My 1982 Dodge Ram D350's speedometer is violently bouncing From 45 - 85 MPH; and makes a very annoying noise. I replaced the cable and it is still hosed up. Any suggestions on what the problem is?

 

Sounds like a gear problem.
Either the one in the tranny or on the tranny end of the cable.

 

Thanks for helping me; I found a place on the web that can make them if they are not in stock. I will call them tomorrow.

http://www.transmissioncenter.org/sp...e_and_jeep.htm

Now I need to figure out the gear ratio fo rthe A727 Automatic Transmission.

 

you could take the speedo and cable out and test the speedo with a drill. if you can hear it making noise i would guess your speedo may be going bad. i would test before you replace.

 

Ask and you shall receive. 727 gear ratios are:
low 2.45 to 1
2nd 1.45 to 1
high 1 to 1
reverse 2.20 to 1

 

Thanks for the information and data. How complex is it to swap out the gears? Any special tools? Tricks? Hazards? Thanks!

 

that gear in the transmission it fairly easy to change. there is only 1 bolt that clamps the round piece in and the gear just pulls out of it. when you remove it you will be able to tell if it is bad or not.

 

Thanks again! I pulled the pinion gear. Piece of cake. The gear looked perfect. There were 35 teeth. I hooked up an electric drill to the speedo cable and the needle moved a little, but made the noise it makes when I am driving. Conclusion: cable is still good and pinion gear at the transmission is still good. I called http://www.transmissioncenter.net/sp...n_______va.htm (speedometer world) and they suggested that I reach out to http://www.speedometersolutions.com/...eter_cable.htm to see about getting a rebuilt gear that would be behind the speedometer since the pinion gear was fine.

 

have you tried calling up a junkyard to see if they have anything? i think any speedo from 81-89 should work.

 

Thanks Again for the guidance.

Speedos and instrument panels are on Ebay, but the prices seem too high. I was going to call around to some junkyards tomorrow as well as Speedometer Solutions to see what they want for their part.

The Dodge Service Manual makes it seem rather easy to pull out the instrument panel. I have pulled of the face, but not the actual speedometer from the cluster assembly.