Speedometer cable broke...repair said>

Hello Tom, My 66 Bug speedo broke and it cost £9.0 to get one, and 15 mins to put on. Not sure where you are in the world, but i'm in the UK.

Hope you get it fixed. cheerio ant

Replacing the cable is an easy DIY job.

If the new one squeals, the bushing inside the speedo may need lubrication. Fairly easy to squirt some light oil in there without disassembly.

Look in your Shop Manual for how the cable attaches to the front wheel hub.

Speedy Jim

WHAT! probably the dust cap on the hub is worn making the cable just spin in the hole. get a new cable and dust cap for the hub. Easy repair. If the speedo is broken - get one from a junk yard. most older cars the odometer reading doesn't mean squat. My registration says odometer exempt as it is past its mechanical limits. I think my 66 has 387700 miles on it, but the odo only has 5 numbers so it reads 87700 I figure at almost 10k miles a year for 39 years - so its close, but I don't really care... : )

BTW tire size will affect the speedo and odo... 135/15's on the front of a bug will offset the speed and milage by around 8 mph faster than you are really going...

At least now you know one shop to avoid, unless they actually looked at the speedo and determined that it's binding up.

You can buy a new cable and install it yourself. Just pay attention to how the old one was routed.

Once you've got the old one out, cut a 6" piece of the old center wire to use to spin the speedo just to check that it turns freely. It should be completely free. A drop of oil between the speedo input shaft and the body casting is a good thing.

----------------------------------------------- Jim Adney snipped-for-privacy@vwtype3.org Madison, WI 53711 USA

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It was a good suggestion to replace the cable first. Before I did, I examined the existing cable by disconnecting the end from the speedometer, and removing the hubcap and the clip that keeps the cable in place on the wheel in the square hole. I could easily spin the cable, there was no binding at all as I saw it spin on the opposite end. I then disconnected the speedometer end and did the opposite, so it looks like the speedo is indeed out, needle doesn't move. Big bucks? as I would like to retain the original speedo and not go to the junk yard. Has anyone done their own repair on the speedometer? Thought I better ask before I atempt to take it apart.

-tom

Hard to believe the speedo is actually "broken". Take it out of the dash. Insert some small tool into the square drive hole where the cable connects and see if you can turn it.

If you *do* decide to disassemble it, here are the problems: It's difficult to "uncrimp" the chrome ring without damaging it. To get to the "innards" requires removing the speedo needle. Hard to do without damaging the finish on the needle.

See if you can turn the input drive first...

Speedy Jim

I've done it! ;)

All the lubricant in my speedo had dried itself out after 35 or so years and it was making an absolutely nauseating shriek whenever I started driving.

The chrome ring has those little divits where the 'ears' of the speedo stick out, I found I was able to sneak a flathead screwdriver into that spot and gently pry the ring off. No damage whatsoever.

Removing the needle wasn't neccessary either. With a bit of wiggling, the entire assembly slides out of the casing once I took out the screws on the back.

Reassembly was a little more tricky because I had to guide everything back together and there's a tube inside there that can be a pain to guide where it's supposed to go, it's a trick that got easier after two or three dissasemblies.

Only real complication was the little twisted metal tabs used to hold the innards together. It's a very soft metal, and it doesn't take much for them to snap off. My "backyard redneck" (acutally I did it at my computer desk) solutions for that particular failure shall not be detailed here.

It should be possible to lube up most of the pieces without un-twisting any metal anyways.

A page of pictures I did up on it, incidentially from a '66:

Nice writeup. I was on the edge of my seat while reading your speedometer adventure. Those little bent tabs! Nerve-wracking! :-)

Excellent job! Bravo.

Bookmarked.

Speedy Jim

The day you find reading about a speedometer exciting is the day you need to go buy the LCB back. ;)

Next time I'll throw it in a mud puddle outside and hook up a winch to pull it out, really get your blood pumping.

Yessss! Take pictures! :-)

Yes, ditto, awesome! Great explanation with detailed pictures. My speedometer was indeed seized and I will attempt to disassemble Your data will help guide me in the right direction. Seth, you and Speedy Jim have been of great value to this VW group. This is what makes this newsgroup work. Thanks again for all your help.

-tom