speedometer odometer discrepancy
 

Hi guys, i took a ride yesterday on my new to me 560SL, i noticed that de sedo was acurate but for some reason the odometer was very slow, i did 60 mph for a minute, ii did not get amille on the odo but more like .3, at that rate it took 40 milles to empty the tank, i read something about the gears on the odometer sliping, could that be what is happening, does this car use an electric spedometer? was it the last owner, now i know why only 66000 milles on a 1989 car.

Thanks

1989 should have an electronic speedo. I do not know if the odometer gearing is similar to the mechanical ones, but it definitely sounds like the gears are slipping. Have you timed a mile at 60MPH to verify the speedo is correct?

I was going to open by saying 40 miles to the tank is about right for a 560 ;), but decided that wasn't a nice way to welcome you. Bienvenidos.

Well given the price of gas here i would not mind 40 milles for a thank. Yes i did check it, running at 60 mph for a minute gave me only .3 on the odometer. is the same for either the total or the partial odometer.

What I meant by timing was covering a known mile in 60 seconds at 60 MPH, like using mileposts on the highway to gauge distance. As long as you are covering one mile every 60 seconds at 60 MPH, you know the speedo is accurate while your odometer is registering only 3/10 miles. If you were going farther than, or less than a mile every 60 seconds, then we know the speedo is off too. Either way sounds like the speedo head needs to be rebuilt to repair the odometer. No telling how long it has been recording inaccurate mileage. Have you tried to contact the prior owner, might be this is something that recently came up.