How do i change the Speedo meter??

[Guest The_Scorpion]

hi guys,

 

i have bought an uk spec supra but live in the Netherlands.

 

so my speedo points out miles but i need it to point out Kilometers. i have already changed the speedo facia but i asume that the pointers stil responds to miles how do i change this??

 

Thanks!

[stevie_b]

... i asume that the pointers stil responds to miles how do i change this??

 

Sorry, you've lost me there. I would think that by changing the speedo fascia, the issue would be fixed. Changing the fascia isn't something I would recommend when converting a JSpec car to read in miles (probably for TSD related issues), but I don't think it would be a problem the other way round.

[Luxluc]

Just put another overlay on you gauge(s)

 

example : http://www.mvpmotorsports.com/Templates/frmTemplateM7.asp?SubFolderID=920&SearchYN=N

 

 

or go for a whole new speedo

 

example : http://www.mvpmotorsports.com/Templates/frmTemplateM7.asp?SubFolderID=919&SearchYN=N

 

 

Option 1 is the cheapest

[stevie_b]

i have already changed the speedo facia...

 

Just put another overlay on you gauge(s)

 

I think he's already done that, unless I've misunderstood him....

[Luxluc]

Wasn't clear for me though

[Luxluc]

If so ... I don't get the question.

The needle will always point in on direction for a certain speed, whether 100 mph is written on the speedo or 160 kph !!??

[Guest The_Scorpion]

hi,

 

i'll try and make my question clearer,

 

at first i had the idea that when i would just change the facia with one that has KMPH on it it would be fine but somebody told me that the movement of the needle is different and that the signal from the registration point to the guage needs to be altered from miles to KMPH aswel to make the needle move faster or slower or whatever aswel.

 

or is this not true? i have no idea the only thing i know is that since i changed the facia the neelde wont move at all for at least the fisrt 40 KMPH i do!

 

so by that i mean that i can drive 40 to 50 Kmph without the speedo needle moving at all and when i drive like 100 kmph it will point like 30 to 40 so something isnt right here.

now i thought that it might have to do with how i replaced the needle on the pin but i am not sure of this!???

 

anyway does anybody have any tips or know more about this please tell me because i would like it to point correct kmph's

 

Thanks guys!!!

Edited July 24, 2008 by The_Scorpion (see edit history)

[Luxluc]

Are you sure you put the needle correctly right back in place when you replace the overlay?

 

IMO, the speed at which the needle climbs is proportional to the driving speed (and not to what is displayed on the speedo ; compared to modern cars where the first half of the scale goes from 0-60 mph (100 kph) and the second half of the scale goes from 60-180 mph (300 kph).

[stevie_b]

As Luxluc said, it sounds like something didn't go quite right when you changed the fascia. By "fascia", I presume you just changed the piece of card with numbers on it (i.e. the overlay)? If so, it shouldn't have affected the behaviour of the speedo needle at all.

 

At ant given speed, the speed sensor tells the needle how far round the dial to point. If, say, the needle used to point straight up when the car was travelling at 60mph, then by changing the overlay to a kph one, the needle will still point straight up at that speed, but the number written at the straight-up position will be 90 (or whatever the kph equivalent of 60mph is).

 

The alternative way is to fit a Digital Speed Converter (DSC). This will change the behaviour of the needle, so that the needle will point to somewhere else on the gauge when the car is travelling at 60mph / 90kph. When fitting a DSC, you'd want to use your original overlay, and just change the "mph" label at the bottom of it to "kph".

 

However, before trying a different method (and TBH the method you chose should have worked fine), you should trouble-shoot why your needle doesn't behave how it used to (i.e. no speed registered below 50kph).

[Guest The_Scorpion]

ok, thanks for the help guys,

 

could it be that i turned the steel pin to much back when i replaced the pointer?

because i did turn it a bit back to make sure it fell back to zero.

 

anybody knows a gpood technique to make sure that the pointer is back at ist place perfectly?

 

greetz. M

[bluecoup]

there is a thread somewhere think it was the stainless dials that you had to remove the overlay, from that best way it to get on a straight with another car sat at a pre determind speed and put the needle back on

or sell it buy a jspec and remove the speedo converter,

only way to change the odemeter to read km instead of miles is a DSC

lobby the goverment to change to mph i say