84 Auto transmission slipping problem

I own an 84 automatic. Of late the tranny is slipping. At first it
slipped only on starting when I first put it into gear, and then was
fine once the car was warmed up. BTW, the first gear was always
reverse. Now it has gotten worse and I notice it when I am stopped at
red lights, starting forward again sometimes it slips. Needless to
say I am not driving it anymore. It seems to be much worse on cold
days, and when the car is not warmed up.

I checked the fluid (with the car having JUST run a little bit) and it
was within the limits, no flecks of metal or anything, and brownish
red.

I'm hoping to at the very least go to the tranny shop with some
information so I don't end up looking at a repair that costs more than
the value of this otherwise great car.

Andrew
andrew at zeum dot oh-R-gee (added effect to foil spambot)

 

Hi
I have exactly the same problem. The transmission seems to be slipping in the cold but when it warms up it is fine. However lately it has begun to slip for a second when i stop at lights. I was wondering if you left the car in and what they said, as there are no volvo dealers beside where i live and the mechanic I usually go to was not able to help me.

 

I'd practically guarantee you've lost some transmission fluid. We've
driven our three 240's about 400 K miles. I've had such slippage a few
times and it was always fixed by checking the fluid level and bringing
it back up. In the US, use Dexron III fluid.

Check this level with he engine running. You can only get a realy
accurate read with a fully warmed up system, I think my manual says
about 45 min. of driving. But you can use the "cold" side of the
dipstick after 5-10 minutes driving. Just add a 1/4 or 1/2 quart
(liter) even before driving, since it's just about guaranteed that
you're missing at least that much. That should fix your slippage enough
to drive around.

The one major leakage I had was from the transmission tail housing seal,
which my mechanic fixed for about $50 US. It's right next to the center
support driveshaft bearing which he replaced at the same time. Other
leakage was slower, so I never learned nor cared where it was leaking.
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The transmission cooling line fittings on my 140 were loose once. That
leakage was very noticeable, but easy to fix. It is unlikely for these to
loosen up on their own unless they were recently disconnected and not
properly tightened. Also, the lines may chafe and eventually wear down and
leak, but probably only if a support bracket has broken.