Hey guys and gals, i'm new to this forum and i am posting my first problem with my car. I have a 1995 Honda accord LX manual, and my speedometer doesn't work. Well, actually when you start the car the speedometer jumps to 20 mph, and stays there, unless i start to slow down or start to go foward, when i do that it jumps from 0 to 20 mph, then stays at 20. So basically i am going 20mph everywhere. Sometimes it does come back to life and start working normally but it comes back at random times. I don't know what is wrong with it, is it the vss sensor? or is it something else? is something loose? idk.

Well thanks for any replies and help in advance

David

 

If it's a bad VSS it should throw a check-engine light. If you don't get a CEL, then I'd say the VSS is OK, as is the signal wire over to the ECU. Somewhere in the circuit, the signal from the VSS has to branch off to the instrumentcluster. That's where to look for flaky connections.

Your speedometer itself could also be flaky...

 

Does the cruise control work? If the cruise control still works I doubt it is the VSS. It will be something internal with the speedo. You will need to either get a new unit, or have the one in there now repaired. If the cruise does not work, it is probably the VSS.

 

Hmmm, i'm not to sure if it's got cruise control or not, if it did, i've never used it. No check engine light. But there is one odd thing though, i my car's odometer is MOST LIKELY not reading right. I mean it says i have 84,000 miles, and i'm SURE that is has at least 90K miles. The only time that i see the miles on the odometer move is when the speedometer is moving as well. So is that normal for these cars? So i'm guess that when the speedometer is working the mile odometer is working as well. Just giving as much info for you guys to diagnose the problem.

 

Just for yuks, verify that the check-engine light DOES come on when you first turn on the key (bulb check). If so, then the ECU must be happy with the signal it's getting from the VSS.

If the cruise control works, that narrows it down a bit farther, but I don't have a '95 wiring diagram. You'll want to know where the circuit splits off between the ECU, cruise, & speedometer. Or like Jon says, it could bethe speedometer head itself.

And it makes sense that the odometer quits when the speedometer quits. They work together off the VSS signal.

 

I had the same exact problem with my car. The needle would stay at 20mph and the odometer and tripometer would not work. The tach was fine. When the needle started working, it would bounce for a second and then work fine. My problem was the speedometer needed repair. I pulled the cluster and sent the speedometer to a speedometer shop I found on the web (powls i think) in eastern PA. Mine has worked fine ever since.

Just to make sure that the VSS is ok, try the cruise when the car is running. If the cruise works, then the speedometer needs replaced/fixed.

 

If it has cruise, there will be a button to the left of the steering wheel on the dash that says "cruise." When you press it, a green light should come on. There are buttons on the steering wheel that say "set" "accel" "resume".
You need to try the cruise to diagnose the problem. The "cruise" button to the left of the steering wheel must be pressed with the green light on, the you press the "set" button on the steering wheel. If you do not try the cruise control, there is no more help I can offer.