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ATF leaking out of the Speedometer Cable...? YES!

2K views 4 replies 4 participants last post by  stang93mustang 
#1 ·
Ok guys...this may be common knowledge, but I wanted to let you know that YES ATF can leak out of your speedometer cable.

I have been struggling with a leak on our '77 Lincoln Mark V for quite a while. The leak was in a strange place and didn't seem to match up with anything.

Further investigation revealed the leak when cleaned with a white paper towel...was red ATF! (leak was small enough it would pick up floor dirt and look like brake/engine oil)
Once I figured that out, a closer look lead me to a worn spot in the speedo cable...

Its obvious to me now....but at the time I had thought the only seal on the cable is the external Oring!!! But with some searching I saw where a guy had disassembled a cable to reveal the inner seal behind the speedo gear can fail!
The fluid collecting inside the low spot of the cable dissolved the plastic over time and just left the wire mesh and the leak started hitting the fuel line...and running back further on the frame before hitting the ground.

Fortunately the cable is still available, PIONEER CA3020, and cheap, under 20 bucks.

BUT this is cable is for a cruise control car and has a mid point connection.... For some reason the description lists this cable as "upper".....but the pictures show it having the gear adapter end....so I ordered it through Autozone and hoped it was the right one! Luckily it was! It is a fair amount longer than the stocker...but with some creative routing and zipties, it should be OK and out of the way.
So if you have a weird ATF leak....check you speedometer cable!
**Note** I was hoping this might fix the "jumpy" low speed speedo needle action (maybe the square cable was binding on the exposed wire mesh sheath) but unfortunately it didn't...that must be a cluster issue!
 
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