L Reg Volvo 850 Gear Box Problems

Nov 5th, 2002, 14:01

My wife has a L Reg Volvo 850 GLT Auto and recently the orange arrow flashes and the car goes into 'limp home mode' after a bit of fiddling with the gear stick it works again for a while. I have always had it serviced locally but by a non-volvo garage.

The car seems to have always had electrical faults , dipped beam on the passanger side won't work but the bulbs are fine and the ABS lights come on when they feel like it.

Does anyone have any advice??

liuleichan · Nov 5th, 2002, 14:15

>My wife has a L Reg Volvo 850 GLT Auto and recently the
>orange arrow flashes and the car goes into 'limp home mode'
>after a bit of fiddling with the gear stick it works again
>for a while. I have always had it serviced locally but by a
>non-volvo garage.
>
>The car seems to have always had electrical faults , dipped
>beam on the passanger side won't work but the bulbs are fine
>and the ABS lights come on when they feel like it.
>
>Does anyone have any advice??

Many of these type of problems appear to be related to faulty, or fouling PNP (Park Neutral Position?) switches. That's the electrical switch, on the gearbox, that the gear lever actuates.

Something that's worth trying - with the car off, move the gear selector through all the positions about 10-20 times. See if that does any good.

If you do truly suspect something amiss with the gearbox, checking the gearbox dipstick can be as good as it gets for the lay person to check the health. The level is important, as is the condition of the transmission fluid. It needn't (necessarily) be the nice red colour (after all, that's just a dye) - but the condition and smell is a good indicator.

If it looks pretty dark, and smells kinda funky (people say 'burnt'), it's a reasonable indication that this isn't all it might be.

Lei Chan

Nov 5th, 2002, 16:55

Thanks for the help.
I have tried moving the gear leaver through all its positions and it seemed to first bring the fault on and then cure it. Is this something that I should get a Volvo dealer to sort out or can a local garage doit. Also (sorry for the questions) I read in your forum about a fault code that the CPU produces and that older models don't need special equipment to read it. Wher would I find this displayed?

Again Thanks for your help

Chris_Rogers · Nov 5th, 2002, 21:40

I think the simplest answer is to get the Haynes 850 manual which covers reading the fault codes for all systems, and what they mean.
If it's the PNP switch, which seems likely, setting up a new one requires a jig which the Volvo dealers are the only ones likely to keep.

Nov 5th, 2002, 14:01	#1
Silvester Guest Location:	L Reg Volvo 850 Gear Box Problems My wife has a L Reg Volvo 850 GLT Auto and recently the orange arrow flashes and the car goes into 'limp home mode' after a bit of fiddling with the gear stick it works again for a while. I have always had it serviced locally but by a non-volvo garage. The car seems to have always had electrical faults , dipped beam on the passanger side won't work but the bulbs are fine and the ABS lights come on when they feel like it. Does anyone have any advice??

Nov 5th, 2002, 14:15	#2
liuleichan Premier Member Last Online: Apr 17th, 2019 22:01 Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: .	RE: L Reg Volvo 850 Gear Box Problems >My wife has a L Reg Volvo 850 GLT Auto and recently the >orange arrow flashes and the car goes into 'limp home mode' >after a bit of fiddling with the gear stick it works again >for a while. I have always had it serviced locally but by a >non-volvo garage. > >The car seems to have always had electrical faults , dipped >beam on the passanger side won't work but the bulbs are fine >and the ABS lights come on when they feel like it. > >Does anyone have any advice?? Many of these type of problems appear to be related to faulty, or fouling PNP (Park Neutral Position?) switches. That's the electrical switch, on the gearbox, that the gear lever actuates. Something that's worth trying - with the car off, move the gear selector through all the positions about 10-20 times. See if that does any good. If you do truly suspect something amiss with the gearbox, checking the gearbox dipstick can be as good as it gets for the lay person to check the health. The level is important, as is the condition of the transmission fluid. It needn't (necessarily) be the nice red colour (after all, that's just a dye) - but the condition and smell is a good indicator. If it looks pretty dark, and smells kinda funky (people say 'burnt'), it's a reasonable indication that this isn't all it might be. Lei Chan

Nov 5th, 2002, 16:55	#3
Silvester Guest Location:	RE: L Reg Volvo 850 Gear Box Problems Thanks for the help. I have tried moving the gear leaver through all its positions and it seemed to first bring the fault on and then cure it. Is this something that I should get a Volvo dealer to sort out or can a local garage doit. Also (sorry for the questions) I read in your forum about a fault code that the CPU produces and that older models don't need special equipment to read it. Wher would I find this displayed? Again Thanks for your help

Nov 5th, 2002, 21:40	#4
Chris_Rogers VOC Member Last Online: Apr 10th, 2017 16:55 Join Date: Jan 1970 Location: South Kent Coast	RE: L Reg Volvo 850 Gear Box Problems I think the simplest answer is to get the Haynes 850 manual which covers reading the fault codes for all systems, and what they mean. If it's the PNP switch, which seems likely, setting up a new one requires a jig which the Volvo dealers are the only ones likely to keep.

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