I had to replace my speedometer and didn’t know if some of you know this:
Older Mopars have an odometer that “BEATS” or "INKS" the ten thousand wheel on the odometer. That’s so that once it hits 99,000 miles, the first digit will look worn and you’ll know to add 100,000 to anything displayed. This might help you looking at a car for purchase and don’t know the true mileage.
Since our cars are so old, some of you don’t want that digit wheel looking anything other than perfect for various reasons. I recently replaced my speedometer and wanted to stop the “beating” and adjust my odometer to match the old speedometer’s mileage reading. So here’s how I did it. These are low quality cell phone pics, so there's a little unwanted glare.
After taking apart the dash and pulling the speedometer, I turned it over revealing the odometer digit wheels. The 10,000 digit is on the end and the “beater-inker” is operated by the cam in the pic. After removing the clip on the end, this allowed me to remove the entire digit assembly to rotate the numbers to display the correct reading. Each wheel has to be rotated separately since the next digit only changes when a “zero” crosses it. While I was in there, I tore off the “beater”. Before replacing the odometer, align the “legs”, make sure the required reading is displayed through the front hole, then reinstall the retaining clip.
This procedure should not be used to commit odometer fraud, but could be. So knowing how easy it is done could help all of us avoid scams from other sellers.
