01 v70-xc transmission won't move sometimes Topic is solved

lawrencium265 · Post by **lawrencium265** » 11 Apr 2026, 16:21

When first starting the car the transmission will go into reverse or drive and seem fine. However when I start driving it acts like it's slipping then eventually won't move. I can shut the car off and wait 30 seconds and it will move again. Fluid level is good. I originally thought this was a valve body issue so I swapped in a used one with the exact same symptoms happening.
one strange thing I noticed in vida when looking at data "TCM-In Rpm speed NC sensor" will read correct rpm in Park or Neutral and go to 0 when in drive or reverse, but only if the transmission is working. When the trans loses forward and reverse then it will read the engine rpm in all positions. I also noticed that "TCM-Engine Speed" remains at zero regardless if the car is moving the speedometer works as it should though. I swapped the speed sensors around, and checked the wiring to the TCM

codes:
TCM-002A gear 3 incorrect gear ratio
TCM-002F Lock-up function slipping or not engaged
TCM-012C Neutral stop (yes the car still has the old neutral stop software) This code didn't trigger until i was brake torquing in the driveway trying to figure out the symptoms.
I suspect that the transmission has some kind of internal problem, but I would think that it would be consistent, I'd like to be sure before I take it to the scrap yard. I read a few other posts about axles poppling out and causing similar symptoms, but they had grinding noises when the car was in park, mine goes into park just fine and no grinding noises.

Post by **cn90** » 11 Apr 2026, 20:02

How many miles on the car?

dikidera · Post by **dikidera** » 12 Apr 2026, 01:36

Could be faulty sensor sure, I guess. But it could also be a clogged filter. You must first swap in new sensor to be sure. If that doesnt fix the issue, when the car experiences this issue, with engine AT IDLE, remove the upper ATF fluid hose from the radiator and see if anything is coming out. If nothing, it is a clogged filter. Actually do this first, costs almost no time.

lawrencium265 · Post by **lawrencium265** » 14 Apr 2026, 16:28

dikidera wrote: 12 Apr 2026, 01:36 Could be faulty sensor sure, I guess. But it could also be a clogged filter. You must first swap in new sensor to be sure. If that doesnt fix the issue, when the car experiences this issue, with engine AT IDLE, remove the upper ATF fluid hose from the radiator and see if anything is coming out. If nothing, it is a clogged filter. Actually do this first, costs almost no time.

This was spot on. some fluid would come out until it went to a few drips and stopped, then I would hear a very faint whir from the transmission and it would continue this cycle.

I confirmed by blowing compressed air through the radiator outlet and driving, it shifted perfectly.

I found this thread viewtopic.php?t=82841&start=50
so I will try drilling the transmission and poking the filter out.

Post by **abscate** » 14 Apr 2026, 18:33

Mike did a great write up on that from down under.

Good luck!

dikidera · Post by **dikidera** » 15 Apr 2026, 13:58

lawrencium265 wrote: 14 Apr 2026, 16:28
dikidera wrote: 12 Apr 2026, 01:36 Could be faulty sensor sure, I guess. But it could also be a clogged filter. You must first swap in new sensor to be sure. If that doesnt fix the issue, when the car experiences this issue, with engine AT IDLE, remove the upper ATF fluid hose from the radiator and see if anything is coming out. If nothing, it is a clogged filter. Actually do this first, costs almost no time.
This was spot on. some fluid would come out until it went to a few drips and stopped, then I would hear a very faint whir from the transmission and it would continue this cycle.

I confirmed by blowing compressed air through the radiator outlet and driving, it shifted perfectly.

I found this thread viewtopic.php?t=82841&start=50
so I will try drilling the transmission and poking the filter out.

You've already discovered the secret sauce to bringing it back to life. No need to drill. Simply backflush. It will restore the transmission with no repercussions, whereas drilling requires precise measurements and drilling and is irreversible if something goes wrong.

I backflushed my transmission and cured a whining transmission pump. I also saw some of the debris that were clogging the filter.

Post by **vtl** » 20 Apr 2026, 10:15

Poking a hole in the filter is a bad idea. Valve body has like 4 small filters, they will clog next.

leapdragon · Post by **leapdragon** » 21 Apr 2026, 15:39

Wait dikidera, that's kind of genius, will it work? When you backflush, how do you set it up? And do you use the drain plug as an exit port? Seems like you would need some sort of pump to make it work, no? To pump fluid into the transmission from the top of the radiator?

I'd never thought of this before....