Re: unusual speedo failure

[tobyp@xxxx]

Several cars in our club have had the caps repaired by applying 
electrical tape to the outside edge of the cap to make it snug in the 
hub or spindle. This is a fairly common problem, from what we've 
seen. Another challenge is that the cap becomes "rounded off" inside 
where the square end of the cable engages the cap. When that happens, 
the cap will no longer spin the cable. The quick fix is to cut out a 
narrow strip of aluminum or steel sheet (approx. 1/8th inch X 3/4 inch 
X .032 inch thick) give or take. Bend it into a squared off "U", and 
insert it into the rounded out hole in the cap. This fix recreates 
the square shape to properly engage the cable end. Also, the hole in 
the spindle is too large for the diameter of the cable, which allows 
the cable to flop around quite a bit. This wears the cap, cable, and 
can affect the angle drive. The quick fix is to get a length of 
copper, mild steel, or aluminum tube that fits snuggly into the 
spindle hole, and still allows the cable to fit through. Cut to the 
length of the spindle, and gently insert it in. The cable should run 
straighter and quieter through the reduced diameter hole. 

--- In dmcnews@xxxx, "Walter" <Whalt@xxxx> wrote:
> I haven't had time to do anything with my noisy fuel pump, but I did 
fix my
> speedometer. I have never heard of anyone having one malfunction 
like this.
> To make a long story short, the problem turned out to be that the 
dust
> shield (I call it the angle drive hub) was slipping. There was 
about 1mm
> side-to-side play between the dust shield and the hub. Some of that 
slop is
> due to wear. I think that what contributed to this problem was my 
cutting
> the angle drive cable shorter to stop it from jamming in the dust 
shield.
> (I don't recommend this because it frays on the end.) Anyway, now 
the dust
> shield can seat completely into the hub, but there is no longer any
> compression in the angle drive cable to push the dust shield against 
the rim
> to allow it to grab. I fixed this by wrapping some duct tape around 
the
> dust shield to make it hold tighter into the hub. I don't like 
this, but
> it's the best thing I could come up with at this point.
> 
> And, yes, my angle drive and upper & lower cable are well 
lubricated. But
> still the friction in these parts was enough to let the dust shield 
slip.
> 
> There was another list member who fixed a similar problem on his D 
(the one
> where the angle drive cable is too long). He fixed it by making a 
hole in
> the dust shield rather than cutting the cable. If you are reading 
this, let
> us know if your dust shield starts slipping.
> 
> Walt Tampa, FL