Speedometer trouble

M

mrrbby

NAXJA Forum User

Location

Huntington, Vermont

• May 23, 2008

• #1

My speedometer in my 96 xj isn't working properly. The needle bounces, if it decides to work at all. I'm running stock gears, 34" tires. Unfortunately, it was doing this when I bought it. I picked up a truespeed to correct the speedo, needle was still bouncing. I've put in a good vss from a 94, that was working correctly, still bouncing. Swapped in a spare gauge cluster, still bouncing, if it moved at all. What should I be looking at here? I'm at a loss here. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

4

4LowandGo

NAXJA Forum User

Location

Kennesaw, Georgia

• May 23, 2008

• #2

http://www.nagca.com/grandtech/speedometerregearing.htm

I googled this... Have you adjusted your speedometer gear retaining housing like they show in the bottom illustration on the link above? I would guess that it is a little off and the speedo gear isn't touching the gear in the t-case properly. It's a simple fix.

It's just a guess though.

 

M

mrrbby

NAXJA Forum User

Location

Huntington, Vermont

• May 23, 2008

• #3

I'll give it a shot, and let you know. Thanks for the info.

 

apsdad

Cherokee Madness

Location

Ohio

• May 23, 2008

• #4

Do you have a tach? Is it bouncing also. I had that problem (bouncing speedo and tach on my 96 XJ) a while back. It was a bad ground to the cluster. I tried cleaning the connectors to the cluster, but that didn't help. I ended up running a ground wire directly from the cluster circuit panel to a chassis ground. Haven't had a problem since.

 

M

mrrbby

NAXJA Forum User

Location

Huntington, Vermont

• May 23, 2008

• #5

No, the tach isn't bouncing, but I can give that a try too. Thanks.

 

Yucca-Man

NAXJA Member # 683

Location

Castle Rock, CO

• May 23, 2008

• #6

Did the 94 use the same VSS as the 96? I thought there was a difference.

I'd normally say VSS is the primary suspect in this case, but clocking the speedo gear incorrectly can certainly cause the same problem. I had the same problem with my 96 after I bought it and the dealership finally relented and swapped in a good VSS. Voila, no more 80mph in a drive-thru...

Jim www.yuccaman.com

 

C

cbtb87

NAXJA Forum User

Location

oregon

• May 24, 2008

• #7

I don't know if a '96 is an electric speedo or cable driven. If it is cable driven you can dump some graphite down in the cable housing from the speedo side. Sometimes the cable inside the housing gets in a bind. Steel on steel. Its an "old school" fix but it works. DO NOT USE OIL OR WET LUBRICANTS! They work great at first, but it only worsens the problem later on.

 

Yucca-Man

NAXJA Member # 683

Location

Castle Rock, CO

• May 24, 2008

• #8

cbtb87 said:

I don't know if a '96 is an electric speedo or cable driven. If it is cable driven you can dump some graphite down in the cable housing from the speedo side. Sometimes the cable inside the housing gets in a bind. Steel on steel. Its an "old school" fix but it works. DO NOT USE OIL OR WET LUBRICANTS! They work great at first, but it only worsens the problem later on.

Click to expand...

'96 is electric, hence the reason we are talking about the VSS (Vehicle Speed Sensor).

Jim www.yuccaman.com

 

M

mrrbby

NAXJA Forum User

Location

Huntington, Vermont

• May 27, 2008

• #9

It was the VSS. It was out of adjustment, not much, but enough. Pulled it, put it in properly this time, no signal to the speedo. My buddy pulled the VSS, and pulled it apart. FULL of mud. How could that happen?:laugh3: He cleaned it out, put it back together, and it works. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.