Hello, last week I decided to replace most of the transmission fluid on my volvo 850 1997 non turbo as it looked dirty and probably had 30K miles on it.
I used DEXRON III / MERC standard as required.
The transmission had no issue before but since replacing the fluid the car does not accelerate well at all, RPM goes up but you feel a lack of acceleration especially at high speed like on the freeway. This evening I could barely reach 45mph as I entered the freeway. The car at low speed shifts just fine but the acceleration is poor.... just like a standard car with a bad clutch...
I even added some Lucas additive and it did not help. Ichecked the fluid level and it's fine.
Everything started when I did this gradual fluid change...Any idea? Any suggestion? Did the fluid change damage the transmission? If someone has experienced this, any input would be SO WELCOME!
Thanks in advance.

 

Did you remove the drain plug and then add the same amount back in or did you pull the cooler line off and do a flush that way ??

Have you checked the level the "Volvo" way ??

CHECKING FLUID LEVEL
1) Ensure vehicle is level. Apply parking brake and gear
selector lever to "P" position. Start and idle engine. Move gear
selector lever through all gears, while pausing 4-5 seconds for
engagement at each position.
2) Return gear selector lever to "P" position. Wait 2 minutes
and check fluid level with engine idling. Level should be between MIN
and MAX marks.

 

I used tubing to remove fluid from the dipstick (siphon).
I did not check the level the Volvo Way, did not know this procedure, will go check and get back with you! ;-) Thanks!

 

Probably was 1/2 quart low, going to go drive and see if anything improved.

 

No improvement, I don't get it, when you hit the gas pedal it gradually makes that "whining" sound but acceleration is not good at all.

 

Any check engine light or transmission "up" arrow ??

 

how many miles do you have on your car. doing a tranny fluid change by draining and filling and running the leftover old fluid through the cooler line is the best way in my opinion. go through checking the fluid the right way as kiss suggested and get back to us. may be you are low on fluid, check for codes too.

 

NO CEL, NO CODES, car was fine and just passed inspection 2 weeks ago. Arrow is off
I think actually the tranny had too much fluid in, draining a quart. It's very hard to read on that dipstick, it's never the same level shown on both sides....
I drained 4 quarts since renewing and realized I put 5 in so must be too much...
The car has about 120000 (odometer broke a while and I fixed it) so this is a good guess, tranny has about 30K since replaced as it failed at 90K miles.
Tranny had no issue till I decided to change the fluid.

 

can you take pictures of your readings and post it up?

 

I will do my best this evening for a picture, I removed 1 1/2 quart which is how much I estimate was above the initial level before starting to renew the fluid.
I will do a test drive and see what happens but does anyone think that this much, too much fluid would create such problem? I hope I did not damage the tranny as it would be a beautiful DISASTER!

Thank for all your help and inputs.

 

I did a run, checked the level, it's good (the level) but the car still run like hell, terrible acceleration, no power.... either I have another new issue or the transmission is shot. I checked everything, the only thing that could seem abnormal is I hear an "air flow" noise if I hit the gas pedal real quick and when I shut down the engine but I checked all intake hoses, connections etc... no leak anywhere that I can see. So, having no CEL or Codes I have no idea where to go from here. Any idea?

 

let me ask you. does the car shift properly from first gear? did you try driving in winter mood? how is your idling? do you get a smooth idling when engine is running? a video of it would be of greAT HELP

 

Yes the shifting is good, no issues there. I tried going winter mode, same thing except the arrow appears on the dash. Idling is fine, steady around 850 RPM.
I tried sport mode, hardly changes a thing.

 

this is hard to diagnose without codes. is there anyway you can use a code scanner to scan for stored codes? sometimes the check engine light bulb does not work and doesnt light up. a video would be great if you can take one

 

The CEL works, changed the bulb fairly recently, had to deal with several issues before inspection which I fixed and back then the CEL came on. The only thing I can think of is that something is busted in the tranny since I replaced the fluid...
I have an OBDII reader and there is no codes and yes I agree makes it hard to figure out the issue.

 

l would suggest you wait a lil bit for others on this forum for opinions relating to this. anyone with any suggestions?

 

Will do..... time for a cold one anyway

 

If draining the fluid didn't help I'd go back to using the procedure and do your best reading the dip stick. Anything else is just a guess and when you're having a problem you need to make sure low fluid isn't causing the slipping.

You could also take it to a transmission shop to get a free diag. It would at least give you an idea of what they think is wrong and they are physically there and can feel and hear what the trans is or isn't doing

I'm sorry for asking this but you are putting fluid back into the transmission through the same tube you sucked it out of aren't you ??

 

Yes I do, after driving a while, not pretending to renew it, just cleaning it somewhat this way.... why?
I went to drive again and the first minute the car was actually accelerating nicely then went back to its snail way... weird. Maybe when the tranny is cold it works better then as it warmns up the problem comes back.... ???

 

let me ask you. what kind of fluid did you use? what brand name was it? was it synthetic? because it sounds like fluid related bc of what you just described.