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Tue Jan 22, 2008 7:05 am

This morning when I drove to work, my speedo went crazy.
Bus started great (kinda surprising 'cause it was -6 degrees).
The speedo was OK until about 20mph, than it started making
crazy noises. I was keeping pace with 35mph traffic, but the
needle was bouncing between 50-60. When a reached what
I estimated to be 45mph, it was bouncing between 50-90. At
one time the needle actually bounced all the way around to the
back side of the 10. The whole time it was making the horrible
noise. It did this same thing one time last winter when it was
really cold, but it only lasted a minutes. I'm afraid that it might
damage my speedo.

Thanks in advance.

Tue Jan 22, 2008 7:23 am

Your speedo cable is like a spring inside a sheath. The cable and sheath are filled with 30 something years of caked up dried out grease. When really cold the grease freezes up. The speedo it self is just a whirling magnet on the end of the cable. The needle jumping is the cable binding up and then breaking free. When it binds the wheel keeps winding it up till it breaks free then all the wound up energy in the spring releases showing a speed of 90+ MPH. Your cable will break under these conditions. Disconnect the cable from the back of the speedo and get some oil in there. Use a penetrant, like PB Blaster, with the straw for now. Come spring disassemble and clean the cable and sheath.

Bill

Tue Jan 22, 2008 7:38 am

Thanks a bunch Bill 8) .

Tue Jan 22, 2008 11:33 am

cold weather is death for old speedos. best to disconnect it if it gets noisy- until the cold passes, otherwise you are looking at replacement.

i have seen split speedos do this more than once. bay speedos were better i think.

Tue Jan 22, 2008 3:44 pm

Definitely disconnect your speedo cable ASAP before you trash the speedometer. Buy yourself some speedometer lubricant. You can get a tube for about $5. It is a very light weight oil with suspended graphite like key cylinder lubricant but suspended in an oil base. Here's one I just found by doing a google search:
http://www.mikes-afordable.com/page/MFP/CTGY/1106

Don't use regular oil, it will gum up with the passage of time.

Tue Aug 19, 2008 4:28 pm

NEW QUESTION:::::
I just replaced my speedo with one bought in classifieds.
My original needle was broke but worked perfect before then. so I bought this one, hooked up, seems to work until I hit 25-30 and then it pegs out and sounds like its grinding. Its not cold here by all means....Is the speedo bad or the cable? Seems to be a lil grease coming out of the cable, that ok? Do I need to grease?
thanks

Tue Aug 19, 2008 4:47 pm

It would seem that if the old speedo worked fine with your current cable then the problem is the new speedo or something went awry when you installed it. Just a guess...

Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:23 pm

otiswesty wrote: Definitely disconnect your speedo cable ASAP before you trash the speedometer. Buy yourself some speedometer lubricant. You can get a tube for about $5. It is a very light weight oil with suspended graphite like key cylinder lubricant but suspended in an oil base. Here's one I just found by doing a google search:
http://www.mikes-afordable.com/page/MFP/CTGY/1106

Don't use regular oil, it will gum up with the passage of time.

Just don't goop any lube on the top inch or so of the speedo cable. It can work its way clear up into the speedo head & slow down/trash the unit's action. (even on a brand new speedo... don't ask! :oops: )

J.R.
68 Westy
(+ others)

Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:39 pm

thanks i was wondering if i was suppose to lube the speedo itself?

Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:58 pm

I wonder how tough it would be to swap the good needle onto your original speedo? Anyone?

Tue Aug 19, 2008 7:28 pm

Strangely enough, I had the same problem, but it was the cable, not the speedo!!

As you are going to the trouble, replace that cable too.

Tue Aug 19, 2008 10:22 pm

I also had the same problem about the time this was originally posted. Finaly the cable broke so I replaced it with a new one. That one broke too. It turns out that my speedo froze up. I used 3 in 1 oil and worked the speedo by hand till I got it turning again then I cut one of the broken cables a few inches from where it go's into the gauge and used a drill to work it in. Works great now! Lube that speedo with the proper lube so you know it's done right.

Wed Aug 20, 2008 6:22 am

Yea, I am wondering about replacing the new needle on the old speedo. But it looks very delicate. I would like to hear if anyone has tried?

I would think that my cable is ok since it was working before? I dont think I did anything out of the ordinary while replacing.

Wed Aug 20, 2008 8:23 am

Back when I was young and foolish, now I'm just foolish I decided to tear down my speedometer for cleaning. Basically, the bus was at the body shop and I was bored, not to mention armed with a VW magazine discussing how to perform routine maintenance on your speedo. I thought it would be cool to reset the odometer to all 0000's in honor of the body work and new engine. Needless to say I destroyed it and ended up purchasing a new one from the classifieds. Actually if I remember correctly, removing the needle was pretty easy. Destroying the odometer, now that took skill.

Wed Aug 20, 2008 8:38 am

[quote="Herbst '71"]Back when I was young and foolish, now I'm just foolish I decided to tear down my speedometer for cleaning. Basically, the bus was at the body shop and I was bored, not to mention armed with a VW magazine discussing how to perform routine maintenance on your speedo. I thought it would be cool to reset the odometer to all 0000's in honor of the body work and new engine. Needless to say I destroyed it and ended up purchasing a new one from the classifieds. Actually if I remember correctly, removing the needle was pretty easy. Destroying the odometer, now that took skill.[/quote]

Thanks Rik, I may give it a shot. Not like I could tear up something that isnt working to start off with!

Wed Aug 20, 2008 8:12 pm

Herbst '71 wrote: I thought it would be cool to reset the odometer to all 0000's in honor of the body work and new engine.

I took one apart to clean the glass and reset the odometer for
a buggy that I'm building. Take your time and be carefull. Just
a word of warning, the little pin the the needle rests against when
it's on "0" is real delicate. You can snap it off really easy :oops: .