The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk resetting my odometer.....

hey im restoring the instrument panel in my 64 and i would like to reset my odometer back to zero since ill have a rebuilt engine going back into it. ive got the odometer out now but am wondering now how i go about getting this thing wound back to zero. anyone know?

Isn't that illegal? And if it's not, you'd better take pictures of it before it's changed, so that if any day you sell your truck, you won't be charged any crimes.

It's highly illegal.

-W

i bet it's only illegal if you intend to pass it off as the actual mileage

I don't see how it's illegal on a re-build of an old truck or car. These old odometers rarely reflect the actual mileage of the vehicle anyway. My '63 odometer hasn't worked for years and now I have a new 350 crate motor and I want to set it back to zero as well. What about my '41, no tellings wether it's even the original odometer or not or when it last worked, and when I build the truck I'll figure out someway to set back to zero. How about all these Rodders that may use an original type speedo. I know most of these guys set 'em back during the re-build.

Mike

I dont know how to set it back,but many of the older vehicles have either been set back or had a new speedo installed.If you sell it you let the new owner know that the mileage is not actual.When he titles it,that will be noted on the title.I bought a 56 Chevy a few years back that showed about 3500 miles the title showed that was not actual mileage.When I sold it last year it showed about 6500 miles.My 55 pickup shows about 3600 miles and title says it is not actual miles.When I get around to putting in a digital dash it will go back to zero again.Many restorations start off at zero.Not illegal if you are up front with the true info.

There should be a check box somewhere on the DMV paperwork that says "odometer discrepancy" or something of that sort. As long as you check that when you register you won't get in trouble. Anytime something happens to your odometer that makes it not register actual milage you have to disclose it to the buyer. That could be anything from a broken speedo cable to physically changing the odometer readout. As long as you tell the buyer, no foul.

Bill of Sale/Idaho

idaho Statutes

This should be the information you should be looking at first. To reset the old odometers you can use a drill in reverse of forward depending on what is closest. I am not sure when they made this more difficult to do, somewhere in the seventies if I remember correctly. I would consider the law first and the fact if you reset it to zero you have to permantely tag the door post for all to see. .....g

Probably all of the states requiring titles on old (pre-'89 these days is old to the bureaucrats) state a mileage ezemption. They really don't care on the older stuff. State to a future buyer that that is the mileage since you completed the resto and the actual mileage is unknown. Sign a statement to that effect to the buyer. You're good to go. Dilemna solved.

As with anything these days, honesty is the way to go should anyone want to reset their odometer. I certainly plan to do it to mine when I restore my 1964 C60.

But let's think about this for a minute. If you document the actual odometer with a photo prior to resetting and have that available during registration or selling, who can argue with you. Merely mention that the vehicle was restored and part of that process was to restore the instrument panel. I'm sure with proper documentation it would be no big deal. Also, if someone were to purchase your vehicle that individual would probably be like us 'Bolters and appreciate that level of detail.

And, if the worst happens and one were to get a hard time at the DMV...then the country is in worse shape than I thought for worrying about the odometer reading on a 40+ year old vehicle

Just because your odometer says a certain (five digit) number, how can you prove how many times it has rolled over. You just have to state that you are unsure of the actual mileage which most people truely are,
Scott

I would think that you have to take the whole thing apart and spin each wheel to its proper location I don,t know how much different a 46 odometer is from a 64 But when i restored mine I was glad that I took pictures as i took it apart as it sure made it alot easyer to put it back together again. I put new numbers on mine and there was a notch in the wheel as where to start. If your not good with lots of small parts have someone do it for you

I want to be clear, when someone asks a question that have legal ramifications, it's best to point them in the right direction. However after saying that, many old cars and trucks have modified odometers or replacements in them and have not paid the legal cost or have been fined. What did the bill of sale or registration say about the mileage? Who is to question whether or not the mileage on the odometer is correct or not on such an old vehicle? These odometers only go to 99999.9 and then they go back to 00000.0

To answer the first question: Use a drill or carefully take the odometer apart and manually turn the wheels to zero.

The number wheels should be on a stainless axle with a pressed on retainer of brass or bronze. With clean hands, very gently move the retainer over about 1/16" or so, alllowing you to rotate each wheel by sliding from it's indexing pins. Start with the 10,000s 1st, then 1,000s, etc, until they all read zero. Use a 1/4 drive socket of proper size to the axle/retainer side, and VERY GENTLY tap the retainer in place with the other end of the axle on a firm surface, checking as you go for proper "tension" on the wheels. Qualify your work by rolling a mile or 2 on by hand and re-install. Job done. By the way, I've never found one that will spin backwards for more than 5/10 of a mile. Good luck with it.

I wouldn't get all bent about the legality as long as title protocals are followed.

Check with your state's DMV. In Texas, when you sign over a title there are check boxes where you certify that the odometer reading is:

A: actual mileage
N: not actual milage (Warning! Odometer Discrepiency!)
X: Exceeeds mechanical limits

As long as you answer honestly (N), there should be no problem.

wow thanks for all the input guys. this really took off faster than i though it would. i didnt realize how big of a deal it would be to change such a mionor thing. being that it came with a different engine to begin with. im sure the old gals at the dmv wont have a problem with it. thanks again

Some good info. Now if your honest what your doing is fine. Its done all the time in the car industry if you are a dealer and suspect odometer altering. To save your butt and sell a car that is suspect you make the car or truck a TMU. True Milage Unknowen and that pretty much covers it. On old stuff the states dont really care. If you see a title with TMU on newer cars trucks you can buy it for a bunch less than its real retail value if you know what your looking at. I have a 2001 silerado bought at auction that the dealers would not touch. I stole it for a fraction of its wholesale price because it was a clearly stated TMU. Turned out to be a deal for me but it wqs a crap shoot that dealers were not willing to take. They also would never take my truck in on trade becuse of the TMU.

Please don't ever ask these guys what time it is!

It's 0716, Friday, 11 March 2006.

Man oh man...2005 really zipped by fast!!!

Well, it really depends on what your definition of is is. :p

I watch a guy try to spin one back with a drill.It took so long he kept increasing the speed till smoke came out of it. He says now what do I do? Get another speedo. At 50 MPH you could take off 1200 miles a day.

I have bought and restored many dash clusters, both guages and idiot lights. Both styles have the same speedometer and odometer. I too, once tried to reset the odometer to zero via an 18v DeWalt attached to the tranny end of the speedo cable. Don't waste your time with that technique. Better yet, remove the front of the speedo with the numbers and set aside. Also, remove the odometer assembly. It is a little tricky, but the unit can be reset by simply turning the wheels independently. Be patient and very careful because the wheels have catches that advances the adjacent wheel as it nears the next tenth, mile, ten, hundred, thousand etc. Additionally, the numbers are often very brittle and will not stand up to handling or the oil and dirt from your hands. Furthermore, let the unit relax in your hand. This seems to let the wheels rotate more freely. I have done this before while sitting in front of the TV. It seems to keep me relaxed and not force things. In closing, this is a simple and quick method to reset odometers to zero and once you get the hang of how the assembly operates, you can do it like a champ.

Doesn't someone make a kit to reface guages with new stickers for the odometer too? You know, like the ones they made back when you couldn't solve your Rubiks Cube, so you bought new stickers to put it back the way it was before you screwed it up.