hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Hello, First let me start off by saying I'm very new to fixing cars. I'm having a problem with my speedo cable on my P15. Speedo was not working when I bought the car so I purchased a new speedo cable and housing. Before installing the new cable, I made sure the speedometer housing was well lubricated and was able to spin it freely when I inserted the new cable and tested it with a drill. So I installed the new very well lubricated cable making sure their were know sharp turns or kinks. Connect the cable up on both ends, took the car out for a spin and it worked! Well, only for about 5 min. I got up to about 40 mph and the the needle just went to 0. I pulled over to the side of the road, unscrewed the cable in back of the speedometer and pulled out a bit so I could look at the cable while I drove the car and I could see that the cable was rotating fine within the housing when driving. I drove back home to inspect further. It appears that the inside cable (not the housing) is slipping out where it connects to the speedometer. Anyone know how I can fix this problem. Glue maybe? Any help would be great. By the way, this is my first post Thanks Brian Quote
Normspeed Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Welcome to the forum Brian. Did you replace the cable and housing or just the inner cable? Maybe the inner cable is a tad short for the original housing. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 Welcome to the forum Brian. Did you replace the cable and housing or just the inner cable? Maybe the inner cable is a tad short for the original housing. Thanks for reply! I replaced both the cable & housing. The cable withing the housing does appear to be a tad short. I can push the cable within the housing forward a bit to make it go into the speedometer but it just slips back out. Is there any way to keep it pushed into speedometer housing? Glue or some type of extender to place on the end of the cable to keep it snug? Quote
BobT-47P15 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Hi Brian. Welcome. Did the cable housing and the cable inner come together as a set? Sounds as if they are not quite matched up.....as you say the cable seems a little short. Maybe a different inner cable is needed. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 Hi Brian. Welcome.Did the cable housing and the cable inner come together as a set? Sounds as if they are not quite matched up.....as you say the cable seems a little short. Maybe a different inner cable is needed. It did come as a set. I guess I could have a new inner cable made but I wanted to know if there was anything else I could try before spending the money on a new inner cable. Quote
Young Ed Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Where did you buy the cable? It sounds defective-perhaps you could trade it for another. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 Where did you buy the cable? It sounds defective-perhaps you could trade it for another. I bought it off of Ebay, Here is the link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360124966514&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&viewitem=#ht_634wt_1061 Quote
Normspeed Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Could there have been a small plastic end piece in that kit, to push on one end of the cable? or, Trying to recall, if the cable end at the transmission is square, then it fits into a square hole in the drive gear. You might try inserting a small wire into the hole, measure how deep it is, then perhaps cut and stick a spacer in there before putting the cable back into the gear. That might force the cable a bit further towards the speedo head. Caution, if you're not comfortable with shade tree work, ignore me:D Spacer could be a very short section of some durable material that is a snug fit in the hole, like nylon rod, heavy weed whacker line, etc. Might be worth removing the speedo gear to work on that. Easy to remove from the transmission. Let us know how it works out. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 Could there have been a small plastic end piece in that kit, to push on one end of the cable? or,Trying to recall, if the cable end at the transmission is square, then it fits into a square hole in the drive gear. You might try inserting a small wire into the hole, measure how deep it is, then perhaps cut and stick a spacer in there before putting the cable back into the gear. That might force the cable a bit further towards the speedo head. Caution, if you're not comfortable with shade tree work, ignore me:D Spacer could be a very short section of some durable material that is a snug fit in the hole, like nylon rod, heavy weed whacker line, etc. Might be worth removing the speedo gear to work on that. Easy to remove from the transmission. Let us know how it works out. The cable is square on both the speedo end and the transmission end. I was thinking of that same idea but was concerned about a stick or spacer getting stuck inside the gear end and would not be able to get it out if I ever needed to. The kit did not come with a small plastic end piece. Do you know of any place that sells just the end piece? If not , i'll just try the spacer thing and hope for the best. Any other ideas would be welcomed! Thanks Quote
moparjack44 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 WELCOME to here. I can not offer any advice, but I am kinda in the same process. I bought a new speedo cable from Atlas Obsolete (951)461-9005), no website. I plan to install it this week. Good Luck, Jackie Quote
Normspeed Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 If the spacer got stuck you could probably worry it back out if you pulled the gear from the trans. A plastic spacer you could heat up a pin or wire, push it into the plastic, let it cool and pull it out. But, I have not actually done the spacer thing, just seems like it might work. I mentioned the plastic end cap only because years ago I saw that in a universal cut-to-fit replacement inner cable. Probably doesn't apply to what you have. One thing about the forum, you'll get plenty of advice and great ideas. This place is a real brain trust of old mopar knowledge. But what works for me might not work for you, or sometimes I might be just plain wrong, so sift through our advice with a critical eye:p . Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 WELCOME to here.I can not offer any advice, but I am kinda in the same process. I bought a new speedo cable from Atlas Obsolete (951)461-9005), no website. I plan to install it this week. Good Luck, Jackie Thanks for the welcome!! Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 If the spacer got stuck you could probably worry it back out if you pulled the gear from the trans. A plastic spacer you could heat up a pin or wire, push it into the plastic, let it cool and pull it out. But, I have not actually done the spacer thing, just seems like it might work. I mentioned the plastic end cap only because years ago I saw that in a universal cut-to-fit replacement inner cable. Probably doesn't apply to what you have.One thing about the forum, you'll get plenty of advice and great ideas. This place is a real brain trust of old mopar knowledge. But what works for me might not work for you, or sometimes I might be just plain wrong, so sift through our advice with a critical eye:p . Thank you so much for your advise! I've been reading a lot of post and it's very clear to me that their are a lot of experts around here. I'll give the plastic spacer thing a try and let you know what happens. Thanks again Quote
BobT-47P15 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 The cable in the picture of the ebay ad looks correct.....the ends both stick out some. However, the seller did say he has many cables and asked for model numbers to try and pin down just what is needed. If you stretch out the complete cable/housing.......do the cable ends protrude like the picture? If not, then probably the inner is a bit short. Quote
BobT-47P15 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 IMPORTANT LOOK IMPORTANT READ THE NEXT LINE !!!!!!!! AT AUCTION END PLEASE GIVE ME YOUR MODEL ,YEAR ,ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION INFO SO I CAN BE SURE TO SEND YOU THE CORRECT CABLE FOR YOUR CAR . !!!!!!! "please note that 1946-1948 i need to know if you need a 63" or 83" cable . these three years show both lengths possible ". below is what the application chart shows !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1946-1948 model "P-15S" from serial number 15158134 thru 15158659 = 83" LONG 1946-1948 model "P-15S "after serial number 15158659 = 63" LONG 1946-1948 model "P-15C "from serial number 11511417 thru 11514421 = 83" LONG 1946-1948 model "P-15C" after serial number 11514421 = 63" LONG . I HAVE THIS STYLE CABLE AVAILABLE IN 38" ,63", 83" AND 100" LONG SOMETIMES THE CABLE IS A LITTLE LONGER THAN THE ORIGINAL BUT FIT AND FUNCTION IS GREAT. I HAVE MANY SPEEDOMETER CABLES FOR ALL MAKES AND MODELS.YOU CAN E-MAIL ME WITH YOUR CAR INFO AND I WILL LET YOU KNOW IF I CAN HELP . Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 The cable in the picture of the ebay ad looks correct.....the ends both stickout some. However, the seller did say he has many cables and asked for model numbers to try and pin down just what is needed. If you stretch out the complete cable/housing.......do the cable ends protrude like the picture? If not, then probably the inner is a bit short. My inner cable does protrude out like in the picture but I can't be sure. It does come out past the end fasteners but maybe not as much as in the pic. Quote
BobT-47P15 Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 Next silly question by me - are you getting the square tip of the cable inserted into the square holes in both the tranny and the speedo? I have also discovered, on my car, that sometimes the speedo works just a bit better when I leave the cap on the back just a tiny bit loose, rather than cranking it down tight as it will go. Just taking another shot in the dark. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 10, 2009 Author Report Posted February 10, 2009 Next silly question by me - are you getting the square tip of the cableinserted into the square holes in both the tranny and the speedo? I have also discovered, on my car, that sometimes the speedo works just a bit better when I leave the cap on the back just a tiny bit loose, rather than cranking it down tight as it will go. Just taking another shot in the dark. Yes, both ends of the cable are squared and they are both fully seated into place on each end. When I start to drive, it works itself back out of the speedo end. That's why I'm going to try an place a spacer on the tranny end to help keep it from working itself out of the speedo end. Thanks Quote
Niel Hoback Posted February 10, 2009 Report Posted February 10, 2009 I seem to recall a small brass spacer crimped on one end of the inner cable. Consider turning the inner cable end for end and see if it works any better. Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 11, 2009 Author Report Posted February 11, 2009 I seem to recall a small brass spacer crimped on one end of the inner cable. Consider turning the inner cable end for end and see if it works any better. Your right, their is a spacer crimped on the speedy end. I'll try turing the inner cable end for end and see if that works. Thats was a very smart thought! If that doesn't work, i'll try the plastic spacer in the tranny end idea. Thank you for all your great ideas. I"ll be working on this project this weekend. I'll let you now how it turns out. Quote
claybill Posted February 12, 2009 Report Posted February 12, 2009 lubricating the cable; dont use grease or even regular oil!! in winter or cool/cold weather it gets thicker and makes it hard to turn..use a graphite or special cable lube. ALSO... give your inner cable and outer cable dimensions to us...we can check. i might have somethng hanging up that would fit better. bill Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 13, 2009 Author Report Posted February 13, 2009 lubricating the cable; dont use grease or even regular oil!! in winter or cool/cold weather it gets thicker and makes it hard to turn..use a graphite or special cable lube.ALSO... give your inner cable and outer cable dimensions to us...we can check. i might have somethng hanging up that would fit better. bill Thanks for the info. If I run into any problems i'll give you the dimensions. I'll report back on Monday with an update Thanks!! Quote
Don Coatney Posted February 14, 2009 Report Posted February 14, 2009 I bought a new speedometer cable and housing from these folks for about 45 bucks. They custom made the cable to the length I gave them. Quote
moparjack44 Posted February 14, 2009 Report Posted February 14, 2009 Well, I installed the 'new' cable yesterday. Nothing:mad: . Now the speedo/odo, does not work at all. I was/am not comfortable with the way it fit into the speedo gear in the tranny. Just feels like when I insert into the gear, the inner cable slides back into the housing:confused: . Of course I can't really tell that it is, just fells to me like it does. Back to the garage:( as soon as I finish this cup of coffee. Jackie Quote
hauntedhouse5 Posted February 16, 2009 Author Report Posted February 16, 2009 Your right, their is a spacer crimped on the speedy end. I'll try turing the inner cable end for end and see if that works. Thats was a very smart thought! If that doesn't work, i'll try the plastic spacer in the tranny end idea. Thank you for all your great ideas. I"ll be working on this project this weekend. I'll let you now how it turns out. Hi Everyone, Well, I tried turning the inner cable end for end and and it WORKED GREAT!!!! The speedo is now working and the cable is staying secured on both ends. I drove it all weekend with a big smile on my face. I do have one more question for all you experts, the speedo needle seems to be a bit bouncy when I go past 30MPH. Like I said before, I've lubricated the speedo and cable but the needle still bounces within about a 10mph reading. Any thoughts on this? I've read some of the other post that talked about this same issue. I might try trimming my cable just a little bit on the speedo side to see if that helps. As it is now, It only screws on about a half a turn before it stops. Cutting the inner cable will allow me to screw it all the way on. Thanks to EVERYONE for making me feel welcomed here and helping me with my problem :) Quote
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