I have the Brat cluster out and was wondering if anyone has ever hooked up the speed o cable to a drill and turn the odmeter back to 0000? I have a rebuilt 2.2T in the Brat and haven't even turned her over yet, but close, and wanted to take the odmeter of 223,000 and have her at 0 for the new engine.

Any thoughts?

Hook a small cable up to a reedy modified Rc car motor.. at least get you closer to the 9's any way..

The odmeter won't go backwards will it?????

Edited March 1, 20179 yr by Naked Buell

Odometers have a clutch to prevent counting backwards.  Some [if not all] also have a booby trap rigged to mark the number wheels if they are tampered with, so you have to be aware and careful if you want to mess with them.

You'll have to remove the speedo, disassemble it and roll it back manually. I might also add this is illegal by federal law. Not that it would be a big deal on an exempt 80 something car, but still not legal whether you ever sell it or not.

You can take the odometer out of the cluster, pop off a clip, slid the numbers toward where the clip was, then spin the numbers over to where you want them to be. I did it on ea81t wagon because I wanted the mileage to be what it actually had on it since the digi cluster lit on fire.

You'll have to remove the speedo, disassemble it and roll it back manually. I might also add this is illegal by federal law. Not that it would be a big deal on an exempt 80 something car, but still not legal whether you ever sell it or not.

 

This. You're playing with fire changing an odometer reading. When you go to sell the car you'll be seen as much more trustworthy if you just document the engine install. Make a little packet with a couple photos of the install, the date, and a dated shot of the odometer. As someone who's bought many older cars, a 30 year old car with only 10,000 miles on the odometer and the seller saying "I set the odometer to zero because the engine was brand new!" is a HUGE red flag for me- my first thought is "what else did they hide?" On the flip side, documentation like that would earn major brownie points and make me more willing to pay the asking price, since I'd feel like the seller is trustworthy and meticulous in caring for the car.

 

Note- nothing personal against you here, just saying this is what you're potentially getting yourself into.

Edited March 1, 20179 yr by Wagon Wagon

Cool. No offense taken. My wife too mentioned it seemed cool to be able to show that the Brat had 223,000 on her already and then had upgrades and still driving on the battlefield. Guess I will just leave where it is. Thx guys. 

Legality aside it's pretty easy on the ea81 cluster. Pull the mileage unit out, put the end of the shaft in a drill chuck and roll away.

Anybody got any advice on what to clean the inside of the gauges. I have the clear plastic off and it does have some dust. Any advice?????

Be very gentle. Dry light brush, maybe test some more hidden part if it needs water / wiping.

I stole one of my wife's makeup brushes. Works great. Nice and soft but of course I got yelled at. I told her it was for the Brat and that didn't do me any good.   

Get the retired ones...

For gosh sakes ... please don't tell her what you used HER toothbrush for!