odometer/trip meter

[unclemole]

hasnt been counting any miles for about 6 months. want to get it fixed. is there a sensor i need to replace on my tranny or what?

[JustSayGo]

Originally Posted by unclemole

hasnt been counting any miles for about 6 months. want to get it fixed. is there a sensor i need to replace on my tranny or what?

If the speedometer still works the problem is probably in the dash.

[unclemole]

ive heard that it can be linked to the speed sensor in the tranny... i was wondering if anyone knew how to fix it.

[JustSayGo]

There is one sensor in the transmission. It is the VSS vehicle speed sensor. The VSS generates electrical pulses and uses two wires to send the signal in the same way that older cars used a speedo cable to connect to the speedometer. If the speedo or odometer/trip meter works, but the other doesn't, the sensor is working and the problem is in the instrument cluster. A bad vehicle speed sensor will also mess up automatic transmission shifting. You can remove the speed sensor and test it with a DVOM or take it to AutoZone. They will test it for you. If you determine that the problem is in the instrument cluster, shop Ebay for a used cluster (instrument panel) from a car that matches your year and has the same type transmission as yours. Manual or automatic?

[unclemole]

automatic... i heard that the speed sensor wire goes right into the cluster but it splits off... one that goes to speedometer and one that goes to the mileage counters. there might be a bad connection in there too...

[JustSayGo]

Not quite. I too have heard of talk like that. Wouldn't it be simple and less expensive if the signal from the VSS turned one motor to operate the speedo, odometer, and trip odometer like a cable does in an older vehicle? And only one calibration rather than three drives and three calibrations that cost the manufacture millions of dollars more than one. You could open your broken panel, find and repair the bad electrical connections, or mechanical drive problem. Let us know what you find in there. The speed sensor is in the transmission. The VSS signal drives the speedo and the odometer. There is also a part connected to the instrument panel called a Reed switch that translates the same speed sensor signal (not a split signal) and then sends the new translated signal (that never goes to the odometer or speedometer) to the automatic transmission computer. I read about it in the Haynes Repair Manual. You can buy one too. Check Overstock.com or Ebay for the best price.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...category=34229

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2....rod_id=314526#

Then you can tell who ever your listening too the real deal. Quit lettin em pull your leg. Visit

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/

If your car is equipped with an airbag, follow the proper steps to deactivate it before removing the instrument panel.