This is an update to the hard shifting problem that I first reported about a month ago. (Manual tranny couldn't be shifted with the engine above a certain RPM.)

First, the techs at the dealer to which I took my car were dead wrong. They told me that there was some kind of internal transmission problem that somehow effected shifting into 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th gears. They told me they'd call Volvo for help, and to drive the car in the mean time. I asked if I could do additional damage to the transmission by driving it in this state, techs said "not at all." Good thing I didn't buy that.

I took the car to Aamco the next day and finally got some help. They test drove it and called me later that day saying that it felt like a clutch issue. "The engagement just didn't feel right" according to the guy who drove it. I was told that it may be a transmission problem, but it was probably something wrong with the pressure plate. A week later their suspicion has been confirmed. They inspected the pressure plate and figured out that some of the springs had failed, presumably causing a crooked disengagement and clutch drag. I was told that "the hole in the middle of the pressure plate looks like an egg rather than a circle." A new pressure plate, disc, and bearings are on their way and I should have the car back tomorrow or thursday.

Tim


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Tim Smith 98 S70, 74k mi.