8 replies to this topic

[Seanyboi6]

My speedo hasnt worked since i bought my mini. the guy i bought it off supplied a new cable.

removed old one and it seems fine, put a drill on the end of it and the speedo clock started reading (so the clock is fine)

new cable is the same as old one but the drive end that fits into the gearbox isnt square , it sort of has 2 flats on it. both cables do but when i looked at the gearbox it looks like a square end is needed,

Could this be why it wasnt working?

How many types of cable have different ends on the gearbox side? or is that side always the same and its just the clock side that varies?

Thanks
Sean

[tiger99]

The Mini drive pinion has a square hole to engage the cable, at least it did on the three I had, and the cable end was square. I note that there are a range of drive pinions, to accomodate different gerabox ratios, but no suggestion that some are made to take a different cable type. Seems like your cable is wrong. But if you could post a close-up picture, it may be possible to suggest some way of making it work.

There are probably many types of end fitting on speedo cables, and to my certain knowledge at least two different types were used at the speedo end in Minis.

It should not be difficult to obtain the correct cable from any proper Mini spares supplier.

[Seanyboi6]

the end of both cables (gearbox side) isnt completeley square, its more flat (as if the end has been round then squashed)
strange how both cables are the same


iv looked and only ones i can find are similar to the one iv got, no site mentions a different end on gearbox side, -just clock side

Edited by Seanyboi6, 24 July 2012 - 08:23 PM.

[tiger99]

Ideally, build the end of the cable up with silver solder or braze and file it square, but if you can do that without overheating and seriously weakening the cable, you have far more skill in that department than me. I think that ordinary soft solder, easily applied, would be too weak.

You could unto the 1/4" bolt, take the pinion housing and pinion out (new paper gasket needed, or use silicone gasket compound), and carefully flatten the cable end of the pinion in the vice until it fits the cable. A dreadful bodge, but if you can't get a cable that fits the pinion, what else can you do?

But before mutilating the pinion, having it out provides an opportunity to try the cable inner in place so you can see exactly how bad the fit is, and whether it really is slipping there. It is just possible that the end of the pinion shaft is what is worn.

[nala56]

I had this trouble with my mini, and i found that the early mini speedo drives had a smaller square than the later ones, I had to fish around in my spare parts and was lucky to find one with bigger square and is ok now, I would not try any thing with cable end there very delicate easily damaged.. Alan

[tiger99]

I would not be totally surprised if they were different, although the usually reliable Somerford Mini web site suggests otherwise. But I think that the problem is more likely due to cheap Chinese cables with inners which are too thin. With all the cables I have had, on any BL vehicle, the diameter of the cable inner was about the same as the diagonal measurement of the hole in the drive pinion, so the end was just filled with braze and machined square. If it has to be flattened instead, it suggests that the inner was too thin to start with.

[Seanyboi6]

got my new cable today from mini spares and it is the same.
Gearbox end of the cable isnt square, it is round then flattened

. fitted it any way to try

How fast will i have to push the car to see the other end of the speedo cable spin? just been pulling the car back and forth with my hand slowly in garage and it isnt spinning.

The clock end of the cable is a perfect square!!!! eaxaclty what i want but the other end isnt, grrrrrrrrr

Edited by Seanyboi6, 26 July 2012 - 03:54 PM.

[Seanyboi6]

the ones that screw both ends look like the one i need, but i have the plastic push fit type into the clocks

The engine isnt standard for my car so maybe i have a mix and match set of clocks and gearbox types

[tiger99]

The engine end is always the same as far as I can tell.