[DeTomaso] Cruise control again--you how one project causes something else to break...?

[Christopher Kimball]

Well, this weekend a bunch of us PNW guys drove to Birch Bay, near Canada, to meet up with some of our Canadian members.  It was a great trip, and on the way there I had a few chances to try the cc at freeway speeds.  Although not as smooth as the cc in my newer daily drivers, I think I can live with it.  It's fairly smooth, but a lower speeds it's useless.

Here's the problem:  My speedometer stopped working this morning, so I had no cc or speedometer on the trip back.  I do not want to hear "I told you so" from Mike Drew, either!

The right-angle piece to which the speedometer attaches has always been very loose and can be moved up and down easily.  It turns out that may not be how it is supposed to be.  When I attached the sending unit between that piece and the speedometer cable the extra effort needed with the added sending unit must have pushed whatever was weak in the system over the edge.

Now, when I twist the piece coming out of the ZF's right-angle speedometer outlet into which the cable inserts, it turns easily, so it obviously is no longer engaged to the ZF.  A couple of the Pantera guys said the right angle piece, which on my car is so loose, has a kind of turnbuckle that can adjust it and that might allow me to move it in such a way as to re-engage it.  If I push on the little rotating cable interface I can feel it trying to engage; almost like there's a little stripped gear within the right angle piece.

Before I start trying to strong arm the turnbuckle nut to move, is there anyone out there who can give me some help and advice on what I'm looking at to get the ZF device to work?  I was also told that if I do the wrong thing, a piece (maybe an inner nut) might fall into the ZF which wouldn't be good.

Thanks,


Chris