I have a 97 f150 xlt 4.6l and a mechanical odometer, today it all of a sudden stopped working, is this a common problem? What are the parts of this system does it use a cable? Whats prone to failure? Thanks

 

IDK if this applies to your truck, but check these out:

http://www.odometergears.com/
http://www.supercoupeperformance.com...ir%20Inst..htm
http://www.carradio.com/

 

On '97 (and I think '98) there is a vss gear that can be changed to accommodate different gear ratios or tire sizes. The gear is connected to the tranny by one bolt. They are very cheap. Under $10 at the dealer.

 

Do the odometer and speedo use the same gear? Cause my speedo works fine.

 

I have had the same experience with the mechanical odometer in my truck but the speedo is OK; if both are housed in the same instrument group shouldnt both be bad..... I took ot to thr dealership but they wanted US$650 just for the electronic overlay

Chiao

Alfredo

 

The 97 uses an electro mechanical odometer. There is no cable coming from the transmission. The gears inside the odometer can sometimes stick and because the electric motor that turns the gears is not very strong it will not move. I cured mine by a few sharp blows to the top of the dash. Not hard enough to break the plastic but hard enough to jar the gears free. If the speedo is still working than that is proof that the electric signal is getting through to the instrument cluster. It could also be a loose connection. As pounding is easy and best of all free I would try that first. ;

JMC

 

x2 to JMC! I had the speedo sensor sending unit go bad on my truck, its like $100 if that is what died.

 

If the VSS or its gear were the problem, his speedo wouldn't work. It has to be inside the speedo head, specific to the odometer.

 

Same exact problem here. Speedo works, not Odo. Goodyear dealer replaced alternator, then removed cluster looking for electrical drain after hard rainstorm, and the odo numbers looked crooked in the trip odo when they gave it back. I fixed truck myself with help of this board by drying out the fuse box and replacing the leaking windshield.

Thanks for posting this info, I'll try the sharp raps!

 

why fix it. think of all the miles you are not putting on you truck