Oopsie - Speedo's gone on holiday

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

Oops... Driving to Lowes today to get some lumber to build my motorhome insides, I had to brake sharply. I think I locked the wheels. Anyway, the speedo stopped working.

I reckon the speedo cable popped out. Not sure what it looks like, where I'd find it etc. I did notice that my accelleration and top speed seem better now. There is a kind of rattle from the transmission. Perhaps the prop shaft rubber mounts need replacing?

How do I fix the lack of a speedo and since the governor is seemingly attached, how do I remove or adjust it?

[bansil]

no help, mine hasnt worked in a few years, probably bad ground(on mine), 1/2 gages dont sork either

I use tach and gps for back up

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

Originally Posted by bansil

no help, mine hasnt worked in a few years, probably bad ground(on mine), 1/2 gages dont sork either

I use tach and gps for back up

How do you power your GPS? My bus doesn't have a power socket. I'm not sure if I can plumb into 12v or whether the bus runs off 24v since there are two batteries.

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by Zephod_beeblebrox2

How do you power your GPS? My bus doesn't have a power socket. I'm not sure if I can plumb into 12v or whether the bus runs off 24v since there are two batteries.

Are your batteries in series, or parallel?

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

I'm not sure. I'll have to look when it stops raining

[bansil]

do you have an android phone? lots of free aps

and I have 120v when traveling due to invertors wired in

the android app matches my gps puck in DeLorme program

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

While I was shopping today I found a USB charger that can bolt onto a flat surface and which is wired in. It's rated at 2.1A. That should charge my phones and run my GPS adequately. I might wire it into the strobe switch since the strobe has been removed. I just hope the strobe was 12v.

[headinthetrees]

A multimeter is cheaper than whatever electronics you might potentially fry.

[icnivad]

My dash displays started going out intermittently, then eventually stopped working altogether. In my case it ended up being the ribon cable socket on the board in the dash. It was visibly disconnected. Eight screws and some easy soldering later I was able to get it working again. Zephod, your problem sounds like it might be closer to the wheels, but I bet Bansil's problem is the same as mine.
And I agree about getting a multimeter. It's essential for any electrical troubleshooting.

[cowlitzcoach]

Every yellow bus I have seen that was built after 1956 has been 12VDC.

The only buses I have seen that were 24VDC were motorcoaches.

If your bus is newer than 1995 it is most likely everything in the dashboard is electronic.

If you are having problems with stuff in the dash it might be easier to pull the dash and replace it with a flat panel and cut in circles to mount standard Stewart-Warner gauges. Between printed circuits, ground issues, etc. you can spend a lot of time and effort crammed in under the dash and be no further in discovering the problem than when you first started. You would also have the benefit of knowing how everything is wired in and where all of the senders are located. Finding all of the OEM senders can be a challenge.

Of course you could go back to the OEM and get OEM movements but be prepared to pay some serious $$$ to do so.

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

I don't know but I'm beginning to suspect the gauges are electronic. When I turn the key, the speedo swings up to 15mph. The speed and rev counter do not display speed nor revs. Clearly the problem is wherever the connection to the engine is located. I have yet to find that.

[Redbear]

Originally Posted by Zephod_beeblebrox2

. . . Clearly the problem is wherever the connection to the engine is located. I have yet to find that.

In some of the skoolie supplier links others have posted, elsewhere on those sites I have seen rebuilt International gauge assembly circuit boards listed. If they are selling them, there must be a market for them.

I suspect the trouble is closer to the steering wheel as icnivad has found. The dash circuit boards may be a known weakness. You may be able to fix a bad ground or solder a wire across a crack in a wiring trace. If not, you may be able to order a new board and mount it to your panel.

[Zephod_beeblebrox2]

Well, there's a thing... Started my bus for the first time in 3 weeks and the speedo.... Worked. Drove to the store and picked up a box of donuts and got back... The speedo kept working!