We can't seem to find out the solution to this problem...96 Accord LX - the speedometer just doesn't want to work consistently. The speedometer and odometer die at the same time. Each cluster or board, does it's own erratic thing.

We bought a new cluster on ebay - it worked for a while, then died..
The original one...died...tried to resolder it, it worked for a while, then jumped at 20mph and stay there, or went all over the place..
Bought a different (used) speedo board (that clicks off the speedo head) from a forum member. It works sometimes, but then dies.

Can this REALLY be bad luck to go through this many boards (3) and still have the same issue, or is this a VSS problem?

No check engine lights..ever.
Cruise control works when the clusters are dead.

Each "new" board will fix the problem temporarily..or work for a while, then die, but they all have died in different ways. Some get stuck at 20, some just don't work anymore, etc.

 

The SRS light has been on in this car for quite some time, but I don't think that would override the check engine light...

Any help?

Time to buy a new speedo head from honda or go with a VSS?

 

It could be your dash wiring. Try using mutlimeter or voltage tester. Maybe a fuse.

 

Given the fact that the speedometers in these vehicles are a very common problem, it's a strong possiblity that you got that many bad speedo heads. If your cruise is working while the speedo is not that suggests that your vss is producing a signal, but I would check it anyway. It works off of a 5volt reference and pulse grounds it to produce a digital signal. You can check it with a scope or multimeter. I'm a Honda/Acura specialist tech full time so if you need wire colors let me know. If you trace it back to the speedo head, I can repair those. I've figured out what fails in them and repair them for a reasonable price. New units are around $300. Hope this helps.

 

A new speedo head was ordered, it was $145.00.

Figured I would start here with a new, fresh start.

If anyone needs a cluster with a non-working speedo on it (everything else works) (125k miles, automatic, LX), e-mail me at stickercutting@hotmail.com

 

Try majestic Honda. If the new speedo head still doesn't work, you can purchase a printed circuit board. Good luck.

 

Actually, you can't purchase the printed circuit board by itself. This is the board that usually goes out on the back of the speedo. You have the purchase the whole speedo head and board together. It's $165.00 shipped.

I purchased and installed the new speedo this weekend. Everything "seems" to be fixed. The car has 1 mile on it, but it doesn't matter when the car is 10+ years old with our DMV since the miles aren't recorded. I'm just glad it's working, and made note of the original miles. I recommend NOT going with a used cluster on ebay and just biting the bullet and buying a new speedo and install it. It's about 5 minutes to install it into the cluster.

I fought with this problem way too long. It would had been fixed if I opted to just buy a new part to begin with.

To recap:

Cruise control worked - knew it had to be speedo cluster related.
No CEL's - this told me it was speedo related too.

 

is this Nate? lol. how you been?

 

Getting things done around these parts

 

Glad to hear. I wish I knew about this forum years ago when mine went bad. I didn't try to salvage mine. I swapped the boards on the speedo and it still failed.