The automatic transmission in our 94 850 Turbo (130,000 miles) "sticks" in first gear when cold. We have
                      to shift it to neutral then back to drive in order to make it shift. The transmission works perfectly when the
                      temp gets to normal. The check engine light occasionally the "up" arrow come on. We finally got a code at
                      the dealer shop where they told us that the transmission is "on its way out". This is very disturbing because
                      I am a maintenance nut and followed Volvo's recommendations to the letter (did not change the fluid). The
                      fluid level is ok, but it is badly oxidized. The dealer said a fluid change would do more harm than good. Any
                      advice would be greatly appreciated.
                      --
                      James

                      I too have a 850 turbo no problem yes... but so far every one in this post have been said that just change
                      and flush the transmission fluid and 9 out of 10 case the problem will go away... this is a cheap fix try it
                      who know this may work.... better than a new transmission...

                      But than if the transmission run after warm-up may be you don't need a new one... dealer always happy to
                      take your money for any minor reason...

                      See the thread:

                      Check Engine Light and Trans Codes [850][1994]
                     here. One of them tells you how to read your
                      own codes. Read them and post them here (Brickboard)
                      so someone can tell you exactly what the error codes are.

                      Sounds to me more like a problem with the gear selector
                      properly telling the transmission what gear to use. This
                      is a common problem when the weather turns cold (our 95
                      has the check engine light on due to the transmission PNP
                      switch -- I suspect a small percentage of all 850s do this
                      winter, too).

                      Also, I don't see how a transmission flush can hurt anything.
                      130K on the same fluid is probably a bad thing (many dealers
                      are flushing tranny fluid now and disregarding official Volvo
                      advice on this matter).

                      --
                      Ray Niblett 95 855 GLT / 98 S70 T5M