Pics of Odometer Repair:

My odometer went out in my 96 when it read 150K. The dealership wanted $350 for a new one and the rebuilders wanter about $250. Way too much. So I bought one at a junkyard for $50.00 and decided to do it myself. I couldn't find any good detailed instructions on the net, so I thought I'd make a stab at posting some here.

One of the most intimidating parts of the job is setting the odometer to match the correct miles for your truck. Everywhere I looked the advice was to pull apart the dials one by one and set the numbers. More than one RPS'er wrote back that they had broken theirs this way. I didn't want to go through all of the trouble just to break it! So I found an easier way. I don't claim to be the only one who knows this trick, just never seen it written up. And it only works for setting the mileage forward.

DISCLAIMER: There is no way to add illegal value to your vehicle using this method. It will not take miles off, only add additional miles. So don't even think about doing something illegal with this information. It would be a waste of time anyway.

I'll assume you know how to get to the cluster and remove it. If not there are several posts here that can lead you through that. So I'll start with the cluster removed, laying on the bench.

Be sure to cover the bench with a couple of layers of towels or rubber foam so you don't hurt anything. After removing the the cover from the cluster you will see three parts. Carefully pop these out. The middle one is the one we will be concerned with and it looks like this laid on its face:

You will need to remove the circuit board in the upper left of that section. It is held on by three screws with 5 mm heads. I've circled them here:

Then carefully turn the section over and remove the needle. (This will have to be reset at the end.) The easiest way I've found is to use a fork. Go very gently and the needle will finally come off:

The unit will now separate from the rest of the cluster. Now comes the fun part, the setting of the mileage. It should look something like this:

Note in this picture the small piece in the foreground. This is what caused all of my problems. It is a small plastic gear which had broken off. A good unit should not turn freely when you try to roll the gears. This one did. So I am replacing it with a donor odometer unit from another cluster. I had to go from 115K to a little over 150K.

As I said, I did not want to take the numbers apart or break them. So, I took off the outermost gear on the axle. It pops off fairly easily and one end of the shaft comes free. Then I hooked up my electric drill to where the gear was. After making very certain that it was centered, I pulled the trigger and watched the miles fly by. You also need to make certain that it is level when the drill is turned on so that you don't bend the small shaft. I found that a pair of my wife's socks worked just right (but please don't tell her. ) Here is a pic of the setup:

Note also in the above picture the small white gear that was removed. Yours may be black. To move the odometer a little over 35K miles took around 20 minutes. I did stop every now and then to make sure nothing was getting too hot. So it may have taken slightly longer than taking the numbers apart, but with the added assurance that you can see it working. Also, many of the newer cordless drills will not let you lock the trigger, so you have to hold it the whole time. Trust me, you will want to find one whose trigger locks.

This is also a good time to get some white grease and put a very tiny bit on the gears so they'll last longer and work better.

When you've gotten the miles where you want them, carefully replace the outide gear. As they say, reassembly is the reverse of disassembly.

This is the perfect time to add those white face gauges, too.

If you have trouble setting the speedometer needle back in the right place, you might want to try this: Place a small bit of WD-40 on the needle shaft. This will allow you to take them off and on easily. With the cluster's bezel still removed, set it in the opening of the truck and plug it in. (You should do this to test it anyway.) Then go to a highway where a friend can drive 55 with their cruise on. At that point put the needle on and keep doing it until it stays steady at 55. Then check with your friend at 60, 65, 70, and 45. If you're close here, you are good to go. Now get home and start putting it all back together.