So I pulled my engine yesterday and had to remove the speedometer cable at the cluster because I could not get it out of the transmission. Now I see why, There was no boot and the cable end rusted away and is seized in the hole. My manual doesn't provide much info for this other than some cryptic comment about not removing the lower section or the pinon gear could fall into the transmission. Any ideas on how to fix this?

 

Take the bolt out then take the gear drive out of the transmission and get the end of the cable out?

 

Yeah, easier said than done, I took the bolt out and removed the tab but that thing wont budge, I've soaked it, pried it, torched it, beat on it and it seems to be a permanent part of the housing. I think I'm going to remove the transmission and cut the cable and drill it out. I'll do it upside down so the metal fragments don't fall into the transmission. I really don't want to open up the transmission since I have no confidence in myself ever figuring out how to put it back together.

 

Remove the bolt and the tab, then twist the gear drive assembly (the thing the cable plugs into).
Twist it until it loosens up and then pull it out from the tranny.

Plan for damage and a replacement cable and gear drive assembly.

 

Well I gave up on getting the whole speedometer gear assembly out but I'm happy to say that I successfully removed the cable. It occurred to me that I needed a really little hole saw to drill it out without damaging the sleeve that it slides into. I didn't know these existed before today but Milwaukee makes these little diamond tip hole saws for cutting glass. I clipped off the cable about an inch away from the hole and was able to carefully drill down through the shaft that holds it. I was hoping that I wasn't going to have to go very deep but I ended up having to drill all the way to where the cable end tapers. By drilling soaking and torching the end and 2 hours of labor I was able to give the cable one last tug and it popped out. That was definitely a bigger challenge than I had anticipated. Here's the cable I remove next to a healthy speedometer cable.

 

Thats amazing - really surprised the gear assembly wouldn't come out for you.
It's only held in with a rubber o-ring once the screw and locking plate are removed.
Did you find this rusted mess at the bottom of the ocean

 

It is pretty rusty... https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-...hread-3288509/ My next big challenge will be removing the flywheel. I might need to borrow a good impact gun because my wrenches aren't getting me anywhere.

 

Actually, there should be a tiny circlip like thing (oddly shaped one), that sits in the groove in the tubular housing you see in the picture. It keeps the cable in place. Worth keeping it there as it will prevent popping out of the cable.

 

Thanks, yes the clip was there and I removed it and expected to just pull the cable out but things didn't go as expected.

 

Sorry to dredge up an old post but this is the best example of this I've been able to find online. I've got a '77 CVCC with this exact problem. The car's a total rebuild so I'm in no immediate hurry. I'm going to coil up the cable and strap it to the engine. When the box is separated and on the floor I'll have another go at it. I'm planning on trying to get the drive gear assembly out and working it on the bench. But even that's going to be a battle royal. Poking about at it under a battery tray is only making things worse.