XC90 Gearbox oil temperature while towing
 

Hi,

Has anyone ever measured the gearbox oil temperature for an XC90 auto while towing? It used to get very hot in my V70 so I fitted a gearbox oil cooler, I'm trying to decide whether I should do the same in our 2008 XC90 when we get it. Is the gearbox oil heat exchange any better in the XC90 or is it similar to my older V70?

Thanks,

Mike

Volvo only recommended it on the 2.5t models with the 5 speed auto and they sold a kit for that. However a few people on the XC90 forum have fitted them and report good results.

Thanks Tannaton. From what I can make out Volvo felt the lower revs needed in the D5 would mean less heat generated in the oil but I think I'll probably fit the extra cooler to be safe. The fact that the recommend changing the gearbox oil every 50k miles if towing makes me suspect there is some oil degradation from excess heat

It’s 36k for “arduous” use vehicles - taxis, towing, hot climates etc...

Wow, even less than I thought it was. I was sure I read 50k somewhere. Definitely worth doing then I think

I picked up a Genuine used one off ebay for £35 delivered but need to get round to fitting it.


Should be easy as all the brackets mounts are already there.:teeth_smile:

Have you measured yours ? don't worry if it gets to 120C or so , It is the only way to boil off any water / condensation in there . Don't forget that once on the move around 50 mph the torque converter locks up so virtually no heating or frictional loss in the gearbox so very little heat generated . The oil is always being heated or cooled to match coolant temperature with the standard heat exchanger. If you fit an uncontrolled external cooler the fluid is unlikely to get hot enough to vaporise any water/condensation inside .

Sorry, missed the replies on this!

I haven't got the XC90 yet and I need to fit a towbar anyway so it will be a while, but on my V70 it got hot very quickly. It was up to 117 degrees after just 2 or 3 miles so I pulled over and got someone else to tow the caravan home. After fitting the oil cooler it stayed around 70-80 degrees peaking at just over 100 going up a long hill etc.

I must admit I never considered boiling off any water. But surely that doesn't happen under normal conditions anyway? In my V70 before I fitted the additional cooler the temperature never went above 69 degrees just driving around town (without the caravan on the back)