The Volvo V70 is a popular station wagon initially based off of Volvo’s S70, a compact executive car. To adapt to the station wagon market, the V70 was given rounder edges, a new grille, and an updated dashboard. The 3rd generation was released in 2007 and featured updated safety features and a new hybrid option. Owners of the V70 sometimes experience a “leaping” transmission.
Leaping or jerking transmissions are unfortunately common among the V70. The way it is experienced, the car will begin to cycle through the gears, shifting back and forth between several of them, trying to find a gear that it wants to stay in. Usually, this problem happens only while accelerating, and makes it a challenge to feel secure while picking up speed, but there are instances when, while slowing down, the car will suddenly shift, surprising the driver immensely. Owners do have the option of switching into a more manual style of operation, but the transmission holds a several second lag between the time you initiate the shift and when the shift actually occurs.
The greatest danger is that the car will suddenly shift into a much lower gear while you are slowing down. The downshift will cause the car to jerk forward, potentially causing an accident. In order to prevent this, it is tremendously important that the issue is remedied. Barring any major issues with the gearbox itself, you are probably looking at an overdue software update. On the other hand, it could be a malfunction with the car’s computer or a sensor that is misreading speed information.
Due to the relatively broad range of possible problems, the safest option is for you to take you V70 to a local Volvo repair shop. The men and women at such a place will analyze the problem clearly and carefully, and they will be able to fix your problem quickly and at a much more reasonable rate than you would find at a dealership.
Search for a local, independent Volvo repair shop with Volvo mechanics that have dealer-level expertise at a fraction of the expense.