1992 LX Build thread!

Bansheeman6100 · Aug 31, 2011

well, spent some time under the car today and tried to figure out what is going on with the speedometer. the cable seems to be connected correctly on both ends, im really not sure what to check next. also smelled burning oil while driving today, hoping that is just burning off the cover or block.

and found the original sensor, so im going to flush the radiator and swap those sensors next. and need to figure out the sticking throttle body or peddle as well

Delray Dude · Aug 31, 2011

next thing to look at on the cable is something that usually happens to old Mopars...but possible on yours.... lots of times the old school Dodges cable routes near the exhaust - and sometimes a cable isn;t secured and lies on the pipe - gets hot and melts the cable or during a engine / trans swap the cable gets pushed out of the way and gets bent inside.

anyways....to verify the cable is still good (and this is a PITA) pull the ends off both sides. have someone look at the speedo end and you spin the cable at the trans. if your end spins and the other doesn't - the cable is broke somewhere in between.
good luck and hope its something easy.

bonestock87 · Aug 31, 2011

next thing to look at on the cable is something that usually happens to old Mopars...but possible on yours.... lots of times the old school Dodges cable routes near the exhaust - and sometimes a cable isn;t secured and lies on the pipe - gets hot and melts the cable or during a engine / trans swap the cable gets pushed out of the way and gets bent inside.

Delray Dude is spot on. I can verify this because I just finished my swap (Auto to T5 and turbo motor) and my speedo cable stopped working after about 140 miles. The reason is I bent it into unfamiliar ways in re-routing it and with it being 18 years old, it was more than the cable wanted to take.

Bansheeman6100 · Aug 31, 2011

Delray Dude said:
next thing to look at on the cable is something that usually happens to old Mopars...but possible on yours.... lots of times the old school Dodges cable routes near the exhaust - and sometimes a cable isn;t secured and lies on the pipe - gets hot and melts the cable or during a engine / trans swap the cable gets pushed out of the way and gets bent inside.

anyways....to verify the cable is still good (and this is a PITA) pull the ends off both sides. have someone look at the speedo end and you spin the cable at the trans. if your end spins and the other doesn't - the cable is broke somewhere in between.
good luck and hope its something easy.

yup. thats gonna suck ass. thanks though! im just going to order a new one, i see no other failure point in the system . and i did bend it a good bit, its most likely broken. and got the temp gause working, put the original sensor in. flushed the radiator while i was at it

Also, i have a fan relay for the older 2.3 and the realys you gave me, along with a new sensor for in the heater hose if you, or anyone else needs them.

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 4, 2011

ok, well i got the old cable out, and although the case is a bit frayed and needed replacing anyways, it still turned. i guess the needle mau not have been engaged behind the speedometer? is there a sure way to make sure its connected right? and is it possible the speed sensor has anything to do with it?

tca7291 · Sep 4, 2011

Hey bansheeman, I have actually had this problem before after removing the dash to do a heater core replacement on my friends 90 5.0. When I went to re-install the instrument cluster it can be a real bear to get that speedo cable back in properly (lack of room, and my big hands) the inner cable didn't go into the square drive part of the speedo, i had compressed it back into the case, so no speedo! I removed the cluster again and as working by myself, put the car in nutral and allowed it to roll a little until the inner cable lined up properly with the speedo drive, and then just cliped it in the rest of the way. Took her around the block real quick before putting everything else back in and worked fine! Also, I believe the electronic speed sensor is just for the computer; the speedo drive is strictly mechanical. It can be tricky, kinda had the same problem again when putting in a 140mph speedo in my 2.3 but was already wise to the alignment of the cable. Hope this helps!!

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 4, 2011

tca7291 said:
Hey bansheeman, I have actually had this problem before after removing the dash to do a heater core replacement on my friends 90 5.0. When I went to re-install the instrument cluster it can be a real bear to get that speedo cable back in properly (lack of room, and my big hands) the inner cable didn't go into the square drive part of the speedo, i had compressed it back into the case, so no speedo! I removed the cluster again and as working by myself, put the car in nutral and allowed it to roll a little until the inner cable lined up properly with the speedo drive, and then just cliped it in the rest of the way. Took her around the block real quick before putting everything else back in and worked fine! Also, I believe the electronic speed sensor is just for the computer; the speedo drive is strictly mechanical. It can be tricky, kinda had the same problem again when putting in a 140mph speedo in my 2.3 but was already wise to the alignment of the cable. Hope this helps!!

damn, really dont want to have to remove the whole cluster. thats gonna be a total bitch

tca7291 · Sep 4, 2011

Are you sure that the drive gear on the cable is meshing properly with the drive in the transmission? Its hard to tell exactly whats going on with the end still hooked up to the speedo. I know removing the cluster in these cars is an absolute PIA, but even if you just remove the speedo and run the car up the street then you will see the cable spinning in the dash, then you know that the cable and the transmission connection is good. If it doesn't spin then you know its a problem at the trans connection or within the cable. I have read your thread, (pretty car too!) and i know that there are 2 gears in the trans that drive the speedo cable, one is a worm style gear that is in the transmission tailshaft housing, and the other is the gear that attaches to the lower end of the cable. Depending on what the rear end ratio was in the car that you pulled the trans out of origonally is alot different than the gear for your speedo drive then you might have a mesh problem where the two gears aren't close enough to engage, or too tight to where its causing the cable to bind. Go to this webpage and look at page 200. Mustangs Unlimited - '74-04 Mustang Shelby Performance Restoration & Accessories Parts Online Virtual Catalog: SpreadPages 200 & 201

tca7291 · Sep 4, 2011

Just a thought. Hope I can help

tca7291 · Sep 4, 2011

Oh yeah, just remembered, pull the speedo cable out of the trans, unclip the gear and get someone to put a power drill on the end of the cable and spin it. Your speedo should show some reading, and if i remember correctly they have to spin it counter clockwise while looking at the cable at the transmission.

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 5, 2011

tca7291 said:
Oh yeah, just remembered, pull the speedo cable out of the trans, unclip the gear and get someone to put a power drill on the end of the cable and spin it. Your speedo should show some reading, and if i remember correctly they have to spin it counter clockwise while looking at the cable at the transmission.

thats a good tip, thanks! im gonna try to get it to mesh up right without pulling the dash out first. and yes, the gear are correct. i replaced the gear on the cable with the correct cable for the transmission

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 14, 2011

got the speedo working, and FWA in as well, other than wiring the reverse lights she is pretty much running

also: the guy that i bought the T5 from has an SVO motor with 19k miles on it. was pulled from a car that was totaled in 1988, and been sitting in the enclosed trailer since then supposedly. all the intake and exhaust ports are plugged, hoses are clamped, etc. and it was very clean overall. going to go confirm that its not locked up. but what would you pay for something like that?

79'293stang · Sep 14, 2011

I got an engine and transmission from a SVO wrecked in the early 90's with 45000 miles on it. I paid $500 for it, replaced the valve seals, dropped it in my car and have put 20,000 miles on it without issue.

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 14, 2011

yeah, my liimt for the engine, computer and harness is around $1k max. and now my god damn fan isnt coming on again . is it possible the new IRCM got fried somehow?

shiftless · Sep 16, 2011

If I can offer a bit of advice as an old time 2.3T hot rodder....I'd JUMP on any low mile engines you run across. A 40k drivetrain would be well worth $1k+. A Ford-built turbo bottom end is a great thing.

Delray Dude · Sep 16, 2011

Bansheeman6100 said:
yeah, my liimt for the engine, computer and harness is around $1k max. and now my god damn fan isnt coming on again . is it possible the new IRCM got fried somehow?

Does the fan come on when a/c is turned on?

I switch mine manually now... got tired of dealing with it....mounted a relay system and a button near my shifter.

OBTW: British Racing Green looks pretty good on a mustang...

Bansheeman6100 · Sep 18, 2011

at first the fan came on when the AC did, then the other day it simply stopped coming on with the AC as well. and im waiting on a call back from the SVO engine guy. and i need input on some stuff i just went to look at. he has a complete running engine, big valve head, ported and polished intake, and really clean with Racer Walsh timing and valve cover too. BUT, it has a rod knock. he also has a short block with no head with ARP head studs and turbo pistons. he said he'd do $200 for the short block, and was gonna think about a price on the rodknock engine. im thinking replace the rings on the shockblock, and drop the good head and everything else on

Bansheeman6100 · Oct 9, 2011

well i climbed under the dash again and got the AC and fan issue figured out. been driving it daily for a few days now, trying to run that almost 3 year old gas out of her . im surprised the Seafoam has made it actually usable.

EDIT: well the fan and AC cut out again, and had a short span where nothing electronic would come on at all. going to call my electrician and have him look at it next, im done messing with it

Bansheeman6100 · Oct 16, 2011

NEED SOME ADVICE! took it in and had a few issues fixed. first off, the ignition switch was falling apart, and was causing a lot of problems, so i had it rebuilt. and he said the fan is now getting the right signals and current, and told me to replace the fan so i have a new one en-route. so now that the electrical issues are fixed, im moving onto the engine. im ordering a new heater core, and a new top end gasket kit. im getting a good bit of smoke from the passenger side of the engine, and smell burning oil. it did over-heat and seize up years ago, so my assumption is head gasket. but im going to replace head gasket, valve cover gasket, timing belt, etc. but is there anything else i should do while im in there? im placing a massive parts order in the AM, so all help is appreciated!

79'293stang · Oct 16, 2011

While you are there get those valve seals changed, much easier to do with the head off and for the valve cover gasket make sure you pay the extra coin for the steel reinforced gasket. Heck for what these engines go for used in the jy you could probably get another engine, do everything you want to it, maybe toss in a turbo reciprocating assembly for future use and then sell the engine in there now to recover cost when complete. Ive done this many times in the past to ensure that I can drive the car right up to the engine swap, then swap the engine in a day or two and have minimal down time, I have done engine replacements in these cars and I will say that I can get the 2.3 out and another in its place faster than what I had to spend doing headgasket, etc. I would be concerned knowing that it had seized up in the past. Just my .02 and good luck with whatever route you take. Edit: The oil smell could just be the valve cover leaking, it is common for them to leak at the PS rear corner and then to get down into the exhaust.

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