'63 Imperial Speedo Cable

[Jayarr]

Hi all,
While refurbishing my instrument cluster, I found the speedo mechanism to be stuck and I was able to free it up nicely. The speedo cable is broken at the transmission end probably due to the cluster being stuck and every thing spins freely now.
My question is, is there a preferred vendor for a new cable? I shopped around and there are several out there including the Chinesium style. Anyone have an experienced recommendation?

 

[CBODY67]

There used to be a guy in Michigan, retired from AC Spark Plug (who built GM's speedo cables back then) that went into business building correct repro speedo cables for almost anything. Not sure if he is still alive or the company is still alive, either.

IF the speedo head is now free-turning, you might must need "the cable" inside of the housing. If that is the case, AC serviced those as a "cut and fit" situation, with a close-match length that the customer snipped off to the needed length, then pressed-on the plastic end piece (which had a dab of adhesive in it) to complete the cable.

IF the car has a lot of miles on it and still has the metal housing the cable turns in, a new lubed cable might be all that is needed. On the later plastic-sheath housing, with its metal wire reinforcements, the inner surface can wear into the wire support layer and stop the cable, after a bit of noise. In that case, you need a complete new cable assy, which is where the guy in MI comes into play.

You might look in the realm of B-body repro speedo parts, asking them if their cables are a correct OEM, built to length, item or otherwise. When you are satisfied with their answer, then ask if they might have a length for your Imperial.

In many cases, speedometer cables can be more "common length" than not, considering the "common" length between the end of the transmission tailshaft housing and where things end in the back of the speedometer housing.

Does your Imperial have the factory cruise control?

Please keep us posted on your progress,
CBODY67

 

[Pete Kaczmarski]

I purchased a new speedo cable this year for my '62 Chrysler 300 from O'Reilly and cut it to length.

 

[Midnight Rider]

I was able to get one for my’65 Fury from RockAuto.