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Intermittent speedo 200

posted by  Carlos the Jacker on  Mon Feb 17 02:13 CST 2003
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So I got under there and took the plug out of the diff (was safety-wired!) and cut the wire up inside the storage compartment, and then replaced that section of wire (I voted it "Most Likely to Have A Break In It") with some test-lead wire.

At first I thought I had it, the speedo worked, but then it didn't, and it started acting the same old way (jumping around, then suddenly working after a hard turn or hard brake, or just in the middle of a drive with no real provocation).

So now what?

I already tightened the three connectors at the back of the speedo, and have reached up behind there at speed (not easy) and tried to affect it with no success.

I find it hard to believe the the run of wire from the back of the car to the front could have a break, since it's in a protected tube with lots of other wires that aren't broken.

The only things I can think of are:

1) Tighten the connectors on the diff plug, which I didn't do because I was afraid of breaking that little grey plug-case in the cold.

2) Solder the connections onto the back of the speedo.

3) Find a ground somewhere that only affects the speedo and nothing else in the gauge area, and fix it.

4) Replace speedo ass'y.

Anything else?

5) Get another car, is rising with a bullet right now....&^)

Thanks, as always.








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    Intermittent speedo 200 1988

    posted by  corky310 on  Mon Feb 17 18:52 CST 2003
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    I've had the same problems with mine. I posted a message a few days ago but got no responses. Let me know what you find out. Meanwhile I'm going to try to take the speedo out and press those little pins down to make a tighter fit on the wire that attaches to the circuit board on the speedo.








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      Intermittent speedo 200 1988

      posted by  Carlos the Jacker on  Tue Feb 18 04:13 CST 2003
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      Missed yer post; this may sound strange, but I often have other things to do besides work on or diagnose my car issues online, and the Brickboard is a proven time vortex, capable of making whole days vanish into thin air if I start reading posts...&^)

      I posted about this some months ago, you could search for that one, and got some answers, mostly saying that the senders don't often go bad, but the wiring does.

      So I messed with the wiring at both ends, to no good end.

      I'd try another speedo, but since the whole thing works/quits I keep thinking that the speedo/odo is good, and there's another problem, whatever it might be.

      Replacing that rear section of wire is a PITA, the test lead won't go through the stock sleeve, so used long lengths of duct tape wrapped longitudinally on the wires from opposite sides, and then threaded that mess through.

      Used dilectric grease on the plug as well, but will go back in and tighten the plug connections when I can get under the car again.

      Meanwhile wondering if it's worth continuing to chase electrical gremlins on the old girl, or if I should just have her parted and crushed in the name of sanity (mine).








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        Intermittent speedo 200 1988

        uid 27's pic
        posted by  Art Benstein on  Tue Feb 18 06:25 CST 2003
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        last visit: Fri Oct 17 20:10 CST 2014
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        This might be something of a project, but probably what I'd do in your place (if you haven't already).

        The multimeter I have has an audible beep for continuity tracing. The threshhold conductance it alerts is related to the resistance range setting, so the coil resistance of the sender would provide a beep, if the right range is chosen. You wouldn't need this feature if you could get a helper to watch the meter, but it is really great for tracking down intermittent open circuits without assistance-- you can wiggle things to your heart's content.

        But, seems I heard somewhere the insulation fails. I don't know if this is on the silicone wires you replaced or somewhere else. You'd probably have to set the meter on the lowest range to use the opposite mode, detecting a short while wiggling.

        If you still have the broken tamper lock for the speedometer plug, you can split a piece of vacuum hose and wedge it behind the side closest to the clock/tach. This might aid the pin tightening you plan for the edge connector.
        --
        Art Benstein near Baltimore







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