Speedo is 10mph off...odometer is not

[shadango]

My speedo was acting crazy and making a buzzing noise.....per the other threads on this issue, I lubed the cable and lo and behold the speedo reads nice and smooth!   

Only one issue -- the speedo reads 10-11 mph too high.

Now, it didnt read high before last winter....I had swapped out the speedo gear and it was almost dead on. Maybe just a tad optimistic. And from what I can remember the needle would drop to "0" at a stop.  It would act crazy and buzz only up around 60-65 mph.

When I started driving her again a few weeks back, the speedo was buzzy and goofy much more, almost all the time., and the speedo needle reads 10 when stopped......using my GPS, I found that speeds are 10-11 mph too high on the sppedo......odometer is not off by much....after 20 miles it is about 1 mile off (too high)....clearly the speedo and odo are not off by the same amount.

Any ideas?   Could my speedo be history?   The speedo reads perfectly smooth now....

[dodj]

You can pull (gently) the speedo needle off and reposition it.

[shadango]

Well, thats good news....but how tough is it to get to the point of accessing it? Does the whole dash come apart I guess?  I have had the dash apart to the point of the cluster and its cover/lenses but no further.....

How does it get to be off to begin with though is what I am wondering....

[t1971Chally]

Shadango,

I had to pull my cable off for a different reason.  You should be able to reach up and get to the cable by the hand.  My cable has a small tab on it that you press and it releases it from the back of the cluster.  Simply press it pull (a little) to disengage it and then plug it back in.  Make sure you engage the clip when re-installing it.  Give it a try....good luck!

T1971Chally

[shadango]

Hey t1971chally...

Thanks, but yeah I have that done.  I lubed my cable.  removing and reinstalling didnt change the pointer needle....it stayed at 10 mph.

What I was asking about was getting the clear lens off the speedo so I can pull the pointer and reinstall.....any advice on the best way to do this?

[72hemi]

In order to remove the lens you need to remove the cluster from the car, which isn't too difficult, there are about a dozen screws that hold in the switch panel to the left of the gauges and the instrument cluster cover, and another half dozen that hold in the light bar above (remove the light bar first). You will want to drop the steering column down some to make removal of the instrument cluster cover easier. Once you remove the switch panel and instrument panel cover there are about a half dozen screws that hold in the instrument cluster. Once you remove the instrument cluster you can use needle nose pliers to push out all the clips that hold the clear lens on.

[shadango]

Hmmmmm...seems like quite the production.

I hate to tinker with any of the underdash or gauge wiring this close to the season....I may just live with the 10-over situation til winter.......I dunno....have to give it some though. 

Right now, everything works except the speedo being 10 over.....get in there and start tinkering with 40 year old plastic and wiring, who knows what will happen...LOL   

[72hemi]

It is a little involved but not too bad. I can have a cluster out and back installed in about 40 minutes or so (granted I have had more than a few of them in and out), as long as you are careful and take your time you shouldn't have too much trouble, but like you said this close to the season you may just want to wait til winter again.

[shadango]

I just know that I will cause some goofy issue...LOL

We'll see how long I can live with it....LOL

Thanks for the how-to....

I just cant understand how it can all of a sudden be reading off that much.....when it was fine last season.

[Supercuda]

Your speedometer broke between last season and now. The proper solution is to remove the speedometer, and have it restored to proper function. This will not go away, and could get worse in a hurry.

[dodj]

It looks more difficult in print than actually doing it. It's not bad at all and if you have the standard cluster, you don't need to drop the column down.

I just know that I will cause some goofy issue...LOL

Ya maybe, but when you're done you can add that to your "I know all about that now" list.

[dodj]

Your speedometer broke between last season and now. The proper solution is to remove the speedometer, and have it restored to proper function. This will not go away, and could get worse in a hurry.

Not necessarily, his speedo was not smooth last year until the cable was lubed. It's very possible the needle moved from it's original position during that time.   

[shadango]

But how does the needle just move like that? On another thread i read that the needle can be a real bear to take off and put on without damaging it........   

[purple1]

I don't think the needle moved. Most likely the speedo is starting to fail. The needle is very fragile if you do take it off. Many are broken already. Mine was. Sounds like the speedo is draging internaly. Thats why it is not retuning to zero and also why it is reading high. 

Dave