Speedometer internals
08-13-2003, 08:11 PM
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Speedometer internals
Well I thought the new flex circuit would fix my intermittent speedometer. It didn't. I have a good signal from the sender and I have checked it at the connector in the wheel well, at the fuse panel (H1/H2), and at the connector that comes into the flex circuit (1L).
Neither the odometer or the speedo are working. They would both pop on occasionally for a while but now they are both dead.
I have cleaned the ground point but the speedometer shares the ground point with things like the temperature gauge, and those all work fine. Still I cleaned it anyway just to appease the grounding gods.
So now I suppose I have to remove the new Momo (looks bitchin!), pull the pod and dissasemble the speedo. Anyone BTDT? Should I be speedometer shopping or are there user servicable parts inside?
TIA
Neither the odometer or the speedo are working. They would both pop on occasionally for a while but now they are both dead.
I have cleaned the ground point but the speedometer shares the ground point with things like the temperature gauge, and those all work fine. Still I cleaned it anyway just to appease the grounding gods.
So now I suppose I have to remove the new Momo (looks bitchin!), pull the pod and dissasemble the speedo. Anyone BTDT? Should I be speedometer shopping or are there user servicable parts inside?
TIA
08-13-2003, 09:06 PM
#2
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No odo or speedo? That sounds electrical to me. Take out the pod and put back just the cluster. It will balance OK. Then jack the back and "drive" it. You'll be able to futz with it and figure things out.
Otherwise you could get a new/used unit and replace it. I got one off eBay and it worked. Just had to swap the faceplate to keep the German warnings. Lost 30K miles in the process. Didn't want to mess it up trying to adjust the mileage.
There are a number of shops that fix VDO guages. North Hollywood Speedometer is often mentioned.
Otherwise you could get a new/used unit and replace it. I got one off eBay and it worked. Just had to swap the faceplate to keep the German warnings. Lost 30K miles in the process. Didn't want to mess it up trying to adjust the mileage.
There are a number of shops that fix VDO guages. North Hollywood Speedometer is often mentioned.
08-13-2003, 09:16 PM
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Marc;
I did the speedo thing last winter to replace the odometer gear. I did take the unit pretty much apart to do this. There are some electronics that you could troubleshoot and possibly repair, but the biggest potential problem I see is actually getting any replacement mechanical parts if you do find something broken.
My understanding is that these parts are only available from "speedo shops" and certified repair depots for VDO. I ran in to this problem with my odo gear...it was not one of the ones commonly available on the 'Net, so I had to get my speedo repaired at a VDO repair depot. You can find a listing at http://www.vdona.com/Tech%20Support/repairpage.htm.
You might consider looking for a speedo or even whole cluster on ebay. I see them there all the time for reasonable prices. Obviously you can get a used unit from one of the Big 3 as well.
If you do opt to send your unit out for repair, I'll put a plug in for Forester Instruments in Ontario (on the VDO repair depot list). They were knowledgable, quick and you would have the advantage of the Cdn dollar exchange rate working for you! I found these guys much less expensive than their counter parts in the US - even with exchange factored in!
Regards,
SteveCo
I did the speedo thing last winter to replace the odometer gear. I did take the unit pretty much apart to do this. There are some electronics that you could troubleshoot and possibly repair, but the biggest potential problem I see is actually getting any replacement mechanical parts if you do find something broken.
My understanding is that these parts are only available from "speedo shops" and certified repair depots for VDO. I ran in to this problem with my odo gear...it was not one of the ones commonly available on the 'Net, so I had to get my speedo repaired at a VDO repair depot. You can find a listing at http://www.vdona.com/Tech%20Support/repairpage.htm.
You might consider looking for a speedo or even whole cluster on ebay. I see them there all the time for reasonable prices. Obviously you can get a used unit from one of the Big 3 as well.
If you do opt to send your unit out for repair, I'll put a plug in for Forester Instruments in Ontario (on the VDO repair depot list). They were knowledgable, quick and you would have the advantage of the Cdn dollar exchange rate working for you! I found these guys much less expensive than their counter parts in the US - even with exchange factored in!
Regards,
SteveCo
08-13-2003, 09:37 PM
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Thanks for the tips and the speedo shop connections. I will pull out the unit and have a look at it.
Great idea on the pod-less test drive, that will save a bunch of time if I don't get it fixed first time through.
Great idea on the pod-less test drive, that will save a bunch of time if I don't get it fixed first time through.
