Changing Speedometer, suggestions please.

I don't know for sure if it can be done Liz, you may have to drop the steering column to get up inside. Only major problem, if it can be done without dropping the dash, is all the ground terminals for the gages are attached to the speedo case. HTH.

after a fun weekend way back when i first got mine i would say only if you have very small wrists and work in braille and have the patience of job
quicker and easier to pull the clock panel forward

not a whole lot of working room behind there. I will go check to see it the connections are properly connected, one thing for sure the light doesn't work either. If I remove the screws in the face of the dash, could I get at it thren without dropping the steeringwheel?

You might be able to get the instrument cluster away from the dash far enough to change out the speedo without dropping thesteering column , but it's going to be tight. On my brown one, I added a support between the inside two dowel? screws to give the Tach side some more support, so the steering column has to be dropped. It's not too awfully hard to drop the steering colum, just aggravating to have to do it again. HTH, Jarrell

steering column has the shear bolts holding it right? I might try the pull the dash forward business, and hope I can work in braille.

I would lower steering column and pull out dash. Search "Threads" and there should be detailed instructions how to accomplish.

Good time to check speedometer cable for frayed outer sleeve or kinks (including at transmission attachment), but it could be speedometer. Lube speedometer cable with graphite.

Make sure replacement speedometer has same W-XXXX (W-1097?) number on face so it registers correct speed. I found replacement dash light bulbs at local VW parts store (#11005 and #7512) or Opel GT Source has bulbs.

In the owners manuel it says the light cluster can be removed from the front with a flat edge screwdriver, hence then pull it out forward. Has anyone tried this, is the plastic in the dash too old to risk this anymore?

The plastic stand-offs that the instruments are connected to are all very brittle by now and would probably be broken by forcing things around without first lowering the instrument panel. The dashpad can stay in.

Most cars would also have had the 2 shear bolts holding up the steering column replaced by now. They would be replaced with normal bolts.

Thanks Everyone, for the suggestions, after I am finished with the annual Fourth Barbeque, and it cools down outside, I will try to do this. So if there are any more suggestions, keep them comming. Really don't want to mess anything up here after all the time Dave spent un-messing everything under there for me.

The shear bolts are already removed so just a 13 mm socket will drop the 4 bolts for the column. Don't forget the lower 2 side bolts and the flasher unit. Then the front screws and it all comes out.
This is easier given the wiring behind the speedo. Putting the Column back in is like playing twister with 2 people but goes back pretty easy.

Do it like nobody said, exactly for the reason BDD said too. Dont forget to put the ground wire (Brown) back when you put the column up. Jarrell

Liz, the lite cluster between the tach and speedo on my 72 works just like advertised, just a push up and the cluster pops out making it easy to change the 5 lites inside. HTH.

Also make sure that the speedo cable is unscrewed from the speedometer before you remove the instrument panel or before you get too far. Having it still attached will break off the mounting studs and the speedo will have no attachment. I posted elswhere how to repair those. While it's out repair any broken ones and maybe put a small drop of sewing machine or 3 in one oil on the threaded studs to prevent corrosion before you close everything back up. Use the oil only after doing any gluing. Must be a superglue (cyanoacrylate) for plastics. The normal stuff won't work.

Make sure that all of the fastener clips are in the proper place and centered on the hole in the corresponding clip before reattaching the instrument panel.
Should be one clip per control panel screw.

Lindsay said:

Make sure replacement speedometer has same W-XXXX (W-1097?) number on face so it registers correct speed. I found replacement dash light bulbs at local VW parts store (#11005 and #7512) or Opel GT Source has bulbs.

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Speedometer usually is W-1062. Number is located below MPH (bottom center) of speedometer. Not sure why I was thinking W-1097???

BDD said:

Having it still attached will break off the mounting studs and the speedo will have no attachment. I posted elswhere how to repair those. While it's out repair any broken ones and maybe put a small drop of sewing machine or 3 in one oil on the threaded studs to prevent corrosion before you close everything back up. Use the oil only after doing any gluing. Must be a superglue (cyanoacrylate) for plastics. The normal stuff won't work.

Click to expand...

JB Weld works excellent for repairing and reinforcing those broken/cracked stud mounts. I question using sewing machine oil only because I think it might eventually break down the plastic (both petroleum based).

The W #s match, it worked at first and might just be a lube problem or a lack of twist on the magnet. Trust me, I'll make it work. The dash was a mismatch and now ok. I think there are bulbs for the dash if needed. This is one of my adopted babies.

Thanks ! the light bulb in the speedo itself doesn't work, or if I remember correctly won't stay pluged in, the whole housing. Only the center light in the light cluster, on the top, and the red one on the bottom, right side. But then again, this car seems to have a mind of its own! One minuet something won't work and like magic it seems to fix? So I don't know quite what to say with that one. "Ghost In The Machine" ?

weird dash panel

well, i went to take out my instrument panel to search for nonfunctional turn signals using instructions from prior posts and destec's fabulous diagram only to discover that i only have 2 mounting screws on the face and my speedo doesn't have more than 2 terminal connections! supposedly this is a 71 gt but the configuration doesn't match the description here or in my manuals. was there another dash that fit that had this setup?

You know I wish I could answer that, went down and looked the the two speedometers I have and they both have 7 connections and 2 light connections, and one cable connection. Hopefully someone who knows their stuff will read your post here and answer the questions you have. The speedometers I looked at I know one for sure was for a 73 GT, the other one I'm not sure what year it came out of.