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I have an 850 with about 136k miles...nearly all by my wife or myself. All scheduled maintenance has been performed by one Volvo dealership or another, or a certified local Volvo shop. Back in Nov 2003 the shift arrow began flashing. The transmission seemed to operate fine but I took it to the local dealer and asked them to check it out. They said they could replace a switch (PNP?) but that it would probably not resolve the problem, so I should "consider" replacing the transmission. I'm cheap, so I asked them to attempt to reset the sensor, lights, etc. and see what would happen. I've been driving the car since then without any sign of problems...until today. Shortly after my normal 25 mile interstate commute, I was on a secondary road when I had to brake hard to avoid other traffic. I noted the flashing arrow shortly thereafter. This time the transmission is not operating properly. The remainder of my trip home (less than a mile) was level or downhill, until I got to the driveway. At that point it seemed the car was stuck in high gear and didn't want to pull up the driveway. I was able to back in fine. In addition to the shift arrow, the Sport/Econ lights flash. I also pressed the Winter, and Sport/Econ swithces, but none seemed to have any effect. Thanks in advance for any guidance you good folks may be able to share.
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Thanks for the input. Here's an update and answers to questions. This morning I visited a local Volvo/BMW shop (not the dealer) near my office. He asked if I'd tried to drive the car after parking last night, then explained that a few minute wait allows the computer to reset. Anyway, my answer was "no I hadn't moved the car last night", so that is what I did this evening. It operated as normal, shifted properly in Little Ole Lady driving mode, normal acceleration, hard acceleration, and downshifting...but the shift light still flashes.
I will try cycling the shifter as two folks recommended and let y'all know if it worked. In answer to the question about changing the fluid and flushing, I asked a dealer shop about that at least once and was told it isn't necessary...and the hard-copy service recommendations I have in the service folder only mentions checking the fluid every 10k miles. Just the same, I reverted to my upbringing and had a local Volvo shop near home (not the same one by the way) replace the fluid in Nov 01 around 102k miles. I doubt there was any flushing invovled because it isn't mentioned on the service record. By the way, back in Nov last year when the shift arrow began flashing, I did not have the PNP switch changed...just reset. It could be they did the "shifter cycling" thing and just said they reset the light. Thanks again.
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posted by
someone claiming to be dave
on
Fri Mar 26 22:32 CST 2004 [ RELATED]
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The AT has its own ECU. What error code(s) are stored? It's nothing but superstition to replace ATF if a light is blinking because of a dirty switch contact. When the shifter cable is adjusted properly, and the shifter detents are well-aligned with the switch detents, the switches tend to be self-cleaning and long-lived.
As tonyg stated, AT failures are rare. Thus the advice to switch to synthetic is overkill. The advice to flush yearly (20K-30K mi) is overkill. The advice to do both is off the charts... Do not expect any mileage increase beyond a tiny fraction in cold weather: it will flow easier right after startup so the tiny pumping burden will be less, but unlike engine oil, increased slipperiness is not present nor desirable in synthetic ATF, which must be 'grabby'.
- Dave; '95 854T, 147K mi
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posted by
someone claiming to be Jack
on
Mon Mar 29 05:26 CST 2004 [ RELATED]
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30 minutes time, $20 for Dino flush, $60 for Synthetic and MANY tranny experts (not just shops looking for business) who recommend flushes every 20-30K miles vs $4-5K for a rebuild--I'd rather be a tad 'over the top'!
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VOLVO recomend cahnging the transmission fluid every 37k IF the car is either used for towing, used as a taxi or driven hard (thats from teh OFFICIAL volvo service system)...
I have personnaly done a change on a car with 60k miles on the fluid and im telling you it was nasty (and i really do mean nasty!) - so much so I would actually say it is worth the £70 every year/30k miles to do the change... (note over £200 for fluid from the dealer!!!!!)
Certainly for anyone with issues changing hte fluid HAS to the first step...
I used dino, but ONLY because i couldnt actually GET sythetic...
as to AT transmission failure being rare I asked my local independant specialist (who also mail order parts and is a specialist volvo breakers) and he said he has people ringing up all the time after auto boxes..not a seintific study but very interesting, anyway who would leave engine oil in for over 30k or a year and that tranny oil runs at least as hot...
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I've learned more about this car this week reading posts here than in the nearly 10 years we've owned it. Wish I'd looked for info sooner. Here's the latest. Yesterday, since it was due oil and filter change anyway, I took it to the local shop near work. Here are the service comments: "Code 1-2-2 Solenoid S1 Open Circuit; Code 2-1-1 TMC Fault 'Transmission Control Module'; Checked grounds & supply voltage, OK. Solenoid doesn't respond as should. Cleared codes." They recommended against changing any parts at this time; instead, I should drive it and see what happens. Everything worked fine on the commute home last night. So, how does one reset the codes at home...in case (when) this happens again? By the way, what is the significance of "brick" in brickboard? Again, thanks for all the suggestions/comments in this thread. I ope it helps others as much as it has eased some of my concerns.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Jack
on
Fri Mar 26 05:42 CST 2004 [ RELATED]
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Volvo says it is not necessary to flush the tranny, but there are MANY who disagree. Go to http://au.geocities.com/ozbrick850 for some enlightening discussion on the subject. You can do a flush yourself, very, very simple. IPD even has a kit with instructions, if you wish. Considering the cost of a new tranny, cheap insurance. I do mine every 20-30K and just did it with Mobil 1 Synthetic. Shifts smoother and actually seeing a mileage increase which is very telling...
96 850T 80K miles
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You can reset the code to clear it entirely. I've had the limp mode twice on my car in 2 years. The last time I had it was last summer on a hot day. Someone else drove my car and when I got back in it was on. I cleared it and it hasnt returned in like 8 months. Also try the rachet cleaning. I also did that last summer which may have helped. Usually it happens when its cold out so it was strange for it to happen in July.
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You'll be happy to hear that transmission failures on 850's are very rare, with the exception of '93 models that were known to have a few failures. Confirm from your repair shop that the PNP switch was indeed replaced. 99% of the time it is simply the switch that causes all the problems you are describing. BTW, the car behaving as though it is in high gear is the "limp home" mode where the transmission remains in 3rd gear. That will explain why you couldn't seem to drive up your driveway.
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I'd agree. the flashing up arrow and the flashing sport / economy lights are classic PNP failure, and teh default is that it runs in teh Winter mode (3rd and 4th when in Drive). In interim, you could try manually shifting to lower gears, since witer mode allows second gear starts also (from 1st gear setting, I belioeve). Go to volvoSpeed's Bay 13 and read the great write-up on the PNP and teh derails of how to replace it (it is pretty burried). In my case, the flashing lights and winter mode default were cured by Bay 13's advice of running the shifter up and down 20 or so times to clean contacts. Actually, i have done the 20 times several more times, just to be really thorough ;-). There are lots of cases where you actually must replace the PNP, as it seems to be a common failure point. It is so common that I would be highly suspicious of other advice you get from the dealer who advised skipping it and doing the big bucks repair.
--
Mike Sullivan ('91 745 (171k), '93 965 (147k), '95 855T (60k), '98 V70XC (78k). Past Volvo's: '85 744 (256k), '86 245 (165k), '86 245 (195k), '88 745 (208k).
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There;s a few things I would do first:
1. With the engine off, move the shift lever end to end about twenty times. This will help clean the contacts in the PNP.
2. Have you done a flush on the tranny fluid (this is just a mileage thing, prob not the issue.)?
3. I doubt seriously if the tranny is bad. Have you had it flushed at all during that 136K?
I have had that arrow flash, have cleaned the contacts, and I flush once a year with dino fluid. It costs about $30. No flashing since I did the cleaning.
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