Damaged 83 Speedo, why? replace?

HI all ,

I have had my 83 XS400 Maxim for a little more than 4 months.
Shortly after getting the bike, I noticed a constant high pitched whining/whirring sound coming from the speedometer region. At times it would be absent, then come back, usually triggered by a turn lean or a incline on the road.
Then about 2 months ago the lights/illumination went out on the speedo, tach was fine. The whining persisted though.
Then about 3 weeks ago, the speedo just died. The whining is still there, but barely noticeable. The needle somehow broke, see picture. What remains of it rests in that awkward position, I'm guessing it's pulled there by a spring in the housing.

Does anyone know why this happened? I'm looking into either fixing or replacing it. Is this fixable?
Also if I were to replace it, what's a good source to buy from? I need to do M licence test in just over 2 weeks, so I need a motorcycle that's deemed safe; and a broke speedo certainly won't do lol. I contacted XS400 part sellers on Kijiji. I will inquire more on Craiglist and here the parts forum on this site. Any tips would be appreciated.

However, it is ideal to me if I can fix it myself. Even if I have to superglue the needle back on lol.

Hopefully you fine people can help me out.

Thanks a lot
Good day.

- Jason W.

Funny, my speedo jammed on me shortly after turning 60,000km less than 2 weeks ago and snapped the speedo cable...

The good news is that the gauge cluster is easy to remove and disassemble. You will have to remove the head light to undo the electrical connectors (2) for the gauge cluster. Disconnect the speedo and tach cables. Then remove the 2 10mm nuts that hold the cluster in place. Remove the plastic trim piece around the ignition switch, and lift the cluster out of it's mounts in the triple tree.

To disassemble the cluster, remove the 3 Philips screws on the back of the cluster to get the rear cover off. Use a tiny Philips to remove the screw that holds the trip odometer reset knob on, and remove the knob (it pulls off easily). Remove the 2 8mm nuts that retain the mounting bracket. Remove the lights and the speed sensor above the speedo input, and get the wiring harness out of the way. Don't worry, the wiring will retain it's shape so you won't have issues with the bulb placement on re-assembly. Then remove the 4 Phillips screws that hold the internal plastic gauge holder in place. Gently lift the gauges out of the front case. Then 2 Philips screws hold each gauge to the holder.

Congrats! you can now inspect the speedo, glue the needle back in place (superglue works just fine!), and clean everything.

Good luck!
(how is that for instructions from memory? )

It sounds as if (among other things) the spring cable (which connects the unit on the front wheel to the back of the speedo) may have snapped or wound or unwound itslelf due to lack of lubrication. According to the manual, the cables need lubing regularly but I suspect most POs after the first owner never did it. Maybe you can get away with simply replacing or servicing that part.

Whatever you do, do not try to remove the needle base from the shaft. I tried that once and it made it worse... the shaft is fixed to a wound up spring that is fragile and any bend/alteration to the shaft will cause bad readings or like in my case prevent the needle from moving at all.

You will see how it is all hooked up once you open up the cluster...

A new speedo cable is $15, so replacing it shouldn't even be a consideration - just do it!

Thanks all for the tips

I will take it apart tomorrow or so. I had a tough few days of exams just now.


Anyone can tell me where's a good place to get a replacement speedo cable around Waterloo/Milton, Ontario region?
What about the bulb for the speedo instrument? I don't want to take it apart more times than I have to.

I'm also considering while I'm at it, are there LED bulbs that I can install?

Thanks

JsW

A Vicious Cycle in New Dundee. Good people, nice store, good prices. I bought the last of their LED bulbs yesterday...

Actually, after thinking about it more. It might not be a snapped cable.
The trip meter still works. Not sure about its accuracy, but it still turns. It's just the needle is broken, and doesn't turn, and has no light. Plus the whining sound.

I think I will still take it apart today and see. I'll update it here soon

Thanks!
JsW