Door lights *** Moved from How To: install GPS...###

[CFI]

Tired of replacing angle drives? SpeedBox can help with that.

Purpose:
-to bypass the failure prone angle drive with an electronic unit that uses GPS derived speed to drive the DeLorean speedometer.

Time neeeded:
-1 to 1.5 hours

Parts needed:
-SpeedBox GPS to mechanical drive speed converter, available from Speedhut
https://www.speedhut.com/ecommerce/product/2585/SPEEDBOX™-GPS-VSS-to-Mechanical-Drive-Speed-Converter
-wire stripper and crimper
-butt connectors
-Phillips head screw driver
-nut driver with 7mm, 10mm, and possibly 8mm sockets (I’ll explain later)

Part 1, prep work

Begin by disconnecting vehicle battery. Unhook both speedo cables from your Lambda counter in the driver footwell. Use a Phillips head screwdriver to remove the Lambda counter from it’s bracket. Unhook the electrical connector.

Remove the door buzzer from it’s socket in the driver’s footwell.
Cut and strip the black wire from the buzzer connector (second to last position).
OPTIONAL: cut and strip the purple wire from the buzzer connector (first position). Do this if you plan on providing the SpeedBox with constant power for faster acquisition of satellites (it draws very little power to do this).
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Take the wiring harness that comes with the SpeedBox and attach a butt connector to the black wire.
OPTIONAL: attach a butt connector to the red/black wire. This will provide the GPS unit with constant power and enable faster satellite acquisition. This is not required.
The SpeedBox comes with an in-line fuse that needs to be attached to the red wire. You can do this with the butt connectors that are included in the kit. Make sure to put a butt connector an each end of the fused wire.
OPTIONAL: cut the connector off your Lambda counter. Attach the wire coming from the male part of the connector to the other end of the fused wire. You don’t have to reuse the Lambda connector. You could just cut and and splice the green wire from the Lambda connector on your car’s harness.
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Part 2, binnacle work

You will need to partially remove the binnacle. You do not need to disconnect any of the electrical connections on the back of the instrument panel. You only need to remove the binnacle a few inches. Please reference this thread:http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?5085-How-To-Binnacle-Removal-and-Bulb-Replacement.

NOTE: seat removal is not required, but it will give you more space to work with. Also my car had four 7mm nuts and two 8mm nuts holding the binnacle.

With the binnacle partially removed, find where the speedometer cable attaches to the speedometer. Press on the bottom of the retainer clip that holds the cable and gently pull the cable off. Feed the new speedometer cable up through the dash and attach to the back of the speedometer. Remember to push on the bottom of the retainer clip in order to allow the cable to be fully pushed into place. Make sure the cable is secured with a gentle tug. Feed the GPS antenna through the dash and leave it sitting near the windshield just forward of the binnacle opening. Reinstall binnacle. Route the speedometer cable towards the left side of the drivers footwell. Make sure it does not interfere with the trunk opener.

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Part 3, installation

Connect the SpeedBox wiring harness to the SpeedBox. Attach speedometer cable and GPS antenna to SpeedBox. Locate bolt near drivers door switches. Remove the 10mm nut and washer. Mount SpeedBox onto bolt and reinstall 10 mm nut. Try to keep the speedometer cable as horizontal as possible. The second picture shows the SpeedBox prior to aligning the cable and tightening the nut.
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Attach the fused red wire/recycled Lambda connector to the Lambda connector in the car. If you chose not to recycle the Lambda connector you can just cut and splice the green wire from the vehicle’s Lambda connector.
Attach the black SpeedBox wire to the black wire from the buzzer connector.
OPTIONAL: Attach the red/black wire from the SpeedBox to the purple wire from the buzzer connector.
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Hide all the wires behind the vehicle carpeting. Reconnect vehicle battery. Say goodbye to angle drives :)
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[Chris4099]

Very cool. Hopefully the motor inside that unit lasts a long time. Can you hear it while driving or does the engine and road noise cover the sound it makes? I also assume you got the GM clip-on version?

One thing to note, your inertia switch is in the wrong location. There's a recall on that for it to be relocated near the trunk release lever. Put it there (along with a new switch assuming that's the wrong version as well) and then you can remove the whole lambda counter bracket.

[CFI]

Very cool. Hopefully the motor inside that unit lasts a long time. Can you hear it while driving or does the engine and road noise cover the sound it makes? I also assume you got the GM clip-on version?

The unit has a 5 year warranty. Mounting it near the drivers door switches gives the advantage of easy replacement if needed. It also allows easy adjustments should you find the speedometer to be inaccurate.

I can’t hear any noise from the unit but I have a Stage II engine. Normal conversations are tough to hear:)

Yes, the unit is the GM clip on style.

[Josh]

Glad to see another speedbox installation!
i hope it works as well for you as it does for me.

[r00b]

Where'd you have your dash recovered? Also you can add an remove the Speedo cable without removing the binnacle.

[A Van]

Nice write up thanks for posting


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[CFI]

Where'd you have your dash recovered? Also you can add an remove the Speedo cable without removing the binnacle.

DMC Florida. The car was refurbished in 2008. They did an awesome job!

I can’t imagine being able to remove the speedo cable from the back of the instrument without pulling the binnacle up a few inches. There is all sorts of stuff under the instrument panel that gets in your way, and routing the cable without being able to see where it’s going and while pressing on the bottom of the retainer clip would be tough.

Moving the binnacle up a few inches also allows you to place the GPS antenna in a relatively discreet location as pictured in this post.

[CFI]

Nice write up thanks for posting


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You’re welcome! So far the device has been working perfectly.

[CFI]

I wanted to add that I’ve driven a few miles in tunnels with this device and it does not go to zero in the tunnel. It shows your speed when you entered the tunnel and assumes you are maintaining that speed. Once in range of satellites it corrects itself.

[benjamincoyle]

Fantastic write up! Thank you for this! I had one question that I’m not sure if anybody here can answer or not but in the photos for the speedbox it shows a cable that looks a lot like the thread on cables that connect to the angle drive and the LAMBDA so I was wondering if you could not just take the upper cable that runs from the speedo to the LAMBDA already and connect directly to the box?


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[benjamincoyle]

Haha never mind found it on another post that it’s a different thread! Sorry guys!


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[CFI]

Haha never mind found it on another post that it’s a different thread! Sorry guys!


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Yeah the stock speedo cables won’t connect directly to SpeedBox.

[benjamincoyle]

All done and couldn’t be happier! Thank you for the write up!61447


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[Dhennick99]

I have an aftermarket cruise control. Will it still function with this GPS box? Also which speedo cable do I select when purchasing?

[CFI]

I have an aftermarket cruise control. Will it still function with this GPS box? Also which speedo cable do I select when purchasing?

Since aftermarket parts can vary from company to company, I have no idea if SpeedBox will work with whatever setup you have.

Your question about the cable was answered already in post #3.

[FABombjoy]

Cruise control systems are specifically covered in the speedbox instructions

https://www.speedhut.com/instructions/speedbox_r2-10-16.pdf

[jackb]

I have an aftermarket cruise control. Will it still function with this GPS box? Also which speedo cable do I select when purchasing?

I have an Audiovox CCS-100 installed, and it has nothing to do with the angle drive or speedometer. It sendes speed based of a magnet mounted on one of the driveshafts and a sensor to count rpms, and the throttle cable is vacuum operated, and brains of the unit is controlled by a set/hold/faster/slower button in a control box by the driver.

[Josh]

I have an Audiovox CCS-100 installed, and it has nothing to do with the angle drive or speedometer. It sendes speed based of a magnet mounted on one of the driveshafts and a sensor to count rpms, and the throttle cable is vacuum operated, and brains of the unit is controlled by a set/hold/faster/slower button in a control box by the driver.

You can use the vss output on the speedbox instead of that silly magnetic pickup.

[SpudMurphy]

Re the first post - providing wiring instructions.

Door Buzzer
Cut and strip Black wire
Cut and strip purple wire for constant 12 v feed.

Q
Can I leave the buzzer multiplug unplugged afterwards? _ I hate the door buzzer!
- or will it have a knock on effect/detrimental effect leaving it unplugged ?
Cheers

[CFI]

Re the first post - providing wiring instructions.

Door Buzzer
Cut and strip Black wire
Cut and strip purple wire for constant 12 v feed.

Q
Can I leave the buzzer multiplug unplugged afterwards? _ I hate the door buzzer!
- or will it have a knock on effect/detrimental effect leaving it unplugged ?
Cheers

After these modifications the buzzer will no longer function. There is no point in plugging it back in. There is no downside, other than you’ll have no buzzer. It affects nothing else.

[SpudMurphy]

After these modifications the buzzer will no longer function. There is no point in plugging it back in. There is no downside, other than you’ll have no buzzer. It affects nothing else.

OK thanks for the really quick answer.
I'm trying to trouble shoot a problem on the binnacle lights.

I removed the binnacle - had my speedo rebuilt and whilst at it got LED bulbs - except the incandescent one for the alternator.

I tested each LED bulb and marked each bulb so I knew which side of the bulb was positive and negative.

Next I used a simple battery powered continuity tester on the binnacle Flexi PCB and marked what (I thought) were grounds

Now, the only binnacle led bulbs that work are the ones that come on with the side lights (Dimmer is therefore turned up full ... because of the knock on LED dimmer problem).

The incandescent bulb no longer works neither does the oil light ...... thats why I was wondering if the unplugged multiplug I asked about ... was causing a continuity problem?

Edit - Thinking out loud - I should check the fuse box !!! It's late here ..... I'll check it tomorrow ... this car is fighting me grrrr!

[Josh]

After these modifications the buzzer will no longer function. There is no point in plugging it back in. There is no downside, other than you’ll have no buzzer. It affects nothing else.

this is not entirely true. Unplugging the buzzer will also make the seatbelt light on the dash no longer function.

[Dhennick99]

The little internal piece of the cable keeps sliding out of the square portion where the cable screws into the speedbox. There's not alot of slack to really feed it in before tightening everything up. Any tips or suggestions?

[Dhennick99]

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I mounted the speedbox right under the lambda counter
It's working nicely now.

[Josh]

I was thinking of designing up a 3d printed bracket that bolts in place of the lambda box bracket but interfaces with the speedbox. would anyone be interested in that?

[jackb]

Does the speedometer needle still bounce at lower speeds after switching over to the speedbox and eliminating the angle drive? Or is the bounce inherent to the use of a cable at all?

How fast does it pick up a signal if you don’t have it wired for constant power?

How significant of a tunnel do you lose the signal in? Any other locations it’s less than perfect?

[CFI]

Does the speedometer needle still bounce at lower speeds after switching over to the speedbox and eliminating the angle drive? Or is the bounce inherent to the use of a cable at all?

How fast does it pick up a signal if you don’t have it wired for constant power?

How significant of a tunnel do you lose the signal in? Any other locations it’s less than perfect?

I don’t notice any bouncing, but the needle does tend to jump up a little when you start moving. It’s definitely smoother than a stock setup.

I believe the instructions indicate that it may take up to 1 minute for satellite acquisition if it is not wired for constant power. It’s worth setting up constant power though. It’s not difficult, the speedometer will work immediately, and the power draw is tiny. If this thing kills your battery you have some very serious electrical system problems.

As far as losing signal, almost anytime you drive under a bridge you’ll notice a slight speed adjustment when you exit the other side. Your speed won’t go to zero, it will stay at whatever your last recorded speed was until satellite re-acquisition (which is immediate once the antenna has a clear view of the sky). The downside to this is if you get stuck in traffic in a tunnel (or under a bridge) your odometer will continue clicking away even though you’re not moving. It’s possible that after so many minutes the device would realize what’s going on and set the speed to zero, but I’m not sure. We have lots of bridges and tunnels where I live and I’ve never been stuck without a satellite signal for very long.

As far as other problematic locations, I would guess that driving on a narrow road with lots of thick tree cover might be problematic. Or in a deep valley. I’m not sure you’d really notice though, as again the speed doesn’t go to zero. It just varies slightly as the signal is lost and re-acquired.

I’ve had mine installed for 15 months, some 6,000 ish miles and it’s been absolutely perfect.

[DeLoreanTech]

Installed the SpeedBox in this '81 DeLorean using the instructions here on DMCTalk...complete success and the unit works great!

Video link (feedback appreciated)

https://youtu.be/0lhf0LE3OZM

[CFI]

Installed the SpeedBox in this '81 DeLorean using the instructions here on DMCTalk...complete success and the unit works great!

Video link (feedback appreciated)

https://youtu.be/0lhf0LE3OZM

Awesome! Glad I could help.

[Johnny5alive]

I was thinking of designing up a 3d printed bracket that bolts in place of the lambda box bracket but interfaces with the speedbox. would anyone be interested in that?YES!

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[PlutonimicX]

Great thread everyone, thank you! So I just installed my setup and the door ajar light and the door edge lights were working momentarily, I unplugged the connectors to the plungers that activate the lights for a moment and now they're not coming back on. Seems like it should be an easy fix but I'm not the most electrically/electronically savvy.

[Jonathan]

Anyone know when the SPEEDBOX unit goes on sale? Occasionally like at Christmas and Black Friday maybe? Regular price appears to be $476 USD plus the cost of shipping.