Recently bought an NA '93 940 from used car dealer, knowing that it wouldn't go into PARK. Parking involves shifting to N and appplying the Ebrake. Is this characteristic of the defective shift microswitch or solenoid which I have read about, or some other issue?

Tried pushing the shift override button behind the shifter without any result. I understand that this will allow the shifter to move if it is stuck in P, but evidently won't work if locked out of P. True?

Second issue is that while driving it home some 75 highway miles, the tranny didn't want to shift into fourth gear. By vigorously pushing on the shiftlock override (thumb buster) at about 3000rpm it would shift to fourth, then run 65mph @2500rpm. If slowed to 50mph, it would downshift again, requiring another hard thumb press. Don't know if this is proper use of the devilish override button, but made it home.

This two-owner car looks sharp both in and out and the odometer only shows 106K, although there are no maintenance records.

After tinkering with plugs and wires it starts and idles well, so I want to keep the car.

This is my fifth Volvo so I know a little about them, but my first 940 w/tranny issues.

Any suggestions or insights?

Thanks for your help

Ed

Just got a call from the wife in the 940 ...having to leave the key in the igition ...cannot move to park.

Thanks for this thread. Tomoorow will be a day to keep the old 940 going some more.

420K and counting!

Just for info ..I read elsewhere of a penny getting down in the mechanism and causing this. When removed, all was back to normal!


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"Do you think that's air you're breathing now'? (The Matrix 1999) '94 940T (400K+), 92 245 (250K+K)

Thanks for your reply!

The ignition key goes in and out without any difficulty and seems to be uneffected by the shifter problem. BTW the shifter moves smoothly thru the other positions w/o any binding.

The button I pushed to achieve (I think) fourth gear is labelled "shiftlock override", a narrow button located on the rear bottom of the stick shift, atop the shift console.

Pushing it seemed to allow shift to fourth gear-although maybe it was mere coincidence that the tranny appeared to shift only at 50+mph when I was franticaly pressing the button.

Other than a defective OD relay is there any other reason this might shift to 4th so erraticly?

The gear selector should always be able to go into Park without any other aid. Something is blocking it, possibly something down in the bottom of the gear selector housing at the back (less likely, but worth checking with a flashlight through the nylon fibres) or in the forward upper part of the gear selector housing like a broken microswitch. There should be something in the 700-900 FAQ on dealing with that microswitch problem. It was a plague for 960 owners.

The gear selector will only come out of Park if the key is in the ignition in the KPII position (ignition on) AND either your foot is on the brake pedal OR you depress the shift override button at the rear of the shifter. In either case, it operates a solenoid to let the selector go out of Park. If that solenoid was somehow jammed in the out position then that could be the source of your shift lever problems. And, as was pointed out, you should not be able to remove the ignition key unless the shifter is in Park (and the steering wheel isn't hard over to one side binding the locking mechanism).

When using the overdrive button on the back side of the gear selector, the arrow in the instrument panel should immediately light (or go out). If not then either the overdrive relay is faulty (or loose) or the overdrive switch wiring that comes out the bottom of the shift lever is broken or the overdrive button is dirty. On 240's the overdrive relay was often the culprit for this particular type of problem. I haven't heard of this sort of thing being an issue on the 900's, but anything is possible. Technically this feature is called overdrive lockout which prevents an upshift into 4th or forces a downshift from 4th to 3rd. If the arrow doesn't operate in synch with the button then you need not look further than those problem areas. BTW I don't know why they moved the overdrive button to the back of the shifter. I liked it just fine where it was. I even didn't mind it when it was a stalk on the steering column on the Amazons. Probably some design effort at a universal shift lever for left and right hand drive markets, like they didn't have the technology to keep using the 700 levers, but I digress.

When you are at full cruising speed (like above 30 mph), the transmission should change relatively quickly out of 4th down to 3rd (or back up from 3rd to 4th) in synch with the arrow on the instrument panel. If not then either the overdrive relay is faulty or the overdrive solenoid on the transmission is faulty (sticky). In your case it could be either as you are eventually able to get overdrive lockout to work after repeated use of the overdrive button. Perhaps the easiest thing to do is try tapping (as in beating) on the relay while the arrow is showing and the trans won't drop down from 4th (or vice versa, the arrow is not showing and the trans won't upshift out of 3rd). If tapping (beating) on the relay helps then you know that's where the problem is, otherwise it may well be at the transmission solenoid (wiring or a sticky solenoid). Check the 700-900 FAQ here for more info on solenoid problems. If the trans oil looks a deep burnt brown (as in it hasn't had a recent flush) then a thorough fluid flush can sometimes help with a sticky solenoid -again, see the FAQ.

BTW, your 1993 940 car should have an AW71 transmission, at least the North American market 940's. The 1994-1995 940's got the AW70L transmission with the lock-up torque converter (almost like a 5th gear). Be happy nonetheless, the Aisin Warner transmissions are pretty bullet proof.
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Dave -940's, prev 740/240/140/120 You'd think I'd have learned by now

Dave said, "When using the overdrive button on the back side of the gear selector, the arrow in the instrument panel should immediately light (or go out). If not then either the overdrive relay is faulty (or loose) or the overdrive switch wiring that comes out the bottom of the shift lever is broken or the overdrive button is dirty."

To the 2nd sentence I would add "Fuse 12", which powers the OD relay and solenoid, but not the Arrow light. That means a blown fuse 12 will keep the light on and the tranny in 3rd. This is because the light has a permanent +12V at the cluster, but grounds thru the OD relay in the "off (or inoperative) state".

Fuse 12 can blow if the OD solenoid wire gets chafed and shorts to ground as it exits the tunnel area and/or as it runs back under the car to the solenoid. If it doesn't blow, the OD relay can act as a "fusible link".
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Bruce Young
'93 940-NA (current), 240s (one V8), 140s, 122s, since '63.

Thanks, Bruce. I should have quit while I was ahead describing functionality. I need to start packing my wiring diagram green manuals with me so I can think a little harder before I write. But you know that's never really stopped me before. ;)
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Dave -940's, prev 740/240/140/120 You'd think I'd have learned by now

You might want to take a look in the shifter mechanism and see if there is something that is binding it up and preventing it from going into park. I had one come in a few months back that someone had dropped a joint into, it did make for an interesting conversation when the lady picked up her car. She called the hubby right there from my shop and gave him an earful.

My question to you though, is how do you get the key out? That was my customer's main concern, she could not get it into park and because of that the key lock will not disengage and let her get the key back out of the ignition.

Your description of the trans overdrive problem is kind of tough to follow. I have to assume that the button that you are pushing is the overdrive button that is on the gear selector knob itself and not the shiftlock over ride button right? I cannot see any way that the override button would have any effect on the overdrive.

Mark

Key goes in and out effortlessly, even though the shifter is in Neutral. Gonna check to see if the steering column locks up when thekey is removed, as with my '94. Don't believe that it does, presumably asociated with the "locked out of Park" shifter issue.