KPH speedo swap

[Karmann Gipsy]

Hi All Has anyone ever swapped a speedo in a pre-2002 Ducato? We just bought a 1996 A class on the 2.5 TDI chassis and the speedo is in KPH. If I can get a second hand mph speedo,is it much of a job? Many thanks!! :-D

[Herman]

Hi Karman Gipsy have a word with Deepcar Motorhomes, near Sheffield. They might be able to supply you with a stick on overlay for the speedo. I got one from them for my 1993 Fiat based Hymer, but I'm sure they would have them for later models. You can find them on the net at WWW.dmiuk.com. I think mine was about £35.00, not cheap but a lot cheaper then another speedo. They are also marked in KPH as well as MPH. Regards Herman

[Dave Newell]

Hi Karman, the ducato/boxer/relay instrument panel is dead easy to remove. At each end of the panel is a socket headed screw, remove these. Next remove the lower trim panel (one socket head screw by the door hinge and two phillips head self tappers lower down. you now need to make a simple tool from a piece of stiff wire (wire coat hanger, thin welding rod etc), it only needs to be long enough to hold and bend the last 10mm of one end to 90 degrees. insert this tool at the top of the lower trim panel and you will find a spot where it will go through (the panel has a flange sticknig up except for this place). Push the tool in a little way and turn 90 degrees so it hooks behind the panel you wish to remove and pull. The panel should now come loose. disconnect the speaker wires and remove the panel completely. You can now reach up behind the instrument panel to release the speedo cable. Once this is done you can pull the panel out far enough to release the wiring connections. hope this helps, D.

[Guest peter]

Remove 1 screw each end of panel and pull it out, disconnect speedo cable by pushing clamp on cable back. Panel will now come free. You can mark MPH lines directly on dial as I did. Put back in reverse order. Or if you want to be fancy you can stick on an overlay, but don't get a Yellow one as was fitted to mine. I removed it as you couldn't see it. It is dead easy to do without removing half the dashboard as suggested elsewhere.

[Karmann Gipsy]

Thanks guys-I will definitely give it a try !

[Mel E]

Or, even cheaper and simpler, make your own overlay using clear plastic of the sort that you use for overhead projector transpaques. The method is simple and I've done it myself: 1. Cut two pices of the plastic to the size and shape of the instrument. 2. Lightly moisten one and stick it over the instrument. Mark it using a felt-tip pen with the kph markers. 3. Calculate the mph equivalent of each kph mark by multiplying by 0.62137. (eg., 50 kph = 50*0.61237 = 31.1 mph 4. Use a protractor to mark up your second piece of plastic with mph markings using a permanent felt tip marker. Write on the speeds - 30, 40, 50kph, etc. 5. For a touch of extra sophistication, use a different colour for the key speeds of 30 mph, 60 mph and 70 mph. 6. Moisten an place over the instrument glass. For real sophistication you could print using a computer and any good drawing program - I used Powerpoint. However, there is nothing in law which says the mph scale cannot be hand drawn, provided it is clear and accurate. Incidentally, it6 also has to be able to be read during daylight AND after dark. The latter is a problem with most overlays since the instrument lighting doesn't do the job. The answer is a small, shaded led bulb lighting up just the speedo.