ZUKIWORLD Online | Suzuki 4x4 Editorial and Forum
ZUKIWORLD Model Specific Suzuki Forum => Suzuki Samurai (All SJ Platform) 1981-1998 => Topic started by: djamp1983 on December 20, 2010, 08:17:05 AM
-
as the title says, i just bought a 94 samurai. took the train out to Iowa on Saturday and drove her back to Michigan yesterday. She ran like a champ the whole way home. It just has two small issues that I'd like to fix right away, and I was wondering how much trouble it will be for me to do these myself.
Problem 1: the speedometer stopped working shortly after i started driving home. My best guess is that the cable broke. since cables are pretty cheep, I ordered one today. if that doesn't fix the problem, what else could cause the speedometer to stop working aside from the possibility that the gauge itself went bad.
Problem 2: the blue indicator light for my high beams stopped working, what are some reasons for that to happen? The high beams still work, I just feel like a jerk when i don't realize they're on and someone is coming towards me.
-
These rigs are pretty simple, if it's not the cable or a broken gauge then the only thing left is the gear in your transfer case. The speedometer went out on my SJ as well, I just use a GPS instead.
For the high beam light it is probably a bad light bulb. The only other reason it would go bad is if you lost ground somewhere, but I would try the light bulb first.
-
Thanks, how difficult is it to get the dash apart?
-
Not very. I believe it is just the four screws on the dash and it pulls forward.
-
excellent, i should have time to get everything done this weekend. hopefully i won't have to post any more questions. thanks for your help.
-
On the earlier round venter dashes which may be the same as the later square vent dashes, to pull the instument panel, yes you need to remove the 4 allen head bolts and because the hazard lights switch sticks up in the way and may break, drop the steering a little bit. This is done by removing the plastic part of the dash under the steering column and loosening the 2 torx bolts that holds the column just enough to clear the haward switch.
-
thanks for all your help. I picked up a "universal" speedometer cable and found out last night, that it's not so universal. no big deal, i just ordered a cable that was made for a samurai and hopefully i'll have it before the weekend.
i have another concern that i noticed this weekend, it feels like i've lost a lot of horsepower since i bought it. I could just be crazy and didn't notice the lack of power on my drive home. but, my acceleration is lousy up until about 3000 rpm (i'm guessing since i don't have a tach). once i hit that point she'll pull me back into my seat. also, if i'm going 70 mpr on flat road i can't hold speed in 5th gear. I ran a diagnostic, but the only code that pulled up was for the speed sensor. what could be causing the loss in hp? or am i just nuts?
-
There are a couple of things. The first to do is a full tune-up since you just got the vehicle. Cap, rotor, plugs and wires. Next would be to check the timing. If your timing is to far back you will see a loss in power at lower rpm's. One way to check is to mark where your timing is at currently, then try advancing it slightly and going for another test run.
-
it's alive!
all i needed to do was adjust the distributor, she runs like a dream now. still did a tune up to make sure.
-
Nice! :)