I taking my volvo 2001 volvo S80 to the dealership tomorrow to have the blower motor looked at (sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't) I asked the guy when I made the appointment how much it would cost to have the (infamous) transmission serviced and if he could tell me if it had been replaced (car has 146k on it). He said that i shouldn't do anything to service it besides add fluid if necessary. He said that having the fluid drained and filter replaced may "cause" problems that don't already exist. Does this sound right? Can a local trusted mechanic tell me if the transmission has already been replaced?

 

I agree, unless you know the history of the maintenance, randomly just doing a flush could cause problems. The old saying, let sleeping dogs lie, is the best advice.

It's not just about replacing the transmission, rarely will the entire transmission be replaced, rather they are rebuilt. Is it possible to tell, sometimes, depends on how long ago, how good the mechanic who did the repair was, etc. Also, don't trust CarFax or similar to tell you if something like this has been done, although dealerships will report their data to corporate and capture repairs/service, most independent shops do not report their data to databases that CarFax queries.

 

Thanks for the heads up friend. Will just take it easy on the throttle, cross fingers, and pray the transmission lasts at least two more years!!

 

Just watch what they tell you--especially if it's a dealer. Everytime i take my car in, they suggest a ton of stuff needs to be done, when little is wrong--just a way to get the service revenue up.

I drive my car pretty hard (and my wife is worse) and the 145K mile transmission is fine--and i've never done a thing to it.

 

Why don't you just check the fluid and see if it looks or smells burnt. The is no external filter to change. Search this site on how to change the transmission fluid and do it yourself. I'm not sure the s80"s had the same trans as the s60. The problem had more to do with the trans. software than the mechanical side. Have the dealer check to make sure you have the latest software. I have an 01 s60 with over 100k. The software revision came out about 3 months after I purchased it. It was updated and maintained and hasn't missed a beat. I've often wondered if the ability to shift it manually on the T5 has caused some of the problems. If the fluids not burnt you should be fine. As far as the door lock the panel is easy to remove. I'm not sure how you're going to get the door open though. Take a small punch and push the center of the pin in and the door panel fasteners will pull out.

 

There is a filter inside the transmission that is not scheduled for maintenance, but should still be replaced.

They had a Solenoid problem where the solenoid between 2nd and 3rd would wear prematurely and the trans would get stuck in 3rd or whatever, lets say thanks to GM for that one.

 

Thanks for all the info guys....i'm not a car guy but it looks like a may have to become one. i found a sticker on what i think is the air filter casing that I think indicates the timing belt has been replaced at 111k it has 148 on it now. There appears to be a problem with the blower motor that i planned on taking to get looked at by the dealer service. The guy I bought it from said it needed a relay fuse or something that he said cost about 200.00. The vents blow hard right when the car starts up then they just fade down to low and the blow power goes up and down from there. I am planning on taking the car and dropping it off tomorrow night so they can work on it Wednesday. What are the things I should ask the dealer to check that only they can do. If the timing belt and other things can be done somewhere else I'll just take it somewhere that's cheaper.

 

Your timing belt should be golden for another 60,000 - 80,000 miles. As for the blower, it sounds like the auto-climate control module is having some issues, possibly just the interior temp sensor, but not sure.

Otherwise, as long as the car drives good, sounds good, feels good, I don't think there is a lot to be concerned about immediately that would need to be checked. It wouldn't hurt I guess to check the spark plugs and air filter and general suspension, but nothing more then some visual review and some pushing and pulling for wear.