A fellow V70 owner told me her transmission went bad and she now is facing a $4500 dollar overhaul! This car is a 2001, has been dealer serviced since new and the failure occured at 60k miles. The worst part is that the o/h will only come with a 12-month warranty! When asking the service manager at the dealer why this has happened, he just said that since FORD took over quality has deminished!
AMCCO was the same amount with the same warranty.
I write this as my 2001 V70 fuel injected only has had no problems at all.
I flushed the trans myself at 60K and still shifts great.
Anyone else with 2001 trans problems?

Here are some other links concerning the fluid:
http://forums.swedespeed.com/zerothread?id=12355

http://forums.swedespeed.com/zerothread?id=12416

http://volvospeed.com/vs_forum/index.php?showtopic=5355&hl=

You can see that it is a hotly debated subject on these '01 units, but fluid at $30/qt is far cheaper than a $4000 transmission replacement - especially if you have voided the warranty by using Mobil 1

I just had the trans replaced in my '01 V70 T5 - with the Geartronic trans. According to Volvo, this '01 model has a "somewhat problematic" transmission and either you get one that lasts for a loooong time, or you get one that poops-out around 70k.

If you have the '01 Geartronic transmission, I would STRONGLY suggest that when flushing, you use the Volvo Synthetic fluid. No other syn fluid comes close to meeting the demands set by Volvo. It is obscenely expensive, but a transmission is more.

The specification for volvo synthetic fluid is Dextron III, Mercron. This comes from my local dealer's service personnel. If it meets the specification, no need to spend an obscene price for volvo's fluid. I flushed the trans at 55k, I now have 73k on it and everything is just fine.

Also, how does volvo define "somewhat problematic"
-Some slipping
-Some harsh shifting
-Self-distruct mode at greater than 60K?

If you have the Geartronic transmission, using anything other than the Volvo transmission fluid will harm the transmission. It is a very special blend, and the only thing that can be used in these units. If your dealer is telling you otherwise, you need to go to another dealer that knows what the hell they are doing. Mobil 1 doesn't even make a fluid for this particular transmission
http://www.mobil.com/USA-English/Lubes/PDS/NAUSENPVLMOMobil_ATF_3309.asp

On the '01' Geartronics, if you notice, Volvo has decided that the ATF is a 'non-consumer serviceable' item and they have all but hidden the ATF dipstick. Also, they state that the fluid change interval for these transmissions is between 75k and 100k. (Perhaps the reason they fail?)

Regardless - don't fall for it. Call another dealer and get another opinion on this issue.

Pardon me asking, but how much did you pay for the flush ? Is it a so-called "powerflush" for $500 (like I'm being quoted by all 3 local dealers) ?

Another question would be - how did you know it's time to flush ? I'm currently at 44K (V70'01 T5) and kinda looking for signs ;-)

poor maintenance is what killed that tranny.

Take care of your car and flush tranny every 30K miles and that tranny will last 250K miles easy.
--
'88 240, '92 745, '98 v70 John, Tampa Bay

Good advice, but the car in question was serviced at a Volvo Dealer since NEW!
So, poor maintenance was not a contributing factor!

Your friend should get other opinions. A rebuilt tranny should be half that price. Ford didn't run Volvo in 2001. And what happened to her probably won't happen to you, unless you let her drive your car :)

Klaus
--
98 V70Rawd(101Kmi), 95 854T(85K mi), 75 164E(173K mi)

If I remember correctly Volvo uses Asian Warner(Not sure on SP) tranny's which are Japanese and are VERY good. This is not a Ford issue.