Volvo Maintenance Hints for 7xx/9xx - Bill Garland's Nuclear ...

transmission. One attachment place is the movable gear selector lever. The other connection point is where the short, double bent
shifter rod attached to the longest lever from the shifter connects to a fixed spot on the transmission body. To correct any looseness
here a bushing must be placed around the clevis pins that secure the linkage rod to the transmission housing. I fashioned a bushing
from a very short length of clear vinyl hose with a 1\4 ID and 9\16 OD. I do not know what kind of bushing was installed at the factory
since it was completely missing where I made this repair to my car. The vinyl tubing, however, does an excellent job eliminating
slack and preventing any rattles. Now is a good time to inspect the overdrive wire as well, since insulation can wear in this exposed
location.
3. Finding the Source of Shifter Rattles In the Console. Remove the console panel around the shifter and look into the shifter well. A
coin or a pen may have fallen through the shifter gate and is now rattling around.
4. Adjusting the Shifter Linkage Adjustment [Dave Stevens] It's very easy to check shifter linkage adjustment. With the gear selector in
Drive, note the freeplay from the detent position to the stop when moving the shifter forward. Then in 2nd, note the freeplay from the
detent position to the stop when moving the shifter rearward. The freeplay travel at both ends should be equal. If not and provided
the nylon bushings are intact, adjust the trans shifter linkage accordingly.
Your shifter can also move due to transmission mount failure. A small amount of movement in response to drive train movements is normal.
Removing Shifter Knob and Overdrive Switch.
740 Cars.[Tip from RHaire] To remove the shift knob, carefully pry any chrome trim off. Note it has a seam that will allow you to open it up.
Place a baggie over the knob to contain flying parts. Take a crescent wrench and open it just enough to slip around the shifter shaft and
place it up against the knob. Tap up on the wrench with a hammer and you will knock the knob up and off. [Response: Editor] To remove
the overdrive switch, pry it out from the head of the shifter. This has two small wire connectors entering it. Check that the wires are not
abraded and the connectors are intact and firmly mounted inside the switch. If you need to replace the switch, realize that the wiring goes
down the column, out the bottom of the shifter assembly, then far up into a connector behind the relay panel, and is a pain to replace. Try
to repair the switch if you can; if not, wire in a new switch at the shifter.
940 Cars. [Tips from Jay Simkin] Tools needed: soldering iron (25-40 watt), needle-nose pliers [bent tip], pocket knife or utility knife.
1. Remove overdrive switch from knob housing. Using tip of utility/pocket knife, pry the over-drive switch from the knob. Little effort is
required to do this.
2. Get slack in wires to overdrive switch. Using bent-tip needle nose pliers, grip the insulation sheathing around the wires that go to the
switch. Pull GENTLY. There is perhaps 1/4" of slack to be had - and you will need it - but you must pull gently on these wires. They
are thin. (If you break them, the shifter will have to be removed and disassembled to replace this harness. This is a non-trivial task.)
3. De-soldering wires to overdrive switch. Once you have the switch body outside of the shifter knob housing, use white-out to mark
one side of the switch box and the wire that runs to that side of the switch. Use the soldering iron to separate the wires from the
switch body. If the wires have been spot welded, cut the wire as close to the switch tab as possible but do not cut off the tabs