Long time
Jul 31I believe this is the longest I’ve gone without a post. Well the news is that I’d been in Louisiana, specifically Baton Rouge and Kenner for the past week. It was a poorly planned and funded trip not without complications. Mainly the plan was to bring my younger sisters to visit with family there, and go swimming and enjoy their summer.
To make a long story short, Otto was shifting weird once we got into Kenner (right outside of New Orleans). Well the next day, I head back to Baton Rouge and I notice some fading when accelerating or going up hill, as though the transmission is slipping. I generally drive anywhere from 75-95 (governed top speed on the 240), so it’s no wonder that things will happen in a 17 year old car. I get into Baton Rouge and first stop, my car will no longer willingly move forward. I pull over, turn it off, back on, try again. I get about 4 miles down the road and it won’t go. The engine revving and trying but the transmission nothing. I wait a while, call a few people, and finally get picked up. My car is practically dead at Chevron – OH NO!
My dad, who was the first person I call, adds confidence to my suspicion that my idea that the transmission is overheating, possibly due to a plugged ATF filter. The symptom was a strange hum / whine at the transmission at idle, and when attempting to drive, the whine turned to a high groan and rumbled the whole car as it tried and failed to move from one gear to the next, didn’t make it past second.
From experience with a 2000 Camaro I had, I’d felt it just not a necessary thing to do if the transmission seemed to be working OK, because I tried to be good to that camaro and have the fluid and filter changed, and after that it shifted hard and ugly (it was automatic, I know lame, but also v6 so…) so that’s been my philosophy.
Brandie’s friend Christina picked me up from chevron and we went to brandie’s. We later decided to try to get my car back there too. We had to pull over 3 or 4 times turn my car off, and back on until a stop when it wouldn’t go. But we finally made it. Now the problem of what to do.
I had a strong suspicion by this time and hoped very much that it was as simple as a clogged filter. So they bring me to buy the AT fluid (and I learn that DEXRON II – which is probably what I was still running – is to be replaced with DEXRON III), drain pan, filter, and a few other things I will need. But I’m stuck without tools, knowing how to do the service myself and now having everything I need, no tools was very frustrating. We ask a few people who might be able to help, and see how far that goes – this was monday.
Two days later and still nothing, we decide to contact brandie’s uncle who has a nice Craftsman ratchet/socket set and a few other things I will need. It gets dark so I decide to wait until the next day.
I wake up eager to get started at 8 am, with tools and supplies in car port, I arrange my work area and put on a dirty pair of pants (the ones from the day before, so as to conserve my laundry) and the worst tshirt I’d packed. I get started on the work. The AW70 transmission in the 240 is very well made and easy to drain and access, but getting the first big nut off the inlet tube to the pan was very hard, and I was hoping it wasn’t cross threaded. Just an awkward angle and a very stiff tube turned out to be the problem. Allowed the fluid to drain for about 10 minutes, got all the bolts holding the pan off, and carefully lowered it to avoid spilling, and finally got the pan off. There was a layer of sludge (whatever the sludge material could have been is beyond me) sort of greyish-brown-green about a quarter inch thick at the bottom of the pan, I didn’t see any metal shavings what so ever which was a good sign. Had to make a trip to wal*mart in a friend’s car for some Simple Green and brake parts cleaner (worked great). Cleaning the pan was a bit difficult as I had to scrub and try to be environmentally conscious about where the run-off went.
I removed the filter, it was black and you could not see through the mesh at all, comparing it to the new one was amazing.
Installation was the reverse of removal, and everything went smoothly, new filter, gaskets and fluid, and the transmission now works much better than when I got the car in January, considering the 9,500 miles I’ve already put on it since then, this had to be something to fail soon – the engine is in tip-top shape and my differential is clean and has new fluid, transmission has been subject to neglect, obviously and this explains very well why the Overdrive solenoid was defunct when I got the car, I suspect the one I replaced it with is failing the same way because of the sludge. I’m only very glad I didn’t burn out or destroy the transmission running it so hot and starved for oil, I’m sure there were slight consequences, but as far as I can tell nothing major.
The rest of the trip was fairly enjoyable and I had alot of time to think and bond with my friends there – or at least re-bond.
On the way back, sunday, people were driving as though someone had laced the water with ‘STUPID’, and myself not having anti-lock brakes, led to a fender bender on I-10 in Sulphur (between lake charles and the Texas border). Thankfully no one was hurt and neither car was damaged – of course especially not mine, but it was the icing on the cake that was this trip. By the time I got into town I was steaming mad at the way people were driving and ready to get home.
All in all, this trip was at least a testament to the robustness of the Volvo when properly maintained, and even after a maintenance lapse failure. Including how strongly they are built in a 30-40 MPH impact to the front bumper. Only missing ABS brakes, and I think now I have warped rotors, but that’s minor for saying we were barely shaken up in the car.
About Otto
May 14
Otto is my 1990 Volvo 240 DL (Volvo 244).
Volvos are a lot like wine and good cheese, as they roll over more miles the odometer reading becomes more of a badge of honor than a death sentence – see Volvo High Mileage Club. To say the least, owning a well maintained Volvo of any year is more than a healthy obsession, it descibes a way of life.
Engine Water Torture w SeaFoam
May 14The engine cleaning treatment I performed is outlined below, this can be done to any fuel injected car when performed correctly so don’t be TERRIFIED when someone says “OH NO, water in your cylinders,” as long as you can either start the car or suck some of the water out (siphon from spark plug port) if it won’t start or you lose your nerve, it’s quite alright — I’ve driven my former Camaro in 3.5 feet of flood water and kept it running by punching the gas pedal when others (big trucks even) were turning around – hey, I had to get home.