hi i have an 87 pontiac firebird with the 2.8 v6 automatic transmission and the idiot light dash. so it has a mechanical speedometer. but the speedometer don't work i know its not the cable to the transmission because the odometer still works fine. i was thinking it was the spring behind the needle slipping or something like that? could that be the problem. if so how do i get the needle off and fix it. i can't keep driving without out a speedometer the local cops are real ****** and will give you a ticket for being 1 mile over the limit . trust me i know that from experience . those tickets don't stick but its a hassle i don't want to repeat.

 

bump

 

today the speedometer started to move again all of sudden but not the way its supposed to. its now just spinning really fast. is there any fix to this? please help/

 

I see a couple of options. One is to check the parts section here for a replacement speedo and the other is that you can add an application to some of the newer cell phones with GPS and it will tell you the speed you are traveling at.

I'd be careful pulling it apart as I've seen people pull the needles off and not be able to get them back on correctly.

What MPH is yours? I do have an 85 MPH if you're interested.

Edit: I was thinking that sometimes the cable does cause the needle to oscillate back and forth, so you could try lubricating it or replacing it as well.

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/inte...eedo-woes.html

JamesC

 

the odometer still works perfectly so i don't think it has anything to do with the cable. i just took the front of the cluster so i could see if i could find anything and there is a twisted up wire like thing hanging from it. i am guessing thats the spring thats supposed to be behind the needle. is there a way to replace it. if not it is an 85 mph speedometer so Scorpner how much would it be shipped 14536?

 

How does $15 plus shipping sound? I won't know how much shipping would be until I have it boxed up. I'm guessing around $5-$10?

When I turn the input from the back the needle moves but the trip odometer doesn't reset.

 

I don't care either way so it's fine if you find something else. I was thinking you could also call around some local junkyards and see if they have anything. Might even be a good time to upgrade to a 110 or 145. The 145's are typically a little high IMO though.

 

do i have to replace anything else to switch to a 110 mph speedometer. ill look to see if i can locate 1 if not ill get back to you on yours. 15 is a fair price. mine doesn't have a trip odometer tho just regular. and i agree a 145 mph speedometer is excessive i doubt the v6 will hit a 110.

 

It shouldn't be too hard to find at any local pick-n-pull or someone parting out a car on Craigslist. At a pick-n-pull they may charge the same for the entire cluster or just the speedo, so keep that in mind.
I was referring to the price on the 145 MPH clusters I've seen them as high as a couple hundred dollars. At that price you could get a brand new Autometer and then some.

I bet you could find a 110 for $20-$30 if you look around hard enough, and that would be the difference in shipping right there. With a mechanical, it should be a direct bolt in so no worries there. It's common for the trip meters to go out, JamesC put up a good link for fixing it though.