98. Speedometer fault - Reggie
The speedometer on my 1998 2.1 diesel 406 suddenly started flicking between zero and the speed the car was doing, after going through a torrential downpour in August. The problem remained intermittent until the speedo stopped working altogether last week. It is an electronically driven type, so I replaced the transducer on the gearbox. It then worked perfectly again for two days and about 60 miles before reverting back to the original symptoms (i.e. flicking instantly down to zero and then back to the true speed). I suspected water in the original unit, but the new transducer has replicated the symptoms. I am beginning to suspect a broken wire as periodically everything is o.k. or could it be a fault on the speedo head? Has anybody else had this problem?

Edited by Pugugly {P} on 15/10/2007 at 22:35

speedometer fault-Xantia - NVH
I have exactly these symptoms on my '96 80000mile xantia right now.
The tacho works, but the speedo and odometer sometimes work & sometimes don't.
Citroen garage in uk couldnt find fault last Friday as they were working...
Citroen garage in france (fixing burst hydraulics) noted the fault and suggest speedo head.
As I am currently buzzing round Germany I can confirm that the
speedo generally fails above 70mph with the flicking to zero and back that you describe. Below 30 no real problems at present, except under hard acceleration eg on Mway slip road.
Looks like i have the same transducer system as the Pug.
speedometer fault-Xantia - T Lucas
Had a 406 with a similar prob on the tacho,after plenty messing around turned out to be a bad earth to the binnacle.Might help.
speedometer fault-Xantia - Reggie
Thanks for that. My parts supplier (an independant who supplies only new genuine Peugeot parts and is very knowledgeable on Peugeots) has informed me that he knows of a few 406's that have had completely new speedo heads. Apparently It comes in ? three bits, each bit being very expensive, totalling about £300. He's advised me to get an auto electrician in to identify what has failed, so that I dont replace anything else unecassarily. If the fault remains intermitent, presumably it will remain nigh on impossible to identify. I am unable to look at it myself until the end of next week, but obviously would only be able to rectify a bad earth or loose connection. It looks like another expensive month!
speedometer fault-Xantia - Peter D
Locate the hall effect sensor on the gearbox and its associated connector. Remove and measure the resistance of the sensor and note the reading. Clean same, silicon grease and replace. Check under bonnet connecetions then head up to the dash and locate the main connectorand ensure it is home OK. Then try it for a while.

If you manage to get the fault back, carry the meter and measure the sensor again to see if it has gone open circuit. Good Luck.

Peter
speedometer fault-Xantia - Reggie
What I did omit (trying not to be too long winded) was that after I put the new transducer on, it did not work for the first half a mile, then flicked a couple of times before working perfectly for two days and 60 miles. Peter, are you suspicious that the fault "may" still lie with the new transducer?
speedometer fault-Xantia - Peter D
Sorry Reggie I did not read the original properly.

Check carefully the pair of wires that to the sensor you may as you say have a break in the wire particulerly as you seem to link engine movement, ie. acceleration with the problem.

Either carefully jack and stand stand wheels up so you can run the car in gear and someone observe the speedo whilst you flex the cable. or get a local friendly garage to let you use the brake test rolling road.

Good Luck


Peter
speedometer fault-Xantia - Reggie
I just thought that I would let you know, in case it can help anybody else, that after nearly purchasing a new speedo head to cure the problem (above), and after already purchasing a new transducer, the spares dept of my local Pug dealer told me (whilst pricing up the speedo head) that they sell alot of "speedo interface boxes" for the 2.1 T/D 406. After speaking to the mechanic, he confirmed the symptoms that I was experiencing, and it seems to have cured the problem. The "interface", a box of electical components to me, is shown as a round blob on the circuit diagram, and no mention appears to be made of it in the workshop manual. It is situated high up behind the glove compartment with alot of other electrical boxes. This of course is the price of progress. I suspect that a good old cable would last longer than the 44000 miles that this box has lasted. I dont know if this applies to other models, but hope it may help somebody sometime. What is starting to worry me is that the list of faults that are recorded in "Honest Johns" car breakdown data appears to be slowly coming true. Ive had the rear discs, coil spring failure and speedo failure, Im just waiting for the starter motor and raidiator to fail now. It is beggining to seem inevitable!!
speedometer fault-Xantia - Andy22
oh yes, plenty of problems afoot i suspect, must admit my dials are ok, well apart from one dash light being out, bearable though.

On the other hand you might be ok for other problems, but i've just spent £500 on non consumable repairs on an S(98) 120k 406 and to be honest i'm just waiting for the next problem!

I can't wait for my next car so i can compare it to owning this, amd it won't be a peugoet or citreon.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - PhilH
£36, ten minutes work, and it's cured!
My 406 2.1DT developed an intermittent speedo fault at about 44000 miles, and I spent over £300 on diagnostic tests, replacement sender unit and a s/h instrument panel. The fault persisted.

I bought a speedo interface box, £36 from the local Peugeot dealer, and fitted it in about 10 minutes. Removal of the glove box by sliding out 2 plastic hinge pins gives access to a plastic cover, behind which lies the speedo interface box. The electrical connection is held by a red clip, which when unplugged, allows the box to be withdrawn. It's a bit fiddly to fit the new box in place because it is located on plastic guides which you can't see, but once clipped in place, and the electrics reconnected - that's it. Problem solved.

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - deegee
PhilH - You're the man!!! Followed your advice and inside a few minutes had a perfectly reading speedo again ( no more chaanging down to 1st gear when passing cameras! ) Just a pity my mechanic changed the bit that sits on top of the gearbox first. Many thanks
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - cholin
(406 2.1 td)I have a similar fault with my rev. counter. It tends to stick at 2000 or occasionally drops to zero for no apparent reason. I think its mechanical as a tap on the panel unsticks it but I might just as easily be disturbing some electrics. Any suggestions? Otherwise 80,000 miles and two new rads, front discs and hoses and two (one mis diagnosed) temp sensors to cure random revving.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Davy_S {P}
A possible cure is to re-solder the connections on the instrument panel.


--
Davy S.

Oops, where did that screw go!!
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - DavidHM
I had exactly the same problem, getting worse over time and it eventually affected the speedo too.

Remove the instrument panel and re-solder the joints on the circuit board inside the panel.

It was a half-hour job for the (very competent) engineer friend who did the job for me as a favour - but then I sold the car two weeks later, quite unexpectedly.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - angi
Hi there. I know it was a long ime ago, but i just read your post regarding the replacement of a speedo interface box . i have the same problem on my 406 dt. i took your advice and took out the glove box and the plastic cover but then i was lost. do you remember what the nterface box looks like? Kind regards
angi
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - PhilH
Hello, From memory, there were a couple of boxes under the plastic cover. I bought a replacement interface box first, then removed the glovebox, and I could tell which was the correct box to replace by comparing it with the one I had just bought. Hope this helps, Thanks & good luck, Phil
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Reggie
PhilH is right, you'd be best buying a replacement, and then identifying the correct box that way, although I thought that there were several boxes/relays to exclude on my 406.

Good luck.

Reggie
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - GaryP
Hey guys guess wot, the speedo on my R reg 406 exec suddenly starts flicking and dying, my local garage who is normally very good, fits a new transducer, which makes no difference and then tells me the back of the instrument cluster is burnt out and gives up!

I am now driving by the reading on my TomTom, but will look into the interface unit

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Peter D
You won't be passing an MOT with that then. Regards Peter
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Andrej
First of all thank you all guys for helping me resolving my speedometer problem on my 406 3.0 v6 1999. I had the same problem with flickering speedometer and also when spedo was not working car did not have engine smoothness and servo steering was at maximum.
First of all I tried with changing of speed sensor on a gear box but that did not change anything and after I replaced a black box containing some electronics and being fitted underneath a glove box on a passenger side. It is wary easy to fit.

Speedo Interface (1929SJ) ? Fitting
You will need:-
1929SJ
Wire cutter
Torch

There are a few notable features about the unit.
It has a BEIGE plug surround with the number IND.VE3
Made by Bitron
>PPE-GF10<
Now move the passenger seat as far back as it will go. You?re going behind the glove box from underneath.
There are three studs holding the carpet in place under the glove box.
Carefully use a pair of wire cutters to lever these out one by one.
Then remove the carpet and put the studs in a safe place.
Now wriggle into the passenger footwall so you?re looking up into the cavity behind the glove box.
You will see the BEIGE surround on the 1929SJ in its holder.
Carefully move obstructing wires out of the way
gently pull the 1929SJ straight down so it disconnects from the housing.
Once you have the unit out you will see a RED clip holding the harness to the 1929SJ
Lift this up and gently pull the harness plug off the unit.
It SHOULD come away easily but make sure the red securing flange is ALL the way out.
Connect the NEW unit to the harness, IT SHOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE to put it on the wrong way, push in the red holder flange so it secures the harness to the unit.
Make sure you put the unit back in the way it came out so the flanges on the sides lock into the holder.

Also it is possible to use any similar box from Peugeot - Citroen program with same pin layout even if jack itself is not exactly the same witch I also tried with Citroen diesel 1.9 engine box and I managed to fit it by brushing off the guide plastics around jack and putting it in to place. It works fine!!!
Thanks again to everybody and happy fixing from Belgrade Serbia.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Pugugly {P}
Thanks for the incredibly useful post. Now edited into the drop down menu thing so that it can be found easily by other users.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - 406 Owner
The speedo on my 2000 (X-reg) 2.0i 406 has suffered similar symptoms for over a year now - occasionally wobbling and dying, however last weekend it died completely. Phoned my local Peugeot dealer to order the Speedo Interface box only to be told that it isn't fitted to my model, only the larger petrol engine and diesels. Is that true ? They also told me that on my model there is only one electronic speedo unit and its attached to the gearbox housing (cost around £25). Does anyone know if this is the likely cause and how tricky it is to replace ?

TIA

Peter
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - MikeSmith
Hi all

I have a similar problem on an HDi Pug Expert van, my speedo 'flickers' or 'twitches' around zero and never shows the correct speed (except when I stop ;-)).

I spoke to my local dealer and they said there was no interface box on the Expert - just the gearbox sensor and the instrument cluster. They also said that they had sold a fair few instrument clusters to fix this problem, but at around £500 plus reprogramming the mileage it ain't cheap. The odometer works fine though, so I'm assuming that it can't be the gearbox sensor or any wiring between the sensor and the instrument cluster - the fault must surely be in the instrument cluster.

I have checked the instrument cluster PCB for dry joints and it all looked fine. I'm hoping to find another instrument cluster on a scrap yard to swap out either the whole cluster or just the speedo head so that the mileage on the odometer remains correct. Does anyone have any other ideas?

Thanks,

Mike
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - shell27gobby
hi ya i have a 406 1.8 petrol we are also having problems with the speedo it sticks at 40mph but for some reason our mileage has jumped from 116000 to 222000 then it went down to 22000 then back up to 222000 did you also have this problem and if not does anyone know if replacing the interface will correct both problems
many thanks
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - 406coupebloke
I had a 406 3.0 V6 Coupe with exactly the same fault as "Andrej Mon 15 Oct 07 20:34" - I eventually found the same info by searching on the Web (although not as well written as Andrej's!) and fixed the fault in the same way replacing the little black box - easy 10 min job.
Against my better judgement I sold the car and bought a newer 2001 version of the same car. This has developed the same fault (along with a mountain of others) - no problem I thought - just need to do the same again.
Apparently this model does not have that black box. I'm yet to get the gearbox sensor checked, think this is probably my next best option...unless anyone else has any ideas?
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - theidiot
I'm having exactly the same problem. Did it get fixed and what was it? I've looked for the speedo interface but I can't see it. I have the same model as you too.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - theidiot
I meant to say the same problem as shell27gobby.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - henry ford
I have a camper van on a Peugeot Boxer base and the speedo has stopped working, after kicking a few times and then dying. Does anyone know if this model has a speedo interface box and if so where is it located on the vehicle. I have lifted the speedo housing and tried the connectors but to no avail. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - a-ron86
Hi i have just got a v reg 2.0i 406 coupe and it is fine apart from from time time to time i loose the speedo, rev counter, indicator icons (even though the indicators themselves work) . then after about 10 mins it works again? does anyone know if i replce the small box behind the gloove compartment whether this may make a difference? any help would be really appreciated thanks
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - martin180187
hi there,,, my 1998 406 2.1 td has the same fault you guys are all talking about speedo started messing around at about 40 for a few weeks then wouldnt work at all untill you got passed 50, after waiting around for 8 months for my local peguot dealer to get hold of the black box behind the glove box i decided to go to a local scrapyard and find one my self, i found there are 2 types a valeo one and one made in italy and it was the one made in italy i needed, so i got it and set about replacing the unit, did that and it worked fine all day then i went out the next day and it wouldnt work untill you got to 20 then it worked fine and after 10 mins of driving it worked all day this was a vast improvement on the previous unit i replaced, but i was not happy with it still not working properly and after waitnig a further 2 months for my local pug dealer to get me a road speed sensor for the gear box i decided to also get this from a car salvage firm instead so i got one and i was told it had three pins on the top for the wires to connect to so i handed over £20 and went home to fit it, after jacking mine up i found that mine only had two connecter pins in the plug and mine was bigger so (and i know i had not got confused with the reverse sensor as that is on the top and looks like a spark plug.......ish) i had to get a refund for the first one and spend hours in scrap yards looking for another, i found a two pin one and fitted it this made no difference as the symptoms were still the same so i know its not that at fault, i beleve that the black contol box could be on its way out altho i have replaced this but only with a second hand unit that came off scraped pug,,,, rather than go to the hastle of replacing it again i thought i would come to you guys to see if you have any ideas


the spedo has the flickering dying problem which has been inproved by fitting the second hand contoll box but my fuel gauage is also faulty it just gose up and down sometimes this fault occured befor the the spedo fault

im woundering if the two are being caused by the same fault maybe a dodgy earth?? any ideas (please)

on a more pug faults issues i have had the rad go on me and the rear handbreak failing and the pins that hold in the rear pads wearing out and my remote locking keys packed up and the typical pug central locking faults

these pugs mainly the 406 and 306 are full of electrical faults its like a cancer once your car has got the dreded pug bug it spreads until the caer is dead!!

many thanks

martin
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - agcode
i bought a n reg 406 about a month ago,very tidy motor,but noticed speedo/rev/fuel guage intermitently working. revs would stick at 2000 rpm and speedo would just die when driving. this was happening every day which was doing my head in!!!. i found that tapping the dash(quite hard) above the clocks would temperarly fix the problem which led me to believe the problem was in the cluster and not any of the senders.
so last week i removed the instrument cluster, unplugged the yellow and blue connectors on the back and unscrewed the rear caseing(the bit with the printed circuit board on it).when i removed this i noticed the circuit board inside had prongs on it that fit into the rear of the dials,obviously making the electrical connection.
i then removed the clocks from the front part of cluster and put them onto the rear part and plugged it back in to test it.i started the engine and was able to simulate the problems i was having with the fuel guage and rev counter by slightly moving the clocks on the connector pins(hope this is making sense:-). this confirmed my theory the problem was definatly the connector pins.
to solve this i slightly bent the pins, being carefull not to snap them, to make a better connection. also padded out the gap between the front part of the cluster and the clocks to make sure the clocks were fully pushed back onto the pins when reassembled.
i put it all back together and have had no problems since.

i do believe that many people with the pug clock problem are spending alot of time and money replacing parts that dont need raplacing when the problem is in the design of the cluster itself.

this fix cost me nothing,hopefully it will help you too.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - bryn1
hi agcode i have the same problems as you on my 1997 2.1 td 406 can you tell if i get a replacement speedo will the problem be solved i was going to follow your instruction but i dont want to do it wrong and make the the problem any worse .bryn
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - agcode
hi bryn1,from my experiance the problem is in the design of the cluster itself so getting another one may solve the problem if you get a good one. personally,being the type of person that likes to take things appart to see how they work,i would rather take the risk of fixing it first before parting with any cash. if you are a mechanically minded type person then once you take it apart you would see how easy it is to fix, you cant really do much damage as long as youre carefull. if your not that confident at messing with things in this way then ask a freind who is or if you do decide to buy another one i would recomend a new one from manufacturer. this would obviously cost more money but you should at least get some sort of guarantee with it.
hope you get it sorted one way or another.

agcode.
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - bryn1
hi agcode i have taken speedo apart this morning and bent them pins that go into the back of the dials to make better contact it seens to have done the trick as i have done 20 miles plus it been running for a while and its all good glad i listen to you thanks for the help bryn.

p.s any one with same problem should try your advice before spending money..
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - agcode
hi bryn, good news, glad it worked.mines been working fine for three weeks now,no probs.

agcode:)
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - mep12345
Sorry, first post asking for help, but I am active on other motoring forums, but this one had specific threads to my problem so wanted to focus here.

I have a 2000 Pug 406 HDi 90 Estate with a similar problem to above. The speedo and odometer stop registering for a short period then start again for no apparant reason. I have diagnostics and have run these on the car which show that at the time the speedo/odometer stop reading all speed signal is lost to the ECU and is restored when they start reading again. This I believe means the dash is reading correct and is not at fault (also all other instruments are fine and follow the diagnostic signal)

From this and other messages I thought interface box, but cannot find one behind the glove box. Does anyone know whether these were located anywhere else? or were they only fitted to some Diesel engines and not others? The thread above implies all diesel and all large petrol.

If an interface box is not fitted I assume I am only left with the transmitter on the gearbox, which I don't want to remove unless I have to as it is a so and so to get to without ramps

Thanks

Mark
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - bryn1
have you tried pushing on the screen on the speedo mine worked when did this so then i followed agcodes info works perfect now
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - mep12345
No I haven't but have tried the percussion engineering on the dash to no avail - as I said though the diagnostic I have used have shown that the ECU is getting no speed signal, and the dash comes after the ECU, so therefore should not be a dashboard issue leaving only the wiring, sensor and interface box (if I have one fitted - hence trying to find out if there is an alternate location for this before changing the sensor)

Mark
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - allan doc
Do a search for 'megane erratic speedo' I had this same prob 4 year ago. It'll prob be an earth fault which is common on French cars. Find the Speedo connection on the gearbox which will have 3 wires and connect an earth connection to the black wire (Usually). Hopefully this should cure it
speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - hopkinsd

well guys i had this problem the diagnotics came up with speedo drive problem but it was the interface box .i tried to get a used one , talk about hens teeth no breakers in 30 miles of me could supply one so i resorted to ebay and got one for £20. fitted it and it worked slightly i was not hapy so i got the old one out of the bin opened it up the took to it with a hot air gun used for paint stripping and so on. slapped it back in .11000 miles later its still going strong. so if you cant get a used one and dont want to take the chance buying new to find thats not the problem try my fix .

its hard to open but worth it.

if you need more help on the matter hopkinsd@hotmail.co.uk

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - eddiebmh

Thanks for all the info folks. On my 2000 W 406 HDi the speedo either does or doesn't work - and mainly does. When it falls to zero I get a small power loss and conversely a small gain when it starts to register. Has anyone else noticed this?

(I have not identified any consistent associated speed/acceleration factors - it drops in or out at any speed.)

Also . . . do I take it the 2000+ TDi models do not have the behind the glove-box box?

With thanks - Eddie

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Peter.N.

I have recently had the same problem, the fact that it affects the engine power shows that its not the instrument that is at fault but the signal fed to it because it also feeds the engine ECU. The problem on mine was a bad connection on the sensor plug, the sensor is mounted in the diff just above where the o/s drive shaft enters, the plug is held in with a wire clip, its fiddly but you can get it off with a small pair of pointed nose pliers or thin screwdriver, if you pull the plug out and squirt it and the socket with WD40, move it in and out several times and this should clean it.

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - eddiebmh

Many thanks Peter for the useful, and so speedy, reply. I'll have a go at that - it certainly seems cheaper than some of the remedies. Eddie

speedometer fault-406 and Xantia - Trox

Hi I have just aquired a 1.9 ltd 406 the speedo is sticking a lot at 40 mph and the revvy at 2k also the temp sensor doesnt work and the fuel guage seems a lot blower than what I put in, would you say that it is down to the box behind the glovey or maybe the actual clocks? Also if i have to change the clocks what do I do on the next mot if the clocks are significantly lower than the last mot?

Any help is much appreciated.

John