 quarts of dexron atf. The trans holds a little over 7 quarts so you will only be changing 1/2 everytime you do that.

And too much fluid had nothing to do with your perceived "3rd gear" problem. (at least not the amount you could pull out by wiping the dipstick 30 times) However you do keep mentioning the overdrive relay - does both 3rd and 4th gear malfunction?

 

***
(i) My OD has been malfunctioning for 3-6 months; sometimes it smoothly shifts into OD, sometimes it won't. The fuse looks OK, and I rotated it. Pressing the OD button, there is no click.
(ii) Inability to shift into 3rd gear happened maybe 8-10 times. The first time it was raining hard, I was accelerating onto the freeway, my foot got tangled on something, causing me to take my foot off the peddle. Driver hiccup. When I put my foot back down, I couldn't get into 3rd gear and had lost momentum. So I stayed in the right hand lane at about 40-45 MPH. It happened a second time that night. The next few days I couldn't get into 3rd once or twice a day and caused me some stress and internet reading.

FTR, I would not change the TM fluid myself. Would a mechanic screw up the dip stick?

I added 2.5 quarts of new ATF, so given your input and current functioning TM, now I'm thinking about standing pat (no new additional fluid). Scotty Kilmer on YouTube mentioned that the friction (?) created by older fluid which is never changed then sometimes becomes necessary? And that a complete TM flush can lock up a TM. (??) Which I don't want!

It's smooth on the highway, in town, and I hear no grinding. The TM just wouldn't shift into 3rd gear, or shifted after a long delay. **

Thank you for your insightful comments. At maybe 300K miles (odometer broke, could be even 350K), I may need to prepare for a future newer TM?

 

I would simply grind a passage in the existing solenoid to allow oil to flow - takes less than 10 minutes to grind. I'd bet (sounds like you won't be doing that yourself) the labor charge will be roughly the same as simply replacing with a plate (and new orng). If your guy will charge more than $35 to grind a groove - replace it with a plate.

Yes - a mechanic will easily damage the dipstick tube - it's either you or him. If you remove the starter bolts you can remove the pan without moving the dipstick tube. You have to lower the trans crossmember to get the starter bolts out. But on a car that old - there's no reason to take the pan off. It's certainly a possibility that the filter screen has come apart and that's what's keeping the car from shifting correctly. But a new screen and fluid will not fix that. So - try other stuff first.

If the screen came apart those metal screen pieces will be caught in the valve body and the governor. Both of which will cost $$$ to remove/clean/etc.

As you can tell, on a car that old I would recommend spending as little as possible to keep it on the road in a reasonably safe condition.

 

I'm hoping to keep it alive, want to resolve mechanical issues before cosmetic stuff, and I'm not made of gold. So right now I'll do the strut mounts, oil change, and likely bypass the OD. Maybe lube the KD cable. And pray the transmission stays working.

It sounds like a new TM and install is $3-4,000.

 

Two weeks ago I followed advice that you state here. My 1990 Volvo 240 was doing stuff you and OP mention here. Overdrive was erratic. I removed the OD relay, cut the groove you described, reinstalled with original o-ring and tightened up. I lost 2 qts of fluid on the road. Car barely made it home. Old O-ring was decrepit and blew out. I put in new o-ring and all was fine for 5 days. 1-2-3-4 gears on the open road. But yesterday, 4th gear disappeared. Only 1-2-3 now. Any ideas?