2001 S80 - Anyone tried DIY replacement of transmission?

[Crito]

To Crito:
What did you google to find the bit about mark being at incorrect place on dipstick?
What was the website where you found this?
Thks.

I just remember it was a Volvo message board and that the guy was a Volvo mechanic who had seen one rebuilt or had rebuilt one himself. I also seem to recall he owned one which he was "overfilling" and that had high miles and no problems.

[Crito]

This is the correct procedure. Do it on a level surface.

Yes, and Yes!!!!

So all tranny manufacturers use the exact same procedure? Doesn't matter if it's an all-wheel drive Japanese tranny or a front-wheel drive American?

I'll use GM's procedure. Thanks for the advice though.

[Crito]

The cold mark trick comes from Larry P at vvspy.com actually. I've made my own cold fill/check mark that's slightly higher, based on the procedure I use to do a warm fill/check. But here's Larry P's exact quote for everyone's reference:

"Topping-off tip. I put a scratch on my dipstick exactly 4 inches from the bottom. This is where my fluid sits with the engine cold, off, and level. It is a very good approximation of where you should fill to. The owner's manual has the official level check procedure."

EDIT: Since I've never done it before and curiosity was killing me, I just went downstairs and measured the mark I made. It's exactly 4.25 inches from bottom of dipstick. That's four and one quarter inches.

[MadeInJapan]

My thinking is that the fluid, when measured hot and at the appropriate mark no the hot side of the stick, will show up at approximately the 4 inch mark after the engine is turned off and the fluid becomes cold- now, that would make sense.

[vegasjetskier]

My thinking is that the fluid, when measured hot and at the appropriate mark no the hot side of the stick, will show up at approximately the 4 inch mark after the engine is turned off and the fluid becomes cold- now, that would make sense.

+1. And if you think about it, it makes sense to do the measurement with the fluid hot and the engine running, since that will be the operating condition of the transmission and when the fluid will need to be at the correct level.