2001 V70XC Hard transmission shifts when warm

Moondog07 · Post by **Moondog07** » 01 Aug 2014, 14:15

Have owned since '03 with minimum problems until reaching 80,000 miles. When engine/tranny are cool shifting is smooth as glass. After 20-25 minutes of city driving hard up and downshifts commence. Had transmission flushed and new fluid installed. Dealer scoped and said "hard shifts" evident. Presently 92,500 miles. Sounds to me like the variable is transmission fluid temperature. Could this be alleviated by installing an auxiliary transmission oil cooler. Other option is transmission replacement by dealer for app. $6400 or by Certified Transmission for $4200 with 3 yr/50,000 warranty. Advice appreciated.

Ozark Hillbilly · Post by **Ozark Hillbilly** » 01 Aug 2014, 14:41

Purchasing and installing a cooler isn't going to be wasted money whether you keep the existing transmission or change it.

I'd get a cooler and drive this one into the ground before replacing it.

Post by **precopster** » 01 Aug 2014, 16:05

The actual problem is transmission temperature and how it affects the clearances in the SLS, SLU & SLT solenoids.

By all means try the cooler which will prolong the onset of hard shifts but in the end if it continues the result is premature damage to the transmission. Also an adaptation and fluid counter reset using Vida will make a difference if the solenoids are NOT the issue.

Being with low miles makes your car an ideal candidate for solenoid replacement if the above measures don't work.

Jeff_Kepeli · Post by **Jeff_Kepeli** » 01 Aug 2014, 20:58

Aloha from Hawaii. Please be patient with me as this is one of my first postings on this site.

I own an automotive repair shop in Hawaii and spend a fair amount of time working with Volvo I have found lot of very useful information on this site and will try to share some of the solutions I have come up in repairs.

I have a 2001 V-70 with the same issue of hard shifting when hot. There is a TSB out from Volvo reference number 43-46 dated 08/05/2004. Service bulletin addresses harsh shifting / delayed shifts from various gears. One issue is software related and the other issue is within the valve body itself.

I have spent some time researching this and found most of the problem falls in the linear shift solenoids I have recently bought these solenoids and plan on installing them over this weekend. I will let you know my results later in the upcoming week.

Ozark Hillbilly is right on about the transmission cooler. It is good money that will not be wasted. Thank you all for your time and have a good weekend

Moondog07 · Post by **Moondog07** » 02 Aug 2014, 06:30

Thanks for all the prompt responses. Dealer advises that my V70 transmission has the latest software so the solenoid fix and or auxiliary oil cooler seem to offer the greatest promise. Looking forward to Jeff's
comments on degree of difficulty with solenoid replacement and its impact.

Post by **precopster** » 02 Aug 2014, 07:48

There are literally dozens of posts here on MVS about this very topic: solenoid refurbishment by means of fitting a Transgo valve body kit or solenoid replacement.

I've performed the Transgo kit on a S60 2002 AWD and 2 others. The S60 was the best performer as it had low miles (78K miles) and I couldn't get it to hard shift even with hard low speed driving in hot weather.

The subframe drop is around 2 hours work and around 5-6 hours spent on the valve body. All up around 8 hours. Difficulty would be a 9.5

Post by **oragex** » 02 Aug 2014, 14:05

As others, the way most people were successful, as compared with those who opted for a full transmission replacement, is to replace the three main solenoids (look up on Ebay, about $200 in parts, same parts as for Nissan Maxima), the B4 servo cover, replace with proper transmission fluid, and put transmission in 'new fluid' setting. You should be fine for about $600 parts included. I would suggest replacing only the solenoids, not the gaskets on the valve body. For the solenoids only, once the valve body is out of the car, it should take about 1-2h.

The 'warm' shifting seems to be caused more by solenoids than by fluid temperature. The solenoids move harder because the fluid has never been changed, and they get more stuck as they warm up because of metal dilation.

Post by **vtl** » 05 Aug 2014, 04:25

Oil cooler makes things better, but not fully cures the problem. The problem is solenoids full of worn clutch material and worn valve body.

I tried to replace solenoids in wife's 2002 V70 (usual hot ATF symptoms), decided to stick with Rostra solenoids. Didn't work, I could not get it shifting right even with calibration screws available for adjusting through holes drilled in VB cover. You need a refurbished valve body as well, Sonnax sells good kits for that.

Not to mention it is a real PITA to open a valve body cover. After 3 days in garage and 2 attempts (new solenoids, then switch back to old ones) I drove to a transmission shop and had a refurbished VB installed. Do yourself a favor: install a professionally refurbished valve body - shifts beautifully now. Or pay somebody $500 to do this miserable work.

Also install Magnefine inline filter and have it replaced along with ATF every 20-30k miles.

Jeff_Kepeli · Post by **Jeff_Kepeli** » 07 Aug 2014, 16:01

Aloha everyone
Sorry about the longer time to reply. Had to clean up shop for possible hurricane hit over the upcoming weekend. The solenoids made a total change in the way my transmission is working for the better. Shifting is much improved. The only thing I have waited too long to do the job and not getting full benefit from repair.
I did not have to pull sub-frame to access transmission pan. I removed radiator, lower coolant hose , charge air tube from inter cooler to ETM and air intake box to gain access to the pan.
I recommend getting new snap in fittings to trans cooler into the radiator. They are very cheap and can save headaches when disconnecting transmission hoses from radiator.
The time to do the job was about 4.0 hours start to finish. I do have fair background on Volvo repair in my shop and know all the little connectors are hiding..
It is worth while to do this job and I think you will be happy with the results. I wish you the best of luck.
Jeff

Post by **precopster** » 07 Aug 2014, 20:43

You don't have to pull the subframe, but you can drop one corner, loosen the other 3 corners, hold the assembly with a crossbeam and put in a 55mm spacer to make life easier.

It DOES seem to respond better on low mileage cars before damage is already done. These transmissions are super delicate when the shift timing goes haywire due to sluggish solenoids.