odometer not working
 

The odometer in my 1986 911 (turbo look) stopped working. I would like to have it fixed however am unsure if I should just buy the rebuild kit from Pelican Parts or attempt to find a used speedometer that does have a working odometer. I have no idea how "idiot proof" the rebuild process would be as I am new to this. The one I have is European and goes to 300 KM so I would prefer to keep it as I live in Canada. Any ideas????

Without a doubt, send it to North Hollywood Speedometer. Do a search on odeometer and you'll get opinions both ways on D-I-Y NO ONE says its a piece of cake.

I did this repair... You cannot get the speedometer face off easily and it *looks* tampered with - at least from behind - when you are done. If you send it to get it fixed by pros then the bezel should look like new when you get it back. It is an ageing issue with the plastic gear so finding a unit with a working odometer (even new-old-stock) is not a good solution.

I agree with both Hugh and Bill.

I did this job and wrote a detailed posting with pix :

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=196987&highlight=odomet er

It is a tedious job and when the speedo is pulled, it is obvious that it has been opened. Also, I couldn't figure out how to calibrate my speedo while it was out. NHS could do it all very competently, but get your checkbook ready.

I'm a tightwad and felt like I'd really accomplished a major feat when mine was put back in and fixed for $25. It has clocked several thousand miles since then without issue. I got my gear from www.odometergears.com.

It looks perfect as it sits in-dash and works perfectly - just depends on your tolerance for tedium.

yeah..i believe the replacement gear will be brass and not the old plastic gear, which basically dissolves..
ryan

mine was nylon. the rumour was that the factory gear was
1. lubed with an oil that caused it to dissolve
2. sacrificial and, therefore, made to give way before the other gears.

nylon..you're correct..i hadn't thought about this gear in a while. and you're right about the oil being the known culprit, too. you're batting 1.000, thrasher.. :)
ryan

Gotta be the 'roids.

I think the older cars had a pot metal gear in there that was also designed to be the sacrificial lamb (softer) so that if the works got jammed up, only the gear would give way, leaving the mechanism repairable.

Oh, and btw, there is also a wive's tail about the reset while moving causing this. It may hasten things, but only on a gear that's already well on its way to death.

:D

yeah..always heard not to hit the reset button while moving as well..
ryan

That is one of those stupid myths that just doesn't die. :D

You can hit the reset button all day long while moving without any damage to the gears.
If you ever see the inside, and the mechanism, you'll see why.
If you don't believe me, send an E-mail to NHS and ask them about this issue.

Cheers. :)

okay doc gunt, i will buy your story and discontinue propagating the myth.. :) information is king and 'in the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed man is king..' :D
ryan

I have a 180-mph mechanical speedometer laying on a shelf that has this odometer gear failure. I would like to get it fixed as I suspect this speedo is somewhat valuable. What's the ballpark $ for getting NHS to fix this?

TIA.

Mike

thaxtela--
Just had the same issue with my '85. Both the odometer and trip odometer stopped working. I sent the speedo off to NHS and had it back in less than a week. Cost was $130 + shipping. I had read the posts about doing myself and opted to let the pros have at it. Couldn't be happier.
Gauge looks great (they cleaned it in the process).

When you remove the gauge, carefully note where all the wires go. I labeled the wires and drew a diagram.
There are 3 lights in the back of the speedo as well. The entire housing comes out (with the bulbs) - just pry the housing out with a small screwdriver.

Steve911, did that include speedo calibration?

Yes, NHS calibrated it to factory specs

"Factory Specs" - so it's off by 5 mph like all the rest? :rolleyes:

I *calibrated* mine by installing the needle pointed at 0 mph. Then had a friend bring his GPS on a ride and it was only off by 2 or 3 mph.

I just had this failure as did a friend of mine. I was feeling adventurous tonight (a little liquid couragehttp://www.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/wat6.gif ) so I took her apart - it went real smooth.

My gear is toast just like the rest of them, so I ordered one from the link provided above. Should have it in a couple days.

I hope all goes back together as easily as it came apart!!

Some info from my speedo rebuild, and trying to cal:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/247776-carrera-vdo-speedo-sucks.html

I replaced my odometer gear on my 86 Carrera and it wasn't so bad... least I could pull the gauge and bring it inside and work at the kitchen table, as opposed to laying on my back under the car. When I opened mine up, the gear was total crystalized. It just went all to pieces when I touched it. I ordered the gear, nylon, for about 20 or 30 bucks and replaced it myself. Not a bad job at all. You will have to work the bezel a little to get it off, but if you take your time and go slow, you can do this without mangling it.

I sent my odometer to North Hollywood several years ago and they rebuilt the unit for a reasonable amount of $ and it's worked fine since, no problems...

Can't seem to get the needle off, no matter how hard I wedge my fingers under neath. The odometer.com site seems to contradict itself by saying don't put any torque on the needle and then goes on to say move the needle past the stop then gently twist the needle structure to remove it...WTH, since when are twisting force and torque not the same thing?

Some may come off easy and some don't.
Besides, even if the needle comes off, the calibration is lost.
If you try too hard, you'll brake the needle and/or the small shaft and it'll cost more to fix.
Some people have replaced the broken plastic gear without removing the needle; very difficult.

Pelican or North Hollywood. :)

Gunter, I'm confused as to how removing the needle causes loss of calibration....on my '88 the needle is pointing directly at the "first" white dash on the speedometer's face. Couldn't I just press the needle back on and make sure it was pointed at the right spot or am I missing something about the calibration? Do Pelican and NHS somehow replace the gear without removing the needle? The outer brown gear on my speedo has basically turned to brittle jelly.
Thanks for the comments,

I just noticed that my odometer must have stopped working within the past two weeks (my trip odometer read 57 miles, but the tank was just about out of fuel!). The speedometer still works fine, however.

Contacting North Hollywood Speedometer (and Clock Company) today for a quote. :(

- Mike

Mine too. I'm making a list of stuff to be fixed, almost every gauge has a glitch of some sort, might as well get them all done along with a repaint and LEDs.

I have found the sure-fire way to NEVER break odometer gears... Don't press the reset button EVER!

After breaking two gears gingerly resetting the odo (while not moving BTW and yes I don't believe that makes it any more likely to occur), my current set has lasted almost 200k miles using this simple trick.

HTH,
Chuck.H
'89 TurboLookTarga, 341k miles

Pretty funny... then again, I don't expect to put another 100K on my rebuilt odometer!

Estimate from North Hollywood Speedometer is $130 plus shipping. I'm sending it out tomorrow.

- Mike

I'm seeing a lot of good feedback for NHS on repair of the gear.

The odo and tripo on my 964 speedo just recently crapped out. However in addition to that, when the backlighting is on for evening driving, the face has deteriorated to the point where the backlighting leaks through all over the place on the face.

Has anyone had NHS also redo the face as well? Cost? Quality?

Shoot them an e-mail: info@nhspeedometer.com

My reply (and quote) arrived the same day.

- Mike

As a follow-up, I shipped my speedometer to North Hollywood Speedometer on Monday. It arrived back today (Thursday) cleaned and repaired! Yes, that is 24-hour turn-around if you consider the shipping time. :D

I can't wait to get it all back together this weekend!

- Mike

has anyone tried changing all the gauges lights to led for better lighting?
I have to have my speedo fixed and figured I'd kill 2 birds with 1 stone.

and also change the template from miles to km.

I haven't found any pics of the led lighting.

Some pics here:

Porsche 911 Custom Coloring and LED Lighting

- Mike

I can do it. $165, free shipping. Turn around is 2-6 days.

McQueens Inst.
6737 34th Ave sw
Seattle, wa
98126

I pulled my tach a part and stopped when I could not get the needle off, so off it went to hollywood. I found a tach with a 7k redline, sent that with it and they replaced my T face with the one I found and it looks brand new.
How did a break my odometer, well I set the trip back to zero while driving. I Had read about not doing this, but had a brain fart, pressed it, said to myself, "uh oh". Sure nough, broken.

Come to think of it.. that's how I broke mine! I was driving away from the gas station and I reset it! :mad:

- Mike

use a fork to to get the needle off

NHS is good but also expensive. It is easier to send it to them and have it done right. Make sure you remember how to hook up the wires...write it down because if you hook them up wrong it burns the speedo. Trust me I have expereince.

i just fixed mine using thrashers post and got the needle off with no problem by twisting it from stop to stop while easing it off.....when i was done with the repair i put it back in without the bezel and glass and calibrated the needle using my gps and once i had it dailed in i took it back out installed the glass and bezel then reinstalled it...sounds complicated but was pretty easy

I recently called NHS because my 911 odometer stopped working while driving a long road trip and I also asked about replacing all 5 gauge faces with updated white faces ($300) or replacing the lighting with LED's ($400) or all of that together including refurbishing all 5 gauges would be $1400 I was quoted.

I didnt send them to NHS though because I was told there's a 6 week wait right now and I mainly wanted my odom fixed so I could start driving again so instead I sent it to DNA Speedometer in Tampa, FL and got it fixed for $130 and returned within 4 business days of sending it.

Speedometer Repair and Odometer Repairs at Low Prices! Instrument Cluster Repair!