Funeral for an Odometer

[BrooklynMW]

R.I.P. Odometer. Dead at 182696. I know it's the most common problem in the entire history of e30's. But I certainly took great pride having one that actually still worked.....until now.

I have 2-3 technical questions:

-The trip meter stopped working at the same time. That's actually how I discovered it's demise. Is that common? When the odometers go, do the trip meters go with them? The only reason I'm asking is because maybe that means its a fuse and not the gears?

-Say it's not the fuse. I saw it stop with my very eyes. Only about 10 miles ago. Since it's a freshly dead odometer and I caught it early, is there any simple solutions to fixing it before rigor mortis kicks in?

-Could this be my fault? I did something bad. I left the car parked outside for about 9 hours and forgot to shut the sunroof. It was only cracked in the vent position, but as night fell in San Diego, it was a very moist, very foggy night. Could moisture and humidity have effected the odo gears? Nothing else was effected by the vent being open, but I figured I'd ask.

Afterall, what better forum is there to ask stupid questions without being ridiculed for them, right guys?

Thanks in advance!

[ZM Blue Devil]

needs and s50

/thread

[lolcantturn]

needs and s50

/thread

I have been telling him this. It's the only known way to repair an odometer.

[jlevie]

When the odometer gears fail the tripometer usually stops also.

[BrooklynMW]

needs and s50

/thread

Cute. Got one you want to donate?

[BrooklynMW]

Then as suddenly as the gears stopped turning, they started again. Odo is working again.....for now.

Looks like I got 43 free miles.

Now that I got it working and now that it's apparent that it's on the fritz, are there any preventative measures one can take to avoid the odometer breaking completely?

[bmwm42]

Then as suddenly as the gears stopped turning, they started again. Odo is working again.....for now.

Looks like I got 43 free miles.

Now that I got it working and now that it's apparent that it's on the fritz, are there any preventative measures one can take to avoid the odometer breaking completely?

Its already broken that I can guarantee it most likely started working again bc it jumped the broken tooth just a matter of time now

[BrooklynMW]

Its already broken that I can guarantee it most likely started working again bc it jumped the broken tooth just a matter of time now

That'll be a sad day

[M-technik-3]

just get some new gears or buy a cluster with known good gears and crash them together. I think they die due to lack of grease from time to time.

[BrooklynMW]

Since it started working again earlier today, I did a little experiment and realized the numbers are turning at about 57%. (what says 21 miles is actually 38). That'll help me keep track of how many miles I actually do until i can afford to get replacement gears. I see there are lots of threads about repairing the Odo and replacement parts so I guess I'm in good company. Just not at the top of my priorities list right now.

[Kershaw]

go to the local junkyard and start looking for low mileage clusters. pull them and inspect the odometer gears.

[agile30]

Speedo still works?

[BrooklynMW]

Speedo still works?

Yep. All needles work.
Except the gas needle gets stuck on full, but that's been happening for a long time, and not such a big deal. I believe I just need to tighten the nut for that.

[Blaine0002]

if its a vdo, these are cheap and easy to replace

http://garagistic.com/index.php?page=bmw-e30-odometer-trip-repair-vdo-kit

i doubt you will find any gears in a scrap yard, the moment you try and pull them they will bust.

threadjack: when i start my car, my oil temp guage sticks and i need to tap the cluster to break it free.. any ideas on how to fix? thanks

[BrooklynMW]

if its a vdo, these are cheap and easy to replace

http://garagistic.com/index.php?page=bmw-e30-odometer-trip-repair-vdo-kit

i doubt you will find any gears in a scrap yard, the moment you try and pull them they will bust.

threadjack: when i start my car, my oil temp guage sticks and i need to tap the cluster to break it free.. any ideas on how to fix? thanks

Thanks for the link! Looks like that'll be a well spent Sunday. As far as the temp gauge goes, they all stick until the engine is warmed up, at which point they pop up in a "doi-oi-oing" kind of motion. If thats what's happening with your's then you're fine. If its a bigger problem, it's likely you need to just tighten the nut on the back.