My transmission had been doing a few odd but inconsequential things since I bought the car few months ago. I got stuck on a dirt road over the weekend and after trying to drive it out by shifting between reverse and drive for about an hour we finally went and borrowed a tractor from a friend and pulled it out no problem.

Now the transmission is really acting up, starting from a dead stop the damn thing slips, like so:

1) Engine immediatley revs up to about 2500, then RPMs stay constant as the car slowly accelerates. At the same time I can hear sort of a buzzing sound until the transmission fully engages.

2)If I am barely stepping on the gas it'll shift thru all the gears, but 3rd is real short. If I step on it a bit more it'll go up to 5-6K on 2nd and then shift straight in to 4th.

Fluid looks of the right color but definately has a smell to it, fluid levels are fine. Called Volvo dealership, service manager said it sounds like busted valves or leaking seals, $2,800 for remanufactured transmission (no way I'm paying that). I told him I want it flushed and the strainer cleaned or replaced before I spend the big bucks, taking it in tomorrow.

Reading thru the archives I found a couple of similar problems which turned out to be clogged strainers/valves/nasty fluid, but am looking from some input from you guys.

Regards.