Series 3 speedo cable hell ...

So my speedo stoped working.. turned out to be the cable had burnt through where it touched the exhaust ..
oh btw i'm in a LHD version.
NO worries I bought a new one ( from paddocks ) all was fine for a month ... then over the weekend it whent bonkers .. upopn inspection I found that the plastic clip thing that held it into place on the speed had broken.

My questions are:
1. could this becuase i routed it wrongly putting to many bends in the cable (see explanation below)
2. is it just cheap
3 are the OE ones nay better than the Britpart version
4 is there a fix for this, like a cable tie

current route to the speedo is:
out of the left hand side of the transmission (a rh bend)
up n over the handbrake bar (over head bend)
along the tunnel
over the starter motor (up wards bend)
up towards the bell housing (rh bend
over towards the bulkhead (lh bend)
into the bulkhead (overhead bend)
into the speedo
Would it be better if the cable runs along the RH side of the transmission and therefore made a smoother curve in the engine bay ..

Simon

I would run the cable the smoothest way it is possible to find keeping it away from heat sources.

A Britpart one I presume if so from memory they was made too short for some reason even if they was routed right always pulled on the said clip or just snapped but a good make one like Bearmach will do the job nicely.

I know yours is a L/H/D one so length wise it should have been ok but for a little bit extra money I would replace it with a Bearmach one just for peace of mind

I'm currently rebuilding a 1970 2a but will be using S3 clocks so will get a Bearmach one when I'm ready

It can be becuase the inner is the wrong length. You need a bit of slack or else it will press on the back of the speedo. This will work for a while until it wears the little plastic thrust bearing then it presses the rotating magnet nearer the ally cup and the speedo reads 100mph. The other way they go mad is if stiff near the dash end (sharp bend), they dry then wind up and un-stick so the speedo slows down then goes mad over and over again. Make it striaght, take the inner out and molybdenham grease it all.

tottot said:

I would run the cable the smoothest way it is possible to find keeping it away from heat sources.

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X1 the route described doesn’t sound correct it should bend out the gearbox along and up by the bell housing to the hole in the bulkhead. The other plastic end is hard enough to clip in so if it’s twisted and bent too much it creates torque at the fixing point.

LH drive speedo cable is a different part number and longer than the right hand drive version.

Blackburn said:

LH drive speedo cable is a different part number and longer than the right hand drive version.

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Of course, to reach the dash.

Why would it need to be longer John the LH drive dash is closer the gearbox connection?
I only found out when I bought a LH drive one from this company https://www.thexmod.com/ good quality part so fitted and still in use.

Blackburn said:

Why would it need to be longer John the LH drive dash is closer the gearbox connection?
I only found out when I bought a LH drive one from this company https://www.thexmod.com/ good quality part so fitted and still in use.

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You would think so but it is indeed longer & by the way now having taken it off so many times to try different routes the plastic bayonet on the dial end broke ..
So now i'm using my GPS as a speedo until further notice.

And guys could the strange rattle that I now get from down there be anything to do with the speedo drive on the gearbox output or more likely a clutch plate spring ..( it comes and goes)

Simon

Blackburn said:

Why would it need to be longer John the LH drive dash is closer the gearbox connection?
I only found out when I bought a LH drive one from this company https://www.thexmod.com/ good quality part so fitted and still in use.

Click to expand...

I was imagining the distance required cos of where it comes from the gearbox and having to get to the L/H side of the dashboard?

You could try fitting the Speedo end first and gently push the clocks back whilst easing the cable through the bulkhead. What's left is what you've got to reach the gearbox.
Run it the smoothist shortest route to the box. There will be no strain at the clock end then.