I am new to the group. Have just gotten another 73 convertible. Will post some pictures when I have back together. My problem is the instrument cluster lights did not work. So thought, after some research, I would change to LED bulbs and while I was at it I would replace the printed circuit and dash voltage regulator. Everything was going great until I got to the disconnect speedo cable part. Every thing I have read says press the tab and remove the cable. Have tried and tried cannot seem to get the tab to move. Is there a video actually showing this being done? Have scars on my hands trying to do it.
Speedo cable issues
- Thread starter Wayne Gursky
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Hey, Wayne! Welcome to the forums and howdy from Texas!
Yep, those speedo cables can be difficult. Have you tried pushing the connector in towards the speedo then trying to depress the release before pulling the cable out? That tends to work for mine.
Yep, those speedo cables can be difficult. Have you tried pushing the connector in towards the speedo then trying to depress the release before pulling the cable out? That tends to work for mine.
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yes I have tried to do that. Does not seem to move. I can seem to feel the tab move a bit but not enough to pull off
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https://7173mustangs.com/threads/help-with-removing-cable-from-speedometer.37208/
Some additional insight and welcome to the group.
Update: The search feature works well on this site. It has lot's information. Wiring diagrams can be found on the wiki page.
Some additional insight and welcome to the group.
Update: The search feature works well on this site. It has lot's information. Wiring diagrams can be found on the wiki page.
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BTW, I wrote the info in that post when I was having problems with removing the cable. Back then I figured out that when pushing the tab on the plastic piece you can't support your hand/finger on the opposite side of the piece. Rather, you support on the cable or metal piece. See post for pictures. However, I tried to remove my panel last year trying my own method that worked when I created that post, but I was unsuccessful. I ended up doing the work I had to do without removing the panel since I didn't want to deal with breaking something. Those things are a pain in the butt!
Hi Wayne, welcome from the UK. I had problems with my speedo bouncing around after I had the dash board out, because I had not fully inserted the speedo cable fully home. I found it easier to remove the speedo cable from the gearbox end first, and this allows you to pull the dash board out alot further to gain access at the back. When you remove the cable out of the gearbox, just wrap some masking tap around the end of the drive gear so that the inner drive cable does not come out from the outer sheath. As the Sherriff said, you will have to push the cable in towards the back of the speedometer quite firmly and then press the two outer tabs in to release it from its housing. You may find tilting the cable from left to right as you pull it out.
I jacked the back of the car up and placed it on axle stands to remove the cable from the gearbox, and when you have finished the speedo cable job and placed the speedometer back on to its dash mounts with the 4 screws, go underneath the car and check that the inner drive cable has not pushed out from the outer sheath. Remove the masking tape, being careful not to pull the gear away from the outer sheath and rotate the gear with your hand and at the same time push the inner drive cable into the outer sheath. This will enable the square shaped end of the speedo drive to engage further into the speedometer and give you a positive drive connection. You can now check that the speedo works fine whilst the car is up on the axle stands, and that the needle does not bounce around when you put the car into drive. DO BE CAREFUL WHEN CARING OUT THIS LAST TEST, AND THAT NO ONE ELSE IS AROUND WHEN THOSE BACK TYRES START TURNING
I jacked the back of the car up and placed it on axle stands to remove the cable from the gearbox, and when you have finished the speedo cable job and placed the speedometer back on to its dash mounts with the 4 screws, go underneath the car and check that the inner drive cable has not pushed out from the outer sheath. Remove the masking tape, being careful not to pull the gear away from the outer sheath and rotate the gear with your hand and at the same time push the inner drive cable into the outer sheath. This will enable the square shaped end of the speedo drive to engage further into the speedometer and give you a positive drive connection. You can now check that the speedo works fine whilst the car is up on the axle stands, and that the needle does not bounce around when you put the car into drive. DO BE CAREFUL WHEN CARING OUT THIS LAST TEST, AND THAT NO ONE ELSE IS AROUND WHEN THOSE BACK TYRES START TURNING
Thanks. I guess I may try this. Have to get the cable off because I want to change out the printed circuit and voltage regulator.
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You may be pushing the clip in the wrong place. Where you need to push it in is as close to the speedometer that you can. The notch that hooks onto the speedometer housing is right against the housing and the clip has to be pushed over about an 1/8 of an inch at the housing.
disconnecting from the transmission worked like a charm. Should have thought of that myself, would have saved several days of frustration. Thanks again.
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