NewVolvoGuy Posted May 1, 2011 Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 I have just taken ownership of a 2000 s70 2.4L non turbo with the AW 50/55sn transmission. The car had been sitting in a garage for about a year with a very minor drive around the block every couple of months just for the heck of it while it was in "storage". My wife started driving the car on a regular basis about 5 weeks ago, last week the transmission began to slip out of gear one day when she was driving to work. The flashing up arrow, check engine, and service light all came on at the same time or within a few minutes of each other. I went and swapped cars and attempted to nurse the car back home, I could take off from a complete stop but when the tranny tried to shift up to 2nd gear it was like the transmission went into neutral, the RPMs on the engine would rev but the car just coasted down the road, it would eventually drop back into 1st gear once the car was almost slowed to a stop and I could accelerate again until it was time to shift into 2nd gear and the same thing would happen again, and for the next 8 miles until I got home. I took the car to a local Volvo service garage that said they thought the transmission may be bad but they weren't sure and suggested I take it to the Volvo dealership to get a second opinion. Really honest or didn't know what they were doing who knows. On the way home I stopped by Autozone and they pulled a code of 0733 (incorrect gear ratio)and said it may be a shift solenoid issue, but I don't think that was correct. I took the s70 to the dealership a couple of days later they said they also received the same indication of the incorrect gear ratio which the service tech called the code of death. The service advisor said with that type of code and the fact the transmission fluid looked OK that the transmission was doomed and would need to be replaced to the tune of $3800.00 (thank goodness they had an overstock of those type transmissions because that was a discounted price according to him). So with all of that I have a couple questions: Is the "incorrect gear ratio" really a bad thing? After sitting and not being driven very much for a year would the fluid, for a lack of better terms "go bad" and cause this type of problem with this type of transmission? The fluid was changed about 3000 miles prior to the car sitting for a year, the service garage that performed the transmission fluid change is no longer in business so I can not verify what type of fluid was used, I know its very possible the wrong fluid could have been used and with or without the car sitting up for the year I could just now be dealing with the effects of an incorrect fluid replacement. Could a couple of drain and fills maybe solve my problem? If so can the Mobil 1 synthetic be used? It says on the back of the container it is JWS 3309 compatiable but I'm unsure on that one since its a synthetic. The dealer verified the most up to date software was in the vehicle, are there any other external electrical parts that could cause this type of problem, such as the shift solenoids, or the PNP switch or am I just truly doomed and heading for a rebuild? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keaton85 Posted May 1, 2011 Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 all correct, the incorrect ratio is the end. No PNP switch or solenoid will do this. although there is a high possibility that the shop used DEX-III and not a 3099 fluid. You coild try changing the fluid out and resetting tje adaptives from the dealer. just dont have the dealer do the change or it will be insanely expensive and this is simpler then a motor oil change haha! if the tranny still acts up then sell it as a parts car and go find a nice 98 S70 or better yet 03+ S60 if you need automatic. This car is deffinitly in no slim change about it worth putting 3K into for a tranny! For a little extra you could get a better vehicle for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRL Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Tranny is history, time to find a new or used one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewVolvoGuy Posted May 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 7, 2011 Thanks for the responses. Just for the record I took the S70 to 3 different places to have the transmission looked over. All three places told me the the unit was nothing more than a boat anchor, I decided to take the car to AA(beep, beep)MCO. The rebuild took about two days they charged me $2650.00 which includes a 3 year 36,000 mile warranty. The dealer wanted to charge $4500.00. Another local company wanted $2600.00 for the rebuild but the 3 year 36,000 mile warranty with them would have cost an additional $300.00. I pick the Volvo up in the morning we'll see how it goes. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keaton85 Posted May 7, 2011 Report Share Posted May 7, 2011 Thats almost the value of the vehicle! Why didnt you just sell it and buy a nice 98 for the same price? Good thing you have a warranty through AAMCO, does it include labor as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jda2000 Posted May 11, 2011 Report Share Posted May 11, 2011 newvolvoguy, so how did the rebuild from AAMCO turn out :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.