How to Fix a Motorcycle Tachometer That's Not Working?
2 Answers
Remove the fixing nut of the speed cable below the speedometer and pull it out. Then lift the front wheel and rotate it to see if the speed cable rotates along with it. If the speed cable rotates, it may indicate that the reduction gear inside the dial is damaged. Since the speedometer dial is not sold separately, the entire assembly must be replaced.
I've been riding motorcycles for ten years and have encountered the tachometer suddenly stopping several times. That time when I was riding on a mountain road and noticed the needle stuck at zero, I panicked at first, but I took it slow and first checked to safely pull over. The inspection steps are simple: start the engine and listen if the sound is steady; if it's normal but the gauge isn't moving, it might be a tachometer sensor issue, which is prone to dust accumulation or loose wiring on the engine side. I just used a screwdriver to open and check the connection, making sure it was clean. If that doesn't work, try the fuse; find the corresponding tachometer circuit in the fuse box, and replace it if it's blown. If it still doesn't work, it might be an internal fault in the instrument cluster. For my bike that time, it was a small motor that was broken, and replacing it with a second-hand instrument cluster fixed the issue. For regular maintenance, use compressed air to clean electronic components as a preventive measure, and don't force it to avoid causing other problems.
