Hi All, been around here a while but seldom post. I would very much appreciate any help and guidance you might offer. I've been experiencing a couple of different but possibly related problems with the auto box on my rig (US spec, i6, 2008, 230K miles) for the past couple of years. I've searched and searched but haven't found a solution. Best guess came from a Volvo forum that it could be the valve body, but I want to check here to see if any of you have experienced this.

Problem 1: When the transmission is hot, such as driving uphill in the mountains, the transmission will hunt between gears multiple times within a few seconds (usually between gears 2-3 but sometimes 1-2 also) and abruptly jerk the car as it does it.

Problem 2: When pulling out of a side street into traffic while making a left hand turn only, and accelerating with approx 3/4 throttle or more, occasionally the transmission feels like it slips out of gear for a split second and slams back into gear. It's harsh enough that I try to make all of my accelerating left turns very gently with minimal throttle needed to get the job done.

What I've done:
1/ Kept up on routine maintenance including regular transmission fluid changes (multiple drain/fill method). Most recent was 10K miles ago but the problem pre-dates this service and remained afterwards.

2/ Took great care in getting the fluid level right.

Thoughts? Should I just bite the bullet and replace the valve body? Thank you for taking the time to read and consider. "If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed"

2008 LR2, 3.2L i6, auto, 230K miles
2007 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 243K miles
2012 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 141K miles, Cam Motion Stage 2 Truck Cam, upgraded TC, set up for towing

Have you had a specialist look it over

I have not. I've called a local LR indy shop and a good local transmission shop and neither will look at it. Besides, I'm the sort who will pull the transmission and rebuild it on the bench if I can narrow down what's going on. "If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed"

2008 LR2, 3.2L i6, auto, 230K miles
2007 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 243K miles
2012 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 141K miles, Cam Motion Stage 2 Truck Cam, upgraded TC, set up for towing

I see. I had trouble with my box, it needed a recon Torque Converter and had a sticky solenoid but I had it done by a specialist. The same box with variants is in so many makes and models I am surprised that you can't find someone to work on it. Best of luck with it

Similar symptoms?

Thanks. Not many of these cars around this area, and the shops are still working a backlog of cars but still aren't fully staffed. On top of that, the people working the front office don't know enough about the LR2 to know it's an Aisin Warner box. To them it just sounds like a time suck that they have a high probability of messing up. Can't blame them when there's a pile of Fords and Chevys outside that are easier money. "If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed"

2008 LR2, 3.2L i6, auto, 230K miles
2007 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 243K miles
2012 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 141K miles, Cam Motion Stage 2 Truck Cam, upgraded TC, set up for towing

Looks like you are stuck then. Please keep us updated on your progress.

To digress slightly. On my D2 autu on long hills in Scotland towing a caravan the box used to hunt from 3 to 4 to 3..
Cured this by locking in 3 for the hilly sections, lot in Scotland.
Have you tried using command shift which would let you maintain a lower gear and stop the hunting.?
Worth a try. Jim A
Fl2 HSE 2010 auto
Disco 2Td5 auto 2002 gone
Disci 1 300Tdi auto 1996 gone

Hi, I downloaded a manual from Aisin Warner for the box. It needs a new valve block, last time I looked it was £500. The aluminium tracks wearwhere the balls oscillate, and not changing transmission fluid makes it worse. Its a well worn tale on Volvo forums, and I have a Volvo V70 T6 in store that has the same problem. It can shear off the Bevel Box shafts!

janderson41 wrote:

To digress slightly. On my D2 autu on long hills in Scotland towing a caravan the box used to hunt from 3 to 4 to 3..
Cured this by locking in 3 for the hilly sections, lot in Scotland.
Have you tried using command shift which would let you maintain a lower gear and stop the hunting.?
Worth a try.

Jagracer wrote:

Hi, I downloaded a manual from Aisin Warner for the box. It needs a new valve block, last time I looked it was £500. The aluminium tracks wearwhere the balls oscillate, and not changing transmission fluid makes it worse. Its a well worn tale on Volvo forums, and I have a Volvo V70 T6 in store that has the same problem. It can shear off the Bevel Box shafts!

I Like Chips wrote:

Looks like you are stuck then. Please keep us updated on your progress.

Jagracer wrote:

Hi, I downloaded a manual from Aisin Warner for the box. It needs a new valve block, last time I looked it was £500. The aluminium tracks wearwhere the balls oscillate, and not changing transmission fluid makes it worse. Its a well worn tale on Volvo forums, and I have a Volvo V70 T6 in store that has the same problem. It can shear off the Bevel Box shafts!

Just want to follow up here with the solution. Thanks to all who provided insights and help. The short version is that it was indeed the valve body and I replaced it with a factory new one, so its working flawlessly after a thousand miles so far, but I want to share some missteps I took in the hope that anyone else reading this can avoid them.

I finally dug into it last October as part of a major refresh of lots of things, including the cooling system (radiator, water pump, all coolant hoses, thermostat, reservoir, etc), power steering reservoir, vacuum pump rebuild, serpentine belt + tensioner, all upper and lower motor mounts, and of course the valve body in the transmission. We have 3 vehicles so I didn't need to be in a hurry, and it's a good thing because between kids, family, and work, I have plenty keeping me busy, so working on the LR2 fell down to 4th or 5th priority.

Mistake #1: I first purchased an "overhauled" valve body out of China and waited 3 weeks for it to arrive. When it finally did, it was clear that it was not overhauled at all, because the gasket between the valve body halves was brittle and missing in a couple of areas. So after a day of searching, I finally found a factory new unit in the UK at "The One Stop Gearbox Shop" for $1,000 and had it shipped. It arrived as described and in perfect shape. After another couple of weeks, I finally got it installed and all back together. It ran great... until I saw the red fluid leak. See mistake #2.

Mistake #2: I had used an aftermarket (Chinese-made) transmission pan and gasket from a-premium.com. Lo and behold, the pan gasket was leaking like a sieve due to poor stamping quality in the pan and the unreinforced rubber gasket getting displaced by the clamping force around the bolt holes. Had to take it all back apart and put it back together with the factory pan and a well-made Duraprene gasket.

That did the trick. It's running better than ever. "If I can't fix it, I can fix it so it can't be fixed"

2008 LR2, 3.2L i6, auto, 230K miles
2007 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 243K miles
2012 GMC Yukon XL Denali, 6.2L V8, 141K miles, Cam Motion Stage 2 Truck Cam, upgraded TC, set up for towing

Thanks for that update. Great to here you solved the problem.

Did you take the gearbox off the car or can you change the valve block with the gearbox in situ ?

How many miles had the FL2 done ? Jules

I'd also be keen to hear more. I've had the occasional hunting for gears, but hoping the upcoming flush will fix it.