'02 v70 ATF (To change or not to change)

[Mr. Detail]

Just asked my master mechanic who used to work at a Volvo dealership about using the drain & fill method for changing out my ATF. He said that if you haven't changed it in awhile, (and that is my case - 7 years) do not change it at all. He says that it could result in a re-built tranny.
Am I taking a real chance in making the transmission worse?

[Krons]

Strong opinions on both sides for drain and fill vs flush. General consensus is drain/fill if fluid is dark brown, flush if a tinge of red, and if burnt smell—leave alone. Logic being if dark/burnt new too slippery fluid could cause clutches in trans to slip.

That said I’ve done a cooler return flush on an 02 S60 and 05 S40, both at 150k. The S40 shifted a little funky at first but settled into smooth shifting. Both took about 3 gallons of Valvoline Maxlife ATF before the fluid came through clean. With Maxlife price going up Mobil 3309 isn’t much more expensive, should plan on adding Lubeguard HFM if not using Volvo fluid. Other threads on this.

[Mr. Detail]

My P2 has 200k on her and I have owned the car since 2017. I have never changed out the ATF.

[AVOIT17]

This video explains the issues you are dealing with very well:



My advice: DO NOT use "Multi-Vehicle ATF" - Instead use the fluid that is SPECIFIC to the transmission. All my Volvos have an AISIN Transmission - and I use AISIN ATF specific to their transmission and to their Year/Model. A plus with AISIN ATF is their pricing, as they are reasonably priced.

[Mr. Detail]

Excellent video and pictures AVOIT17. Thank you. I too have the Aisin transmission and I have already bought two cases of the 3309 fluid which is what I believe to be the correct one for my car.

[Krons]

My P2 has 200k on her and I have owned the car since 2017. I have never changed out the ATF.

I’d stick with a drain and fill with 3309.

On my newer (non-Volvo) vehicles the transmission gets a drain / fill and final drives a change at 50k miles. Hoping that’ll prevent problems on them. The additive package in ATF does ‘wear out’ over time.

My 05 XC90 2.5T has 200k and I’ve never changed fluid in the year and a half I’ve owned it, need to drain and fill it too.

[Krons]

This video explains the issues you are dealing with very well:



My advice: DO NOT use "Multi-Vehicle ATF" - Instead use the fluid that is SPECIFIC to the transmission. All my Volvos have an AISIN Transmission - and I use AISIN ATF specific to their transmission and to their Year/Model. A plus with AISIN ATF is their pricing, as they are reasonably priced.

Some other threads here on the forum would say Aisin even benefits from Lubegurad HFM to help with shift quality as there are some viscosity differences with Volvo fluid and other 3309 fluids.

[AVOIT17]

I presently own 2 Volvos - both with the exact SAME transmission - TF-80SC - Interestingly the 2009 model use the JWS3309 ATF - while the 2011 model uses the JWS3324 ATF.
What I learned is that the TF-80SC transmission can function with either fluid BUT these 2 fluid types should NOT be mixed together. For this reason one needs to stick with the original fluid type. Although one could change fluid type - HOWEVER one would have to go through the difficult task of completely emptying the transmission of its original fluid type to do so.

Mr. Detail I appreciate your "Thank You" - kind of you .

[Oro]

Some other threads here on the forum would say Aidin even benefits from Lubegurad HFM to help with shift quality as there are some viscosity differences with Volvo fluid and other 3309 fluids.

I am a fan of the Lubeguard fluids, but it’s not really to alter the performance of the 3309.

1) “Volvo” fluid for this vehicle is re-branded Mobil 3309. Full stop. There’s no difference. Volvo is not a petrochemical company. They don’t make their own fluid, nor do they alter what the transmission manufacturer (Aisin) recommends. Aisin recommends T-IV, which is again rebranded Mobil 3309.

2) The Lubegard does indeed have added anti-wear and friction modifier additives to boost the fluid. But the main benefit, IMO, is the ester oil base. Unlike most all other oils, it is highly polar and creates a superb cleaning agent which is also a lubricant and not a harsh solvent. This is fantastic for the valve bodies, a major weak point in these transmissions. It also conditions seals non-destructively, which is helpful for solenoid function and thus line pressure - enhancing shift quality and restoring it closer to design specs.

The argument to not changing transmission oil after a long while is akin to not changing engine oil after neglecting it for 20 or 30k miles. Would you do that? No. Or the argument would be, “The engine oil has 20k miles on it. Let’s just change 2 qts at at a time over a year so we don’t “shock” the engine…”. No. Go run 10 qts or so of 3309 through it, emptying via the cooler line so the dirty oil returning does not mix. It will still mix in the torque converter, but we can’t do anything about that w/the transmission still installed. In the last fill, toss in 9ozs of Lubegard and you are good. Now do the PS the same way and add that last ounce of the Lubegard bottle. Now do a simpler drain/fill every 30k on the at and PS, and repeat forever. I have 334k miles on an aisin transmission treated this way and it runs perfectly.

[yanga001]

I wonder if there is some confirmation bias when changing fluids that have never been changed. Damage will occur if its already black, and changing the fluid is usually done as a remedy. If its too far gone then a change may have less frictional material left in it which potentially could cause slipping. My money is still on changing it all out with good oem fluid and letting it roll.

My partners Acura rdx had multi vehicle fluid, and lost almost all power when going onto highways. I changed it out for the OEM fluid (acura/honda specific) and it regained all of its pull with no indications of slipping or jerking.

My original V70 wagon would bang into second from first gear cause the fluid was neglected for most of its life.

My second one had a much lighter shift from first to second since it had fluid changed. The second one was at 400k km and was still going.

Current car has had its fluid fully flushed with 3309 and it shifts very well.

Point to make is i would much rather have clean fluid and know something is too far gone, as opposed to driving on hopes and dreams with very damaged fluid that will continue to do damage.