Odd screech and loose speedo cable?

[berickson926]

Hey guys,

So I was driving on the highway and while merging lanes I heard an odd but loud screech/squeel. It seemed to be coming from the front/driver's side of the car. Lasted less than a second and didn't return.

At the time I was more worried about catastrophic suspension failure of some sort and was not closely watching, but I didn't notice any warning lights or odd speedometer behavior on the dash like another thread mentions. (http://dmctalk.org/newthread.php?do=newthread&f=2)


I pulled the front wheel after I noticed the speedo cable was hanging quite low on the car. It seems to be held in place (in between the wheel & body) by a single zip tie. Also I noticed the grommet #106291 where the cable enters the body was loose, and I couldn't seem to get it to stay put. I'll assume that the grommet is just old rubber and needs replacement.

The highway drive was a little bumpy and I was thinking maybe it was enough to nudge the cable loose. Is the cable setup in general normal? I don't really have a good reference on this. Could it be related to the screech I heard on the highway at all?


Thanks in advance for any feedback!

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[DMCMW Dave]

Hey guys,

So I was driving on the highway and while merging lanes I heard an odd but loud screech/squeel. It seemed to be coming from the front/driver's side of the car. Lasted less than a second and didn't return.

At the time I was more worried about catastrophic suspension failure of some sort and was not closely watching, but I didn't notice any warning lights or odd speedometer behavior on the dash like another thread mentions. (http://dmctalk.org/newthread.php?do=newthread&f=2)


I pulled the front wheel after I noticed the speedo cable was hanging quite low on the car. It seems to be held in place (in between the wheel & body) by a single zip tie. Also I noticed the grommet #106291 where the cable enters the body was loose, and I couldn't seem to get it to stay put. I'll assume that the grommet is just old rubber and needs replacement.

The highway drive was a little bumpy and I was thinking maybe it was enough to nudge the cable loose. Is the cable setup in general normal? I don't really have a good reference on this. Could it be related to the screech I heard on the highway at all?


Thanks in advance for any feedback!

]

The replacement cable now sold is much shorter. A second zip tie holding the cable straighter (go around that metal brake line) will help the cable last longer. They often kink right at that plastic clamp and that destroys the angle drive.

I would suspect that the screech is a piece of road crap (rock) getting caught in between the backing plate and rotor. It will make a helluva noise and then go away when the rock kicks out.

[berickson926]

The replacement cable now sold is much shorter. A second zip tie holding the cable straighter (go around that metal brake line) will help the cable last longer. They often kink right at that plastic clamp and that destroys the angle drive.

I would suspect that the screech is a piece of road crap (rock) getting caught in between the backing plate and rotor. It will make a helluva noise and then go away when the rock kicks out.

Thank you for the response!

I wasn't sure of the two were related but figured it couldn't hurt to ask. Now to zip tie that cable...