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W463 Odometer not working
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Posted 4/13/2020 8:24 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
W463 Odometer not working

Hello folks,

Been a while since I've been on the forum.... I'll blame it on life.

My G's odometer stopped working recently and I'm hoping you folks can help me with the fix.

For some time the speedo needle would bounce at around 50k. Particularly when cold. But that was it. I had the vehicle in for other service and asked them to lube it, which they claim they did, but this did not affect the bouncing needle.

Then the odometer stopped working. I was wondering if these might be related? The closest thing I could find on the internet was in the DIY on here by elevatorbernie on disassembling the instrument panel. But I couldn't tell exactly what I should be doing to the gearing.

I am wondering if this is likely a job where I send my instrument cluster away to be repaired (I live in a small town), or does it have something to do with the speedo cable?

Tips appreciated!

Thanks
#241641
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Author
Posted 4/14/2020 7:40 AM
gerryvz
Extreme Veteran




Date registered: Apr 2014
Location: Annapolis, MD
Vehicle(s): 1994 G320, 1989 560SEC, 1994 E500 (W124)
Posts: 336
300
Re: W463 Odometer not working

The odometer is driven by a series of plastic gears. What happens when the odometer fails, is that one of the gears has broken with age - the teeth break off.

It's fairly simple to remove the instrument cluster on your G and replace the gears. I have a HOW-TO on doing this (you have to ensure that you get the correct gear set -- there are several vendors that sell the gears).

HOW-TO link is here: https://www.500eboard.co/forums/threads/how-to-replacing-odometer-ge...

The speedo cable bouncing is a cable issue and is unrelated to the odometer. The solution for that, realistically, is a new cable.
#241644 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 4/15/2020 1:00 AM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
Re: W463 Odometer not working

gerryvz,

This is excellent information and very much appreciated. Thank you!
I've found and ordered the gears.

The last time I had my instrument cluster out, just putting it back in took more than the time it took you to do the entire job. My fingers couldn't reach something I had to line up while seating the cluster. I can't remember the specifics, but my hands have not forgotten the beating they took and this was about 10 years ago!
#241645 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 4/15/2020 11:20 AM
gerryvz
Extreme Veteran




Date registered: Apr 2014
Location: Annapolis, MD
Vehicle(s): 1994 G320, 1989 560SEC, 1994 E500 (W124)
Posts: 336
300
Re: W463 Odometer not working

It's not a big deal to remove the cluster, particularly if you have the factory hooks (they are cheap) or eBay hooks (also cheap) to remove it. There are a lot of connections on the back end of the cluster to remove/release. You also may need to remove the steering wheel to remove the cluster, because there is not enough room to have the cluster clear the wheel once it is pulled out of the dashboard.
#241646 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 4/19/2020 11:28 AM
gerryvz
Extreme Veteran




Date registered: Apr 2014
Location: Annapolis, MD
Vehicle(s): 1994 G320, 1989 560SEC, 1994 E500 (W124)
Posts: 336
300
Re: W463 Odometer not working

Make sure you update us on how your repair went !
#241655 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 4/30/2020 10:09 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
Re: W463 Odometer not working

I'm back...

Received the parts and got to work. I've had the instrument cluster out before, so no big deal - except I know getting the speedo attached when I put it back will be a challenge.

Anyway, mine doesn't look like yours. At all!

I'm trying to separate the two halves but the rod linking the speedo assembly to the needle is the only thing attached and it doesn't come apart easily. Not sure if I should force it. Will try and add photos if I remember how.
#241673 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 4/30/2020 10:16 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
RE: W463 Odometer not working

Trying to add photos.... that was as big as I could get them to upload. Not super detail, but you can see it is quite different. Any ideas?

Edited by jnicol 4/30/2020 10:24 PM




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#241674 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 5/4/2020 11:19 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
Re: W463 Odometer not working

I've decided that I cannot get this apart myself. So I have called around and so far cannot find anyone in Canada or the US that will touch an instrument this old (1991).

Does anyone out there have a suggestion of who I might try to call?

Thanks!
#241697 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 5/5/2020 6:50 AM
gerryvz
Extreme Veteran




Date registered: Apr 2014
Location: Annapolis, MD
Vehicle(s): 1994 G320, 1989 560SEC, 1994 E500 (W124)
Posts: 336
300
Re: W463 Odometer not working

There are several firms that can fix this.

Overseas Speedometer

http://www.speedometer.com/


Palo Alto Speedometer

http://www.paspeedo.com/


#241698 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 5/6/2020 2:02 AM
Otiswesty
Administrator




Date registered: Jun 2007
Location: Portland, Oregon
Vehicle(s): 463.241, 461.213
Posts: 3002
2000
Re: W463 Odometer not working

I highly recommend PASpeedo, Palo Alto Speedometer. They have done work on a number of speedometers for me and no complaints. Expect it to cost about $300 ballpark tho.
#241701 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 5/6/2020 9:39 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
Re: W463 Odometer not working

Update:

Overseas was among those listed in the calls above. I was going to call Palo Alto but when all the others had failed me, as did youtube, I decided to put my thinking cap on..... I managed to find the problem by using my drill to turn the speedometer.

With the drill turning the gears quickly enough I was able to see which gears were turning and which weren't. Interestingly, when the drill was in forward, it turned the gears in reverse and everything worked... including the trip meter counting backwards! I flipped the drill to reverse and it worked for half a turn then stopped. I repeated this back and forth and determined the gear is only worn in one direction. In a pinch I can run it backwards, but I doubt I'll get much life out of it.

So now I am left trying to find the small white gear pictured below. No luck on the vast interwebs yet.

Found this post:
https://clubgwagen.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12738
I am not registered on clubwagen - if anyone here knows use rhd280 and can send them here, that would be appreciated. They had the same issue but the thread stopped before it was resolved.

note: will post pics in a separate post...

#241705 - in reply to #241641
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Author
Posted 5/6/2020 9:51 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
RE: W463 Odometer not working

Photos here: the gear in the middle, screwdriver pointing at it.

Note for others: removing this is not that hard. I was unable to get into the main unit as noted above, but I was able to open things up enough to pull this rod out.
1. remove the two small black screws on the speedo face plate
2. carefully not direction as the stopper post for the speedo needle will force the needle in the wrong direction - you can now spin the face place such that the hole in the top (caution symbol) allows your screwdriver to remove the three brass coloured screws which allows everything to become loose.
3. now you can reach the flat head screws (inside, and only from the side) to loosen the lower section and remove the rod.






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#241706 - in reply to #241641
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Posted 5/8/2020 12:42 AM
Otiswesty
Administrator




Date registered: Jun 2007
Location: Portland, Oregon
Vehicle(s): 463.241, 461.213
Posts: 3002
2000
Re: W463 Odometer not working

Maybe this one could be made to work. It looks like your is 12 tooth.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/12-tooth-odometer-gear-speedometer-cog-for-...



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#241708 - in reply to #241701
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Posted 5/8/2020 12:47 AM
Otiswesty
Administrator




Date registered: Jun 2007
Location: Portland, Oregon
Vehicle(s): 463.241, 461.213
Posts: 3002
2000
Re: W463 Odometer not working

Also this post
http://www.pointedthree.com/disc/forums/showthread.asp?tid=12524&po...
#241709 - in reply to #241641
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Posted 5/10/2020 10:05 PM
jnicol
Elite Veteran




Date registered: May 2008
Location: Cranbrook, B.C. Canada
Vehicle(s): 91 300GD, 911 (993), Dodge Durango, Subaru rally
Posts: 680
500
Re: W463 Odometer not working

Thanks for the tips.

There are a lot of similar looking gears and instruments, but nothing that exactly matches.

I've decided to send to Palo Alto for a complete rebuild. They say they have a few of these rare gears left and have no source to replace them when stock depletes.

#241718 - in reply to #241641
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