32 coupe speedometer drive gear needs replacing, how.

oldford

Senior Member
Do I have to pull transmission or backout rear end to change drive gear. My speedometer is not working. I checked the speedometer and its ok. Cable is OK and the cap drive gear that bolts on is OK. So with the cap off I stuck my finger in the hole and I can spin the gear drive. So how do I replace.
 
Sounds like you are missing the drive gear retainer ring rather than a bad drive gear. It is only accessible from the front of the torque tube, which means pulling the rear axle assembly to gain access. Even if it is only a faulty drive gear, you'd still have to pull the axle assembly to gain access.
 
or, perhaps the snap ring has jumped out of its groove. Which it shouldnt if all else is correct.
 
The gear on the drive shaft is splined and fits over the splined drive shaft, so it should not turn with your finger. With the snap ring out of place the gear still should not turn, the spline shaft goes into the U-joint.
Check again it is possible the gear feels like it turns by hand but may not be. There could be a problem with the turtle.
 
"The Turtle". NOTE the potential "problem with the turtle" that TerryOH speaks of picture #2
 

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The gear on the drive shaft is splined and fits over the splined drive shaft, so it should not turn with your finger. With the snap ring out of place the gear still should not turn, the spline shaft goes into the U-joint.
Check again it is possible the gear feels like it turns by hand but may not be. There could be a problem with the turtle.

I agree with this and don't see how it is possible that the splined nubs on part 17285 could have sheared off. If all of them were sheared off, there should have been a lot of broken pieces when you took the turtle off. I too think your turtle gear is the problem as shown above by rockfla.

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In my case, I am not sure which caused which, my hunch is that the gear on the shaft caused the damage to the turtle gear......Like Glennrpm, TerryOH and CAS3 have noted one of three things, the snap ring is missing or came unseated, your gear is like mine pictured AND/OR your turtle gear is messed up. Potentially Two of the three will require the rear to be moved back OR the engine and transmission to move forward/out.
 

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OK as was mentioned. The gear was slick, and my finger was just sliding on top of the teeth. The problem is the turtle. Not the teeth but the hole where the cable attaches too. The hole is worn plus the cable is worn. Put those two problems together and I have a speedometer that does not work. I can not believe I thought the gear drive was stripped. Thanks, everyone was a big help. At least I see the parts that make up the drive.
 
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Mr. Lucky just avoided a lot of work. The turtle is marked on the top with the gear ratio. By removing the metal cap on the cable end of the turtle you can take it apart clean and inspect. Maybe just the speedometer cable is bad???
 
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