With the exhaust problems hopefully cured in Manifold Destiny it was time to move to the next item on the list.
After renewing my search for a one piece speedometer cable I found a listing that claimed to support multiple cars – including a 1963 Imperial without cruise control. Most Imperial parts are unique, but the description sounded right and they claimed to have it in stock. Well, you can always return it if it doesn’t fit… Time to drag out the abused credit card and take a chance!
The first good sign was getting a tracking number for a shipment. And a package actually arrived! Hmm, the part that goes in the transmission looks right and the length seems reasonable. Now, is the fitting that screws into the back of the speedometer the right size?
The only way to find out is to check it. Six screws hold the instrument cluster in place; remove those and slide the instrument cluster forward. Where it bumps into the steering wheel before you can see the back of the cluster and the speedometer cable.
The steering wheel needs to be worked on anyway, so find the needed puller, undo the steering wheel bolt, and pull it out. With the steering wheel out it is now possible to move the instrument cluster forward another inch. You can now see the back of the instrument cluster, and it looks like the nut on the speedometer cable is the right size.
Apparently the new speedometer cable is the right length and has the correct fittings on both ends. The only thing to do is install it and see if it works.
With the car up on jackstands, unbolt the old speedometer cable from the transmission and wiggle it out. Which promptly starts dumping transmission fluid out of the now vacant hole. Of course the drive gear needs to be moved from the old cable to the new cable, so you can’t just immediately install the new cable.
Fortunately this was expected and I had a large drain pan in place to catch the transmission fluid. Stuff a rag in the hole to minimize the flow and start working on the cable.
The end of the speedometer cable that goes into the transmission has a gear on it. This gear is specific to the rear-end ratio; this allows the speedometer to work accurately with different rear end gears just by changing the gear on the end of the speedometer cable. Since the rear end ratio hasn’t changed I needed to move the gear from the old cable to the new cable. Undo the retaining clip from the gear, move the gear from the old cable to the new cable, and reinstall the retaining clip. It was actually almost as easy as it sounds.
Next you pull the rag out of the transmission and quickly install the new cable. Wiggle the fitting until the gear lines up inside the transmission and the fitting is flush with the transmission. Install the retaining bolt and the transmission end is done.
Moving to the other end of the cable, the first thing is to unscrew the old cable from the back of the speedometer and then pull the old cable through the firewall grommet and completely remove it.
The new cable is routed through the engine compartment and worked through the rubber grommet in the firewall. At this point it is time to get on your back under the dashboard and work the speedometer cable through the tangle of wires, brake brackets, vacuum hoses, windshield wiper linkages, and emergency brake pieces to somewhere near the back of the instrument cluster.
Hmm, why is the end of that vacuum hose just hanging there? And why is there a fitting on the Parking Brake Automatic Vacuum Pulloff (unique to Imperials) with nothing attached to it? Could this be both a vacuum leak and the reason the automatic parking brake release doesn’t work? Might as well reconnect the hose while I’m in here.
And now back to your speedometer cable program already in progress:
Moving to a new position, ease the new speedometer cable into place in the back of the instrument cluster and tighten down the retaining nut. This might possibly have been a bit more difficult than this description implies…
With the new speedometer cable installed, ease the instrument cluster back into place and reinstall the screws.
The new speedometer cable is now installed and ready to test!
Unfortunately some rather critical parts are missing. The power brake booster is out being rebuilt (again), so the car can’t be driven. But everything “should work” and I can now start on other projects that had been blocked while the AutoPilot was in place.
Next: (hopefully) fixing the gas gauge in Tanks A Lot.