Question for all you out there knowledgable about the AW tranny. Not my vehicle but co-worker. I'm in need of more info and possibilities.

Outside temp, 15 degrees, morning start out, refuses to shift completely into higher gear?? Revs 4000 and speed only 20mph.

Stopped to call in late for work after about a mile and left to idle for five minutes while calling. She was going to take it home and get another vehicle but tranny shifted normal and allowed speed.

Ideas as to cause?? Would the infamous check ball deterioration syndrome possible be applicable? She was loosing tranny fluid from a leak but cured that by repairing the line. A delayed air bubble in the fluid? She's driven it more than 100 miles since repair and fluid refill. Sticky govenor??

AW tranny book is at home so unable to access today.

Any thoughts??

Duane

Duane --

Is the k/d cable frozen?

This happened to daughter's '86 245 when the plastic sheath around the cable cracked and water leaked into the cable -- it would freeze in idle position so she couldn't stomp on the gas. When she finally stomped it, the k/d cable stayed "frozen" (literally) fully out for 3-4 minutes 'til the internal ice melted. Then it would shift fine.

New cable solved it.
--
Don Foster (near Cape Cod, MA)

Added info: after approx 20 miles, reved to redline and dropped speed. Is having it towed to prevent further damage if any.

Duane

Has anybody checked the fluid since the problems started??? Is it up to proper level? Foaming or burnt?

Quote: "Refuses to shift completely into higher gear??"
I'm sorry, I'm not quite sure what you mean. Is the car stuck in first gear? -or is it in 3rd and only going 20 mph? Did it try to upshift from first and get stuck between 1st and 2nd (engine revs and no noticable torque is produced). Can the vehicle be driven with improved performance if the gear selector is put in position 1 or 2?

At this point, my best guess would be either a fluid issue or a stuck kickdown cable as Don Foster mentioned. If both of these are ok, then there's a series of troubleshooting procedures that can be worked thorugh (listed in my service manuals).

God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.
--
'87 Blue 245, NA 230K

P.S. If the vehicle in question is a 740 that has a regular B230F (non-turbo, non-16 valve), then it probably has the AW-70L transmission. While the lockup should not be a problem, it would be good to know that it's there when trying to observe gear changes, etc.

Fluid is new, ie replaced as part of fluid leak repair, and is still full without foaming or burnt.

Car did not want to shift out of first even if put in second when started this AM. After 5 minutes of idling it did shift normally UNTIL about 20 minutes and 20 miles later tachometer pegged and speed began dropping.

Tow truck called, when arrived could drive auto normally since did so to facilitate pick up by tow.

When dropped off at service, drove normally to park.

That is it to date. Service person (Volvo independent service) indicates new tranny needed without clarification as to internal problem that would facilitate replacing whole tranny. Service will provide more info on Thursday.

Thanks
Duane

Thanks for the update and the diagnostic info. As Don mentioned, I would suspect the kickdown cable.

As per the info you've provided, you've eliminated about 50% of the troubleshooting tree on page 28 of Volvo Service Manual TP30868/2 (it's for a 240, but the trannys for both cars are either AW70 or AW70L).

Following the remaining steps, verify that your throttle cable is properly set (and correct if it isn't). Next, check the gear selector setting for proper positioning. If that passes, check your line pressure and the stall speed (probably 2,200 rpms, but the exact value isn't listed in my book since you have a different vehicle).

If either the line pressure or stall speed test fails, then remove the tranny pan and check for paritcles. If particles, then dismantle the tranny and valvebody until you find the problem. If no particles but you did fail either your stall speed test or line pressure test, then the problem is with the Valve Body. Check all the following within the Valve Body: Primary Regulator valve, throttle valve (is the washer in place?), shift valves 1-2 and 2-3, and finally the cutback valve. If all these turn out to be good, then you may have serious issues with the clutches and brakes, a seized oil pump and center support, or damaged o-rings on the pistons.

If you did pass your stall speed test and the line pressure test (as mentioned above), then check the regulator pressure (page 42). If the pressure varries with speed, then follow the operations in the above paragraph that starts with removing the tranny pan. If the regulator pressure does not vary with speed, then the problem is in the governor: Remove the extension housing and check the governor function on the output shaft. Check the plugs in the governor and make sure that they're intact in proper position. Check the cover plate and gasket for oil passages in gear case, check the governor balance cir-clip, check if the governor has a scored output shaft, and finally check the output shaft oil seal. If the fault remains after this, check the pan for particles and proceed from there (as per instructions above).

I hope this helps and either you or the shop is able to locate the problem. If they're insisting on replacing the tranny without testing, then you may want to seriously consider going someplace else. Swapping Valve Bodies is a heck of a lot easier (and cheaper) than swapping a transmission. If they're not looking through a set of Volvo Green manuals, or following a step-by-step procedure in Vadis, I would advise going elsewhere.

God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.
--
'87 Blue 245, NA 230K