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My son (16) and I are working on his first car, a 52 Packard 200 standard. Great car! The speedometer was not working, so we have spent the past couple of evenings investigating. Here's what we found: Speedo was frozen and the worm gear for the odometer is missing it's teeth. Speedo now works. Cable was disconnected at both ends and the cable itself and the housing are OK, just in need of cleaning and lunging. The tranny end, however, is slightly bent and missing its connector (probably still attached to the tranny). So, questions: Can the cable be repaired? Can parts be found to repair the odometer?

At the moment, Packards1 happens to have a complete NOS cable assy or a new core on his site.http://stores.ebay.com/packards1 Here's a page with some of the cableshttp://stores.ebay.com/packards1/_i.html?_nkw=speedometer&submit=Search&_sid=1130155

While not quite as good a quality as the original, you can also get a universal cable repair kit at most auto parts stores and cut it to length.

When you say the connector is missing, what piece are you referring to -- the drive gear or something else?

On the speedo, which one do you have -- the single odometer or the dual with odometer section and the trip meter

I've attached a pic of the transmission end of my cable. The core and case seem fine; I turned it with a drill and had no issues. It needs to be cleaned and lubed, but is whole. It's the transmission connection end that concerns me. Can it be repaired?

My speedometer has the single odometer, no trip meter. The little geared shaft that translates the turn of the shaft to the odometer is the one that's stripped.

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On the speedometer, I have one that is also frozen as yours was. Applied some penetrating oil on the bushing but so far no change. Maybe it will free up, maybe not or maybe it's severely damaged -- no idea. I haven't torn it apart but from what little I can see the worm looks intact. No guarantees that it is but if you want to take a chance, PM me an address and it's yours for the postage.

As to the cable repair, it depends on whether you have the missing piece. Borrowing a photo snippet from Max and Packards1 websites, you should have a formed end similar to these shown. I believe the ends are the same -- just length is different for OD vs non OD. Packards1's is for the OD but Max's website says he has regulars.

Been a long time since I looked at one closely but believe that formed end is part of the support for the gear. If it is still in the transmission and enough is left on the end to make a collar or fabricate some other kind of attachment to the cable housing, maybe a repair is possible. It looks as if there is a clean break on your cable so maybe not much is there on the other piece. If the end piece is completely missing then I'm afraid it's another cable and maybe drive gear as well.

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Try soaking the thing in Kroil. That stuff is amazing for cables.

Kroil is good.
So is acetone and ATF mixed 50-50.
I use PB Blaster a lot also.

Speaking of acetone and atf, I use a solution to clean my guns that is absolutely amazing on automotive stuff. It's called Ed's Red. In a nutshell, it is a blend-it-yourself concoction of off-the-shelf goodies, most of which is likely already in all our garages. Transmission fluid, a shot of acetone, mineral oil, kerosene ... I forget what all is in there, but the stuff is fantastic on just about everything, cheaper than dirt, and relatively odorless. I blend it by the quart. Gotohttp://home.comcast.net/~dsmjd/tux/dsmjd/tech/eds_red.htm for more info.

HH56 - I can't tell if my PM reply to you worked or not. In case it didn't, my name is Mike Lewis, and I thank you sincerely.

G'day, 1968lew, Mike,
to PackardInfo and a request. I invite you to include your sons '52 200 in the Packard Owner's Registry here on PackardInfo!

My cable was broken at the speedometer. The speedometer had seized. Apparently common due to age. I took the cable to a speedometer shop in Tempe AZ, "Dick's Speedo". He replaced the inner cable for $25. Very reasonable, I thought.
Nice to have working gauges.
Having your 16 year old working with you on the Packard is a wonderful thing!