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Volvo: Volvo cooling system/oil in coolant, coolant hoses, head gasket


Question
Have a 92 Volvo 940 that recently overheated, (Wife borrowed the car!). For repair I had major work done including replacement of head gasket which was warped, valves, and some other associated parts.

I just took it to get A/C recharged and the tech told me transmission fluid is mixing with the coolant...not good. Could this be a result of past problems not fixed properly? What is involved in getting this fixed? Or will it be better to just scrap the car? I live in the mideast in a very hot climate. Thanks for any info.

Answer
Chris,
I would have to guess and say that if the head gasket was replaced, at that time the tech would have seen the coolant mixture and taken care of that problem. That however we will never know. If the coolant is mixing with ATF then inside the radiator the trans cooler is leaking. If it has not gone too far and turned the ATF into a pink milky fluid you may still be able to save the trans. If the condition is at it's worst. pink fluid and shifting problem, the coolant hoses will begin to swell, those also will need replacement. So you need to see how far the damage has gone and make your decision.