Hey! This is my first post and I am hoping to be able to identify this problem and fix it myself, or with a friend.

The up arrow on the dashboard is on (the overdrive arrow), and my car will not shift into 4th gear, I topped off the transmission fluid, which was low...
But all that happens when I try to de-press the overdrive button is the light faintly gets brighter and then I press it again and it faintly gets less brighter. Also the button does not "click" or really do anything when I push it, it almost feels like it is stuck but still sticking outwards it is not stuck inwards. Also it has been a problem for about 4 days and turning the car on and off does not re-set it like it is suppose to... in the past that light would be on but it would still shift into 4th, not any longer...What can I do? THANKS so much for reading this, I hope I was clear enough.

suspect you've got a bad relay, mine had same trouble. replace relay==cure.

BTW relay is an ordinary 4 pin job + i extra pin which can be got by doubling the output pin, and a 555 timer chip set up as a bi-stable flip flop-see your friendly TV technician or electronics friends to get one made up much cheaper than OEM-used ones are not advisable, faulty ones can be resoldered sometimes by well trained technical types, but no guarantees except replace. default for light is OFF and OD possible. Light on means OD locked out==impossible.

button is a "momentary on" type-does not lock in, just sends a pulse-hence the flip flop to toggle the relay, which is behind the dash center to the upper right.

It's the only one with 5 pins, and has terminals numbered 87 & 87a, both of which are the outputs, and should be connected directly as 1 terminal for simplicity, but Volvo thought otherwise, just to make you buy their relay.

but, will this solve the problem of the car never going into 4th gear?

yes, if the relay is faulty, & the indications are that it is.

start out with the relay, remove the glove box and you'll see it to the left behind the center heater vents, should be white.

Thanks alot! I am going to try it out tomorrow...

It can be 2 things. I just had the same problem, but the light did go off when I hit the button.

Try the less expensive try first, which is the "overdrive relay" in the dash somewhere.

On my 740 it was underneath the radio. You'll have to remove the ashtray to access the fuse panel. To do this, you'll have to remove the cigarette lighter. Right around the cigarette lighter there's a small molding. Remove that and you'll have access to 2 screws which will release it so you'll have access to the relays behind it.

If you have time to wait, I would get the part online, like Ebay or something, or I'll sell you mine for $10 used. New there around $70.

If thet doesn't work (like in my case), it's the "Overdrive Solenoid" which is located directly on the transmission, on the driver side. Again, if you have the time, buy it on Ebay, since new, they sell for $180 & up.

If you can get under the car, it's simple to get to. On my 740, it was just two 12mm bolts. Before you order the part, go underneath and check yours. Sometimes there's 2 different ones. One with a cable coming out of it (the cheaper one at $180), and one with no cable (around $280). I say this because usually you can't return electical parts. Make sure to remount it the in the right direction. It will come with two 0-rings. Mine kept falling off when I tried to put it on. The solution was to slightly rub your finger with a little lithium grease or bearing grease then on the O-rings and they will stay.

Good Luck!! :amen:

Same problem I had. Turned out to be fuse 11. Does your rear window defroster work?

Yes!! That's really the first thing you check and the true cheapest fix that it can be.

Sorry I missed that one!

According to the owners manual, the "arrow" you describe lights when 4th gear is locked out. If you depress the button on the side of the shifter, you are activating 4th gear lock out. This is to be used when towing, so that the car doesn't go into 4th gear.

Could it be that yours was faulty and has just started working? Perhaps I've got my wires crossed, as I've recently dicovered the true purpose of this button. (I too thought it was an overdrive button of some kind) Confusing!

To sum up, that button is not an overdrive button, it is to stop your car going into 4th gear. Personally I'm never pressing that button again, unless I need to tow.

Read it here for yourself :)

http://www.analogstereo.com/pdf/om/volvo_2...manual_1989.pdf

Here's the relevant paragraph...

"Disengaging 4th gear
The transmission will engage 4th gear automatically after upshifting through first, second and third gears unless the disengagement button on the side of the gear selector knob is pushed.
When the button is pushed to disengage 4th gear, the transmission operates as a 3-speed unit. If the button is pushed while 4th gear is engaged, then a downshift to 3rd gear will occur. The transmission, then, cannot upshift to 4th gear until the button is pushed again. As a reminder, when 4th gear is disengaged, the indicator light (up arrow) in the instrument panel is illuminated.
Be aware that, if 4th gear is disengaged (reminder light illuminated) when the engine is switched off, the transmission will revert automatically to 4-speed operation (reminder light not illuminated) when the engine is restarted.
Disengage 4th gear (reminder light illuminated) when:
* towing a trailer
* driving on hilly roads where precise speed control is desired. "

I'm struggling to work out why noone else has piped up and told you this... unless maybe I'm an **** and you have a manual, not auto gearbox.

Seems odd that I basically asked the same question and got no help either. Are we the only two people with auto's....? Or is just me...? :grin:

Hello, i just picked up an 87 240 dl with 102k on it and that upshift light was on. After driving it a couple days, the light went out and i "magically" had overdrive for that day. Next day, light on, no overdrive. Looked at different message boards and different fixes, one guy went into detail about why the relay fails. Small(hairline) cracks in the circuit board inside the the relay. I took the relay apart and found the culprit(s). after resoldering the bad contacts, i reinstalled it and i've had full control of my overdrive since!! Cost me waaaay less than a penny and about 20 minutes of my time. Now, i am an ASE Master Certified tech so i found this fix to be easy and very cheap but i already have a soldering gun/solder/tools/ and a basic knowledge of electricity and circuits.

I got it fixed from a friend and it was the relay, it now shifts into 4th. what a relief! But now my passenger front window doesn't roll down and I have to replace my fuel filter... Thats easy right? I heart volvos. :liebe011:

Thanks to everyone who has posted here - very helpful and informative!

I have a 1993 240 with auto transmission that recently stopped shifting into 4th gear.

When I press the 4th gear button, I can hear a faint click in the dash and the 'up arrow' light goes on/off just fine. I of course checked the fuse and it is fine - good tip!

So it occurs to me that if the light goes on and off and I can hear a click, then the relay must be good, and that i need to replace the solenoid. Can anyone confirm or debunk this logic?

If the relay is still a suspect, how can I tell if it's good/bad?

The click is the relay, but you should hold the door open and with the motor off, listen for the solenoid clicking too. the wiring is a known problem in all that dirt, as well as blocked passages in the tranny. When operated, the solenoid CLOSES an oilway to prevent selection of 4th gear. NB IFF you're NEVER going to tow, or carry extreme loads, then a dumb bypass plate is available, via the web, for <$50-, but I'll bet DIY is cheaper. sludged tranny oil is another Very BAD but common reason for this trouble==poor maintenance=usually=tranny troubles. AW7x(x) tranny==Dexron 2 oil only, according to my 2003 maintenance CD's.

Thanks, Manxman!

I bought myself a bypass plate and crawled under there to do the job when i found a surprise! The single wire coming from the shifter to the solenoid cable was sheared in half. Odd indeed, since that wire is hidden between the tranny and the body where the shifter linkage is mounted.

So a simple fix that seems worth trying is to splice the wire back together and see what happens.

I resist the urge to figure out why it was sheared in half. It is in the area of, but not close enough to the driveshaft for that to have done it. Could it have gotten crimped/heated and eventually gave up? Did the discount muffler shop that worked on the tailpipe a few months ago have somehow caught the wire when they were looking over the exhaust? I don't know that i care - but if anyone has any wisdom that would be welcome.

But mainly - if anyone knows why a splice does not seem wise, please chime in.

Thanks.