Hi, noob here.

I have a auto '96 Civic DX hatch.

Recently the speedo and odometer will stop working randomly, like the needle will fall to zero and the odometer wont record miles driven.

Usually it will correct itself or if I push the odometer reset thing down it will work again.

Any idea whats causing this? Or how to fix?

Any help is appreciated.

 

Does your car have the Required service indicator on it?? if it does make sure nothing is stuck in the reset for that. My gauges died on me because that reset button broke when i pushed it in. I ended up having to get a new cluster

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Berge9798 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Does your car have the Required service indicator on it?? if it does make sure nothing is stuck in the reset for that. My gauges died on me because that reset button broke when i pushed it in. I ended up having to get a new cluster </TD></TR></TABLE>

I do have the required service indicator, how do i make sure nothing is stuck in reset for it?

Noob here...

 

trying pushing it in and see if it come back out. it should be a little stiff to push in

 

He was talkin about the reset button that resets the recorded miles. He asking you if your button is stuck. To see if its stuck push in the button and see if it resets the miles

 

no i was not talking about the trip meter. I was talking about the service indicator

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by averyvm &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">He was talkin about the reset button that resets the recorded miles. He asking you if your button is stuck. To see if its stuck push in the button and see if it resets the miles</TD></TR></TABLE>

No, my button is not stuck, it does reset the recorded miles. Sorry if i didnt make that clear.

 

I got the same problem, got another cluster at ebay, same thing, this one doesn't even jump a bit, it's totally dead. don't know what to do. VSS is ok, honda checked it.

 

I have the exact same issue. The only thing I have been able to figure out (after a 2500-mile drive from Utah to New Jersey) is that the speedo and odometer come on faster if I turn my heater on...also the selector switches on my climate control don't work correctly; the air ONLY comes out the dash vents, no matter what selection I make.

Perhaps the problems are related, perhaps not. My speedo was also reading 20 mph higher than actual speed. I took my dash and speedo apart, but couldn't find anything mechanically wrong, although I managed to fix the 20mph disparity by taking the needle off and putting it back on in a slightly different position. I will therefore assume that it is electrical, and that perhaps the heater loosens things up a bit under the dash (the speedo WILL NOT work in the cold weather). Please try this and let me know if that is the case for you, too.

 

I found a solution!!! (maybe)

This problem is all over the net. People are clearly confused and MOST of the forum posts are recommending changing the VSS and the cluster, followed by 1 guy saying "Thanx, that worked," and 15 people saying "HEY I JUST SPENT $400 AND STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM!" A lot of times people with this speedo problem are blowing fuse 15 every time they start the car, and the problem seems to get progressively worse over time. Also, like with mine, several people noticed that having the heater on made a difference. So...apparently there is either a short or a loose connection somewhere, right?

Well, I searched dozens of forums, and a couple of them eventually led me in the right direction. They say that behind the intake manifold the wires rub and get exposed. I guess all you need to do is get under the car, reach up there and put some electrical tape on the bare spots, then make sure fuse 15 is still good. Everyone reported *problem solved* after doing this.

I will do this today and let you know.


Modified by NJEK at 7:38 AM 6/7/2008

 

Take a photo of where the wires are rubbing on your vehicle!! I'm working on this problem myself. I pulled the VSS and the plastic gear teeth look fine

 

Yeah, there's a lot of wires by the IM, take a pic if you can, I have two gauge clusters with the same problem, I don't think it's the clusters, and I've been trying to fix this since a while back.

 

sorry all, i've been out of town for work, haven't had a chance to do it. I did notice, though, that one post I found said it was the firewall rubbing through the wires, and another post said that the wires rubbed raw against the intake so...ya, I guess there are a lot of potential problem spots. I need to do some cleanup in my engine compartment anyway so I'm just gonna look at everything. Get pics when I have a chance.

 

took the whole thing apart, nothing seems to be burnt or stuck on the gauge cluster, wires by the firewall do not rub, I'll double check this weekend to make sure