auto box transmission flush

[paignton]

Hi all, got an auto d5 c30 2007 and had been wondering since i brought it, just over a year ago about getting the transmission ffliud flushed. I asked the head mechanic about it at the volvo specliast i have been using ( spent about 1,500 this year on the volvo with various repairs) and he advised against it. He said it could act as a flush and potenitally flush the horrible stuff at the bottom up and cause bigger issues. He said it did on another and the solenoid failed after a week and lead to expensive repair and recommended not to do it saying his xc90 was on 150,000 and theres no way he would change it.
I suppose my question is what about getting a full flush from an auto specialist, pressumely they can get all the rubbish out with there machines by pressurising it?Or am i best to just leave it and hope for a decent life out of it
I've looked into doing it myself as i'm just about happy enough to do oil and filters but I don't want to take this one on.
The cars at 110,000 miles ftw

[Simmy]

do it your self. sump dumps 3ltrs out 3ltrs in no need to flush if you are worried about it. gearbox cooler and torque converter hold abt 7ltrs but only abt 3 will come out of the drain plug i do mine at every engine oil change . my car has 227k on original gear box .

[paignton]

would that not also be effectively be a flush as you are likely to dislodge the build up when filling back in from the top?

[lockstock]

Originally Posted by paignton

would that not also be effectively be a flush as you are likely to dislodge the build up when filling back in from the top?

you will find differing opinion on this. There are some videos online of how to change the oil with successive drains and refill. I believe somone autos can get 'oil shock' where the new oil causes the auto box to start slipping. i don't know the details, or which boxes it affects but it is a genuine risk, albeit likely a small one. I believe volvo have a system which keeps the gearbox under pressure as the oils gradually flushed and replaced with new oil. However, a lot of volvo garages will say the gearbox oil is a non service item so no need to change. Again, open to debate. I'd tend to think, if it's not broken, don't mess with it.

[Kev0607]

I don't take any heed of Volvo's claim of the transmission being "sealed for life" & therefore the fluid doesn't need to be changed. Mercedes say the same thing with their cars & its just absolute rubbish in my opinion. You wouldn't drive your car without changing the engine oil, so why would you leave the oil in the gearbox!? Oil doesn't last forever, it needs to be changed!

Personally, I wouldn't recommend a full flush because it can cause issues. I had my transmission fluid changed recently at a local Independent Volvo Specialist & the job was done on my car by draining the old fluid out & filling the transmission with new/fresh fluid (They don't flush either)... They reset the adaptions afterwards & its made a big difference. My car has circa 102,000 on it & I thought it was time to get it done, particularly as I had no record of it ever being changed.

Your car as 110k on it, so its certainly worth changing the fluid. Draining & filling the transmission isn't going to do damage... Its a very popular method used by many Volvo owners & even professional garages. So I disagree with the garage that you brought it to, as draining the gearbox & adding new fluid isn't flushing. By draining & filling the gearbox & resetting the adaptions, it ensures that the gearbox basically knows its got new fluid & this method is less vigorous so to speak - Flushing is certainly something I wouldn't recommend because there's a higher change of dislodging gunk/grime that has built up over the years. If you don't get the adaptions reset after a fluid change, its not the end of the world because the gearbox will effectively teach itself how to shift smoothly after a few miles itself (Although, it may shift a bit harsher than normal at first). If you bring the car to an auto specialist & not a Volvo one, make sure that they put the correct spec fluid in (Listed in your owners manual).

Drain & fill is your safest bet, not flush.

[eric19371]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

... They reset the adaptions afterwards & its made a big difference.

How did they do this? My V50 with the 5 speed geartronic has/had a weird fluctuating RPM issue*. The oil has just been changed (only done 20-30 miles since) and now I only get the issue 50% of the time but it sound like I may need to do this reset also.

*see here for that story

[Danielpsmith]

If your gearbox is working fine at the moment then the drain and refill won’t hurt it just done it on my c30 d5 auto which I’ve just bought and it’s on 122000 miles, but on my xc90 d5 with the 6 speed auto had the gear oil changed a few times over the years.

Then it started flaring every time I drove it so had the oil change again and it made it so much worse almost un drivable it ended up having a full gearbox rebuild in November.

So my advice would be if it’s ok change the oil if it’s playing up leave it as it will probably make it worse.

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by eric19371

How did they do this? My V50 with the 5 speed geartronic has/had a weird fluctuating RPM issue*. The oil has just been changed (only done 20-30 miles since) and now I only get the issue 50% of the time but it sound like I may need to do this reset also.

*see here for that story

Using the adaptions setting in VIDA.

[paignton]

Thanks for the reponse, very useful, if you don't mind answering the question, how much did this cost?

Originally Posted by Kev0607

I don't take any heed of Volvo's claim of the transmission being "sealed for life" & therefore the fluid doesn't need to be changed. Mercedes say the same thing with their cars & its just absolute rubbish in my opinion. You wouldn't drive your car without changing the engine oil, so why would you leave the oil in the gearbox!? Oil doesn't last forever, it needs to be changed!

Personally, I wouldn't recommend a full flush because it can cause issues. I had my transmission fluid changed recently at a local Independent Volvo Specialist & the job was done on my car by draining the old fluid out & filling the transmission with new/fresh fluid (They don't flush either)... They reset the adaptions afterwards & its made a big difference. My car has circa 102,000 on it & I thought it was time to get it done, particularly as I had no record of it ever being changed.

Your car as 110k on it, so its certainly worth changing the fluid. Draining & filling the transmission isn't going to do damage... Its a very popular method used by many Volvo owners & even professional garages. So I disagree with the garage that you brought it to, as draining the gearbox & adding new fluid isn't flushing. By draining & filling the gearbox & resetting the adaptions, it ensures that the gearbox basically knows its got new fluid & this method is less vigorous so to speak - Flushing is certainly something I wouldn't recommend because there's a higher change of dislodging gunk/grime that has built up over the years. If you don't get the adaptions reset after a fluid change, its not the end of the world because the gearbox will effectively teach itself how to shift smoothly after a few miles itself (Although, it may shift a bit harsher than normal at first). If you bring the car to an auto specialist & not a Volvo one, make sure that they put the correct spec fluid in (Listed in your owners manual).

Drain & fill is your safest bet, not flush.

[paignton]

It feels ok, sometimes it seems to me like it holds the gears a tad too long. I don't think i've had a loss of power when changing. I don't know if that is as the oil could do with changing or that's just how the gearbox works in these.

Originally Posted by Danielpsmith

If your gearbox is working fine at the moment then the drain and refill won’t hurt it just done it on my c30 d5 auto which I’ve just bought and it’s on 122000 miles, but on my xc90 d5 with the 6 speed auto had the gear oil changed a few times over the years.

Then it started flaring every time I drove it so had the oil change again and it made it so much worse almost un drivable it ended up having a full gearbox rebuild in November.

So my advice would be if it’s ok change the oil if it’s playing up leave it as it will probably make it worse.