Possible addition to the transmission sticky?

[winsotaxc]

We have a great sticky on the transmission and wonderful instructions on how to flush it to keep it running a long time. I think we need to add one thing that should be normal maintenance for those of us with older XCs or those who simply want to run them for a long time. I think we need to add a UOA that includes glycol or a glycol test as part of the standard practice. What do you think? I bet we could even find a source for a glycol kit and that is something that we could easily do ourselves. (I paid a crazy amount to have it done for me this time.)

Here is why I come to that conclusion:

Finally got my 03 in to a very highly respected indie shop in St Paul (Mike Glasgow). My transmission is working fine. The fluid doesn't look great but I've seen a lot worse. No harsh shifts etc. It is just that at 120k I was obviously planning on doing a full flush. Mike also felt that everything behaved correctly on his admittedly brief test drive. Sorry I don't remember the codes he read but he said they didn't really bother him. A good flush will likely clear up what caused those codes. He said if there were (miss-shift? forgot that as well) codes my tranny would be heading for toast. He thought it would be fine but wanted to run a glycol test to be sure. In his experience there is about a 2 - 3% failure rate in Volvo OEM radiators where they contaminate the transmission. Sure enough, mine tested at 30ppm.

He has seen transmission shops miss this and toast multiple transmissions in the same vehicle. Thankfully he thinks there is an 80% chance that my transmission can be saved. He has saved many. I am going to choose to believe him for 2 reasons. 1. He has earned his reputation over many years of service. 2. It is now my problem in any case as I am not the kind of person that can hide a problem I know about and pedal it down the road for some other soul to encounter.

Thankfully I have to be gone for a week or so and then it finally will be motorcycle season! I can take my time while I replace the radiator and do a double transmission flush finishing with fluid that may not be entirely agreed to on this list but has an established track record with some here and locally in any case.

Wade

[Astro14]

For UOA on both engine oil and transmission fluid - I've used Blackstone. http://www.blackstone-labs.com/

They send you a sample jar (free), you mail it back with the fluid/sample, and in about 5 - 8 days, you've got your results via e-mail.

cost is $25.

FWIW - after the valve body replacement (on both my transmissions), the fluid tested clean, no excess iron (clutch plate wear) or water.

[sjonnie]

In his experience there is about a 2 - 3% failure rate in Volvo OEM radiators where they contaminate the transmission.
That's already a very low failure rate, routine testing would be a waste of money. Of course if you suspect something to be wrong, it makes sense to do the test. A cooling system pressure test would be cheaper and easier.

[winsotaxc]

That's already a very low failure rate, routine testing would be a waste of money. Of course if you suspect something to be wrong, it makes sense to do the test. A cooling system pressure test would be cheaper and easier.

sjonnie,

You may be right. I am a noob to this and that is why I posted as a suggestion to let the community decide what should go in the tranny sticky. All I know is that there are a fair number of reported problems with the transmission. It appears that at least some volvo shops have noted internal leaks in the OEM radiator that are not apparent. Assuming my test was accurate, 30ppm is not something that would be noticeable and perhaps not even noticeable in the leak down test. From what I gather, it doesn't take much glycol in the ATF to start to cause some real damage. Also from what I gather, some experienced transmission shops don't notice it at levels that are high enough to cause damage.

How many failed transmissions in our XC's have had a UOA? Is it possible that the failure rate is much higher than we think it is because the problem is assumed to be something else? I don't want to waste money but for my piece of mind I plan on spending another $50 ($25 to confirm the glycol test and another $25 about 10k or so down the road just to see where things are at.) Just seems like good insurance to me.

Clearly people who flush the transmission regularly get much better life out of the transmission. What contaminants are being flushed? When properly flushed transmissions eventually fail, do we really know what caused the failure?

Wade