I have a 2004 Volvo S40 T5 B5254T3 with an automatic. I have two questions. First, the automatic has the autostick feature where I can manually shift the automatic up and down. It worked fine for for about 10 months after I bought the car. One day out of the blue it just stopped working. I can physically move the gear shift over to the autostick position but the display on the dash doesnt show that it is in the autostick mode and you can't shift it like that either. Could this be a fuse or something? There have been no mechanical issues and I have had no work done to it where someone could have bumped something. Any help would be great. The second question is, will Mobil 1 Transmission fluid work in my transmission? I have no idea what kind of transmission is in it so if someone could tell me how to find out or where to look that would be great. The VIN is YV1MS682742012669. Thanks in advance for any and all help.

 

is it possible some dirt or crud found its way into the shifter? Sounds like you may need to remove the covers to see whether a part is broken or if its just a sensor contact that is dirty (kind of like the PNP switch problem common to 850s). As to the tranny fluid, the owners manual notes "JWS" as the quality for the Gen2 S40s but Gen1 lists JWS-3309 as the oil spec. To note, Mobil 1 is NOT listed as JWS-3309 compliant (it was at one point but some posts state its not any more) yet Mobil ATF (non-synthetic) is. Considering the cost (it takes like 12 quarts to flush the transmission) and the fact that Volvo and Aisen (at least on the older S40s they have a "Toyota" transmission) quote a no-maintenance required, you should be good for 75K miles even if you use non-synthetic... Google "Bob the oil guy" for web blog discussions. If you really want to go synthetic, there are ATF products from companies like Red Line that meet the JWS spec. (also see Motul and Liqui Moly for their ATF products).

 

You have a Volvo geartronic (manumatic) transmission manufactured by Aisin-Warner.

Your transmission requires JWS 3309 fluid. Mobil makes a number of different transmission fluids. You're probably refererring to Mobil 1 Synthetic ATF. This fluid was shown by Mobil to be JWS 3309 compatible until about 4 years ago, but no longer is.

The lowest cost fluid options for you are:
Mobil ATF 3309.
Toyota T-IV purchased from a Toyota dealer.

If you buy your fluid from a Volvo dealer you will be getting the exact same fluid as either of the two fluids above at four or five times the cost.

The nonsense about lifetime fluids is just that, nonsense. All automatic transmissions should receive regular fluid changes. If you don't maintain your transmission with clean fluid then it will, by definition, have a lifetime fluid as the fluid installed will last the life of the transmission, however short that may be. As long as it's longer than the warranty period, neither Volvo nor the dealer care. That's why the dealer tells you not to change your transmission fluid as they want to sell you a new tranny a year or two down the road.

Your goal with transmission maintenance is to keep the fluid looking new, bright colored and clear.

 

I changed my fluid and used Valvoline Maxlife ATF, $16.95 for a gallon jug at Walmart. Its both Toyota T-IV and Volvo JWS 3309 compliant. I even found this on Valvoline's FAQ page:

9. Does MaxLife ATF meet the spec for Volvos with a Geartronic Transmission?
Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc ATF will meet Volvo specifications that require the use of TIV or JWS3309 ATF.

Valvoline.com > FAQs > System Fluids Car FAQs > Automatic Transmission Fluid

I have been running it fo a year and a half now with no issues. And my shifts are a bit smoother now too.