gcgarner

I just got my car back yesterday from an engine/tranny/rear end swap. Everything is good except on my way to work this morning, I heard a "buzz" or "whirring" noise that lasted for about 1 second. Everything was fine after I heard it, so I didn't think much about it. Well, about 1-2 minutes later, the speedometer needle fell all the way to 0. Didn't move at all. Tach and all other gauges were working perfectly. I drove about 3-5 more miles and I never got a SES light (I was expecting one). Anybody got any ideas?

BigBadLou

iTrader: (3)

I'd think that the VSS died but you say that you didn't get the SES light which would be counterindicative.
Does your cruise control still work? If so, it's not the VSS.

More importantly, where the did sound come from? Dash? Center console? Under the car? Behind the car?

Lou

gcgarner

Thanks, Lou. I couldn't tell exactly where the sound came from, but if I had to guess I would say either near the firewall or under the car. I didn't check the cruise. I will this afternoon. The good news is it is probably going to be up to the shop that worked on my car to do the fix. There were a lot of parts removed and replaced/put back with all the work I had done. Chances are it's something having to do with that.

What's weird is that the speedo hand fell a few minutes after I heard the buzz. It might be completely unrelated.

If it's not the VSS, what could it be? Wouldn't I have gotten a code if it was the drive/driven gears? I hope I don't have to replace the speedo.

And what are the advantages to an electronic speedo? Why didn't they just leave these cars with a cable?

gcgarner

OK ... so I took the car back to the shop to get my new rear end gears checked (they were whining a little on a pull), so I haven't had a chance to check the cruise yet. The guys at the shop checked the VSS and said it was working fine. They took my car on a test drive and said the speedo was working for about 5 miles, then it died again. They haven't had a chance to check anything else since it was about 5 p.m. today and time to go home. Any ideas?

BigBadLou

iTrader: (3)

Replied to your PM.
Let us know what you find, I'm curious.

Lou

gcgarner

I have a 700r4 out of a 3.1 V6 car with a 3.23 rear ... I'm assuming the VSS will interchange? If so, it's free for me to try!

My mechanic said he pulled the VSS the other day. Surely he would have seen wear on the driven or drive gears. The gears are brand new.

I will keep you posted! Thanks for your help, Lou!

gcgarner

Here's my progress:

To start with, I'm getting Code 24 after about 5 minutes of drive time now.

I got an ECM out of a donor vehicle and installed it (figured that was the easiest install of the three: VSS, speedo, ecm).

Didn't fix my problem. I didn't really expect it to.

I disassembled the gauge cluster on my V6 parts car and removed the speedo. I haven't put it in yet. I don't really want to do this at all since my cruise isn't working either, and Lou said that the cruise and speedo not working in unison points to VSS rather than speedo itself.

As I said before, my mechanic said that he checked the VSS (I guess with a voltmeter?) and said it was fine. I talked with him again this week, and he confirmed that it was OK when he checked it. He also confirmed that the speedo gears were in great shape.

I guess I'll pull the VSS off my V6 parts car and try to install it. I just hate to get under that car. I'd have to put it on jack stands on dirt. I can't move it to pavement as there isn't any within 200 yards of it, and that's a busy road. I might try jacking it up and putting some old steel wheels under each of the tires. That would make me feel safer than jack stands.