I am fairly new to the volvo world, only a few months actually. I have an auto 97 volvo 960, with 101k miles that I recently purchased. I've been reading a lot about pnp switch problems, as I am concerned that I have them. My W S E lights will often flash back and forth, and I usually end up stuck driving around in winter mode. I'm not certain that it has an effect but I believe that if I am parked and move the shifter back and forth rapidly(read that this will help clean the connections in the pnp) seems to keep it actually in E. So sometimes when I start the car, the shift selection is working fine. Other times the up arrow is blinking on my dash and the selection light is switching between the three modes.

However the faq states that to test for a pnp problem, you should turn off the car, turn the key to the second position, and if you can't shift into park your pnp is bad. I CAN shift into park. Is it still probably my pnp?

Also I am looking for some general maintenence advice. I need to do an oil change soon, I've been told to get Volvo or Mann filters - where can I get these? Also, what type of oil should I use? I've always used regular dino oil in the past in my older cars, this is the first one that may call for a synthetic, but I'm also not looking to get too pricey.

What kind of brake fluid does the car take? What is a general non $100 repair manual that will provide decent orientation of the car?

That's it for now, I'm heading out to a parts store later to get a new headlight and washer fluid(why isnt the washer fluid resevoir labled washer fluid? it seems to be the one with the )( looking picture on the drivers side front. As I assume there arent fancy volvo specific items for these two.

Thanks for any help, and be gentle with the noob.