i have a little problem with my 96 850. my check engine light appeared and i went to AAMCO to get it looked at and they said i need a new transmission after just reading the paper i showed them. has anyone else had this problem?
( The PCM has detected an incorrect gear ratio condition in the 4th gear). thanks for any info you can give me

 

Did they clear the codes after reading them? Maybe the problem was temporary.

When was the last time you flushed the tranny fluid?

 

thanks. i just bought the car a few months ago so i havent flushed it yet but i will. any places you know of that can do that for me

 

Sorry, I don´t live in the US so I can´t help you. I suppose a tranny specialist or a lubrication shop could do that. Flushing a tranny requires a specific machine..

 

Greetings from Chicagoland.

As Axel has noted, I too think the problem is temporary and you do not need a new gearbox, unless you really do notice problems in 4th gear.

Incorrect gear ratio codes often seem to be triggered by incorrect fluid level. I once had a similar code but was cleared by adding a half quart of Dexron-III/Mercon. The flashing arrow came up, CEL didn't go away (cleared it with an OBD-II scanner at AutoZone, but it may be cleared via OBD-I as well) and the car was in "limp" mode. All these problems were solved by mere a half quart of transmission fluid.

I would avoid going to places like AAMCO or any generic town shops. When it comes to servicing Volvo or any imports, I would go to a dealer or shops that specialise in Swedish/European cars. They charge more indeed, but the extra cost is well worth it. In servicing Volvo, you get what you pay for.

Good luck,


JPN

 

First of all, I have heard of the gear ratio problem occuring with other people. However, I don't remember what was the solution to the problem. Certainly, it wasn't a new transmission.

Don't power flush. Let the automatice transmission flush itself. Some folks prefer the transmission flush kit from IPD -- other folks make their own flush kit from parts at the local hardware store.
http://www.ipdusa.com/ProductsCat.as...549&RootID=629
http://www.ipdusa.com/pdf/PI-290TrannyFlushKit.pdf

Here are procedures...

http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/cha...pic.php?t=8767
http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/cha...pic.php?t=8742

 

I got lazy and bought the IPD flush kit that Robert posted. For $20, it gives you exactly what you need to flush it, except for the funnel to add the fluid.

My advice is to try to find one that is skinny enough at the bottom to really seal well in the dipstick. In my 850, because of things in the way, it was slightly cocked to one side and as I added fluid, it would leak a bit if I put too much into the funnel (due to gravitational pressure). Thus I had to add fluid slower than I would like .

- AB

 

Did changing the fluid solve your tranny problem or were you just doing preventive maintenance?

Regards
Axel

 

I swear I would report AAMCO to the BBB is they said you needed a new transmission when all it needed was a fluid change. How much were they going to charge you? They must really rip off a lot of people. That kind of stuff really ticks me off!!

 

I agree with Jim.

There are too many dirty businesses all over the world[8D].


JPN

 

Were there any other codes?
I agree with everyone here that you should try flushing first and see if the codes recur.
Unfortunately there is the possibility that the tranny may need a rebuild but you won't know till after a flush.
The trannies on the 5 cyl motors tend to crap out a lot, usually the cluches and solenoids, most shops just like to replace them because of the liabilities involved in rebuilding them. I don't want to freak you out, but those AW transmissions prefer regular fluid changes and tend to go south when they don't receive them.

 

Every day I participate in this forum and read about the hydraulic tensioner problems, ABS problems, AC problems, tranny problems. Makes me really feel like getting rid of this old imported car and getting a standard locally manufactured car.

 

You read about all these problems on this forum because this forum was established mainly to allow people to solve and discuss problems. It will always therefore seem to present an image of Volvos as unreliable and trouble prone.
I'll tell youthree things:
1)The problems aren't much differentif any to problems felt by all vehicle owners.
2)The average age of cars in my shop is 5 years, the average mileage is just over 150000 miles. These cars hold up pretty well, they just need to be properly maintained.
.

 

I was refering to the risk of having an old imported carhere in my country. Parts cost 5 times more than in the US, how´s that for a distributor markup?

 

what country would that be? and what would be locally manufactured?
Also, is it that expensive to have parts imported yourself? We do it on occasion for some people my father knows who are in Africa and the carribean but I guess it's still going to be costly.

 

I live in Argentina. Importing parts here is a pain in the a$$, that´s why they are so expensive. Nobody stocks 850 parts, when you need something like a new radiator you can but it at Volvo (major $$$$$$$$$) and wait 45 days for them to get it here.

I guy that works with me has a 94 Saab 9000 CSE, no THAT'S a headache. His fuel pump died two months ago and Saab Argentina quoted 1200 USD for a new pump assembly. He ended up buying a Bosch pump and adapting it himself for USD 150.

What is very cheap here is labour. So if I can find a way to get cheap parts (without buying stolen parts, which are available but illegal and immoral), having a Volvo would be much more viable than it is today.

For passenger cars local manufacturers are Peugeot and Ford in Argentina. Then from Brasil you import under free trade agreement Volkswagen, Fiat, Chevrolet, Renault, Ford, Peugeot, Citroën, Toyota, Honda, Mercedes Benz, Audi, and others which I don´t recall right now. We used to have three times more car factories here but the free trade agreement took all the industrial activity over to Brasil, that being a major factor in the 2002 collapse of our economy.

IMO Americans should get ready for their own crisis. If you guys keep on outsourcing everything and having such a huge commercial deficit with China , that´s just asking for it, sooner or later. I read today that the President of China Central Bank has decided to reduce China´s investment in US dollars and US Treasury Bonds. They have a trillion dollars in US cash and bonds and that will flood the market. But maybe that´s just my pesimist side talking.

 

Hi Axel,

Have you tried to get some parts from FCP Groton? I know they ship overseas. As long as Argentina doesn't impose some silly import tax or whatever, you should be able to get parts the same price as in the U.S. You could perhaps try buying some tune-up parts and see how it goes, though shipping may be a bit high.

>IMO Americans should get ready for their own crisis. If you guys keep on outsourcing everything and >having such a huge commercial deficit with China , that´s just asking for it, sooner or later.

Unfortunately, many people in the U.S or Japan don't seem to realize what they're asking for. The old adage "You get what you pay for" seems to have been forgotten from people's minds. Every time I shop, I look on the back of the packages to see where they're made at, and if it's xxxxx, I try to find alternatives that are made in the U.S, Japan or other countries that have good reputation in their industrial products, even if I had to pay more. The faulty ATE ABSmodule on 850s, BTW, is made in Phxxxpxines.

In aircraft maintenance industry, many major airlines are now doing heavy maintenance in xxxxx and other south-east Asia to cut down on costs. According to Japan Airlines' Captain Association, their airplanes are having a lot of problems (incorrect installation of parts, engine failure during flight, etc...) due to the cost-down strategy. Japanese aircraft technicians were once considered the best in the world, but now the two major airlines there (JAL & ANA) have separated their maintenance divisions and made them into subsidiaries to cut down on costs. The end result is that the motivation & expertise among technicians went down the hill and airplanes are intentionally damaged by their technicians so they had to put surveillance cameras in their hangars. Japanese aircraft tech's used to get paidreally decent wages, but now theyseem to get paid some ridiculous amount, something like $10/hour. I wouldn't trust airplanes that wereserviced by $10/hour techs (In Japan, onlylow-end jobs pay hourly wages, most full-time jobs pay monthly wages + benefits but such jobs are disappearing fast, thanks to making everything in xxxxx).

Some say that products from xxxxx have improved in quality. While it is true in some few cases, I still avoid them, unless if there is no alternative. When it comes to industrial products/services, I am a hardcore redneck, conservative, right-wing, etc...


JPN

 

What we did here regarding Chinese imports was to tax them. It's too comfortable for the corporate world tooutsource all the manufacturing to China and leave all the locals begging at stop lights. I'm not against competition, but against unfair competition. First you have to level the rules before opening your market. We already learned that many times during the last 40 years here and it has cost us a lot of tears.

 

Agreed, Alex.

The U.S, Japan and the rest of the world will soon come to know how it willbe.

Your posts are always educational for me, thanks for new inputs.


JPN

 

well thanks guys for the help. im going to try the flush tomorrow after work and hopefully things work out.