Rev counter problem

[Big Al]

hi, the rev counter on my FD occaisionaly drops to zero, when driving. It starts working again when I shift next shift gear??
 
Not sure where to look first so any help would be very much appreciated.

[neil_jdmr]

The instruments themselves are known to fail try with a known good one just to eliminate

[Big Al]

thanks Neil, that may well be the way to go. Thing is, I\'m trying to keep my car stock at the moment

[batman]

funny that mine did this the other night freaked me right out thought i was seeing things

[neil_jdmr]

thanks Neil, that may well be the way to go. Thing is, I\'m trying to keep my car stock at the moment

Just try it with another standard mazda unit, no need to go big bucks with aftermarket clocks etc. If that proves to solve the prob then just the rev counter can be removed and fitted to your instrument cluster.

[ad4m1]

hes got a 99 spec so different clocks - gud luck finding 99 spec clocks

[neil_jdmr]

hes got a 99 spec so different clocks - gud luck finding 99 spec clocks

Ahhh Reet, Still, try a set of "common" fd clocks and if that sorts it then strip the guts out of the rev counter and "simply" swap the bits you need keeping the fancy 99spec front.

[ad4m1]

think thats trickier too cos on 99 the zero on rev counter is at 6 o clock position not like earlier fd

[Big Al]

Thanks Neil and Adam, all advice is helpful. It seems that owning a \'99 car is going to cause me more problems than usual..... :Hammer

[marco]

i wouldnt have thought the position of the needle would matter if you are checking the signal. everything else would be the same.

[L18M]

a 99 spec rev tacometer thingie is hard to find in japan. i seen the whole cluster for sale minus the rev dial (maybe thats a hint?)
even a used stock back box is like just under £200! :o

[Big Al]

Thanks for making my day Liam, but I do genuinely appreciate your comment regarding this problem.
As it is only an intermittant fault at the moment,  I can live with it. On reflection there had been some very dodgy wiring in the dash when I bought the car. Twisted bare wires adapting the speedo and converting one of the reverse lights into a fog light, from the cigarette lighter.
I actually wonder now if something got disturbed during the bodgers work?
I will take the dash apart when snow permits and look for loose connections.
Thanks again for the helpful comments.

[neil_jdmr]

If its the needle dropping to zero Al it more likely a wire grounding somewhere and very probably a nipped cable somewhere and with vibration the bare core touching the framework.

[Big Al]

Thanks Neil, I will definately have to go through all the connections as it doesn\'t  seem to be a common fault... maybe a problem in the \'ribbon\' anyway the sun will be shining soon and I might feel more like taking it aprt.
Thanks to all who replied to this thread

[L18M]

theres an instrament cluster for sale in jap. looking around £170 delivered to uk.
a lot of money so probs worth checking all the connections 1st