Electronic speedometer conversion

[The Dark Side of Will]

Has anyone swapped to an electronic speedometer?
What gauge did you use? What speedo cable sleeve or VSS?

I am doing a 4.0 HO swap with built driveline, including NV3550 trans, NP229 T-case, 3.54 front from a 4 cyl Eagle and 3.54 NON-C-clip Dana 44 rear from an '87 Wagoneer.

I'm about to button up the NP229 converted for Eagle use. I'll have a 36 tooth speedo gear to match the 3.54 axles and a Jeep aluminum speedometer gear drive sleeve instead of the Eagle plastic sleeve. At first I'll use a DRAC or JagsThatRun adapter to provide the VSS signal to the 4.0 ECU. I'd like eventually to convert entirely to electronic speed sensing, both for the ECU and the Speedometer.

Who has done that and what parts did you use?

[Nightpath]

There aren't too many electronic speedos out there that are cheap to swap over to. Most come in a complete package for all the gauges which might be your better bet to upgrade to. Intellitronix makes one I do believe, 4 or 5 different colors and is easily adapted to the Eagle.

[atmafox]

This is a bit necro but it's only about the fourth topic down so I'm not sure if that's a problem -- apologies if so.

In any case, I'm in the process of planning my own electronic speedo conversion but I don't (necessarily) intend to go with a kit.  I have, however, completed similar on an '86 Toyota Pickup with W56 transmission.  What I ended up doing was getting the speed sender from a later model version of the vehicle ('93, specifically) and fit it into the gearbox.  Also looted the dash and used the speedometer from it; works like a charm.

Which is somewhat the blueprint for this work on my Eagle.  Find an electronic speed sender (8 pulse per rotation square wavetrain per elsewhere in Jeeper communities -- the Toyota I worked on was a 4 pulse per rotation square wavetrain so not too odd) and matching speedometer and adapt it to my Eagle.  As my Eagle has a worn out either speedometer cable or speedometer and from experience after one goes the other will eat anything new put on it.

Per that resource (and unfortunately I didn't save the link, but some googling helped); basically all electronic speedo models Chrysler built use the same square wavetrain as well, so hopefully it shouldn't be too difficult to source parts from a yard.

[TheBirdman]

Well thats a neat idea. Let us know how it works. This spring Ive got a NP242 swap planned, and I was thinking id see if I could stick the cable drive from the 129 on it, but if the conversion works out well for you I may be interested in trying that.

[amarshall]

Just FYI, I swapped a NP242 last year - I got it from a 1998 Jeep Cherokee.  It came with an electronic speedo sensor, but I took it out and replace with the cable drive unit from my NP129.  Worked just fine to drive the Eagle speedo.  I was even able to find a new gear on fleabay, with the right number of teeth to match my big mud tires and swapped 3.07 axles.  I think the listing was for dodge truck speedos, but they are the same also.

For those looking for an electronic sensor, I'd start with the Jeep Cherokee units.  That would be the most likely direct fit.

[atmafox]

A-yupyup, that was my thought as well -- XJ units, yeah. (=

[TheBirdman]

Just FYI, I swapped a NP242 last year - I got it from a 1998 Jeep Cherokee.  It came with an electronic speedo sensor, but I took it out and replace with the cable drive unit from my NP129.  Worked just fine to drive the Eagle speedo.  I was even able to find a new gear on fleabay, with the right number of teeth to match my big mud tires and swapped 3.07 axles.  I think the listing was for dodge truck speedos, but they are the same also.

For those looking for an electronic sensor, I'd start with the Jeep Cherokee units.  That would be the most likely direct fit.

Oh cool, good to hear. Did you manage to transplant the stock shift linkage for the np242, or did you use an aftermarket one?

[amarshall]

I briefly toyed around with a shifter handle from the same XJ, then realized it would take some major tinkering.  In the end I went with one from Novak - but not the cable version.  Those require mounting points on the body, and are made specific to Cherokees or Wranglers or whatever.

The one I got is a hard lever that connects right to the transfer case via a bracket so it doesn't need any connection to the body.  I think it's called the SK2X.  Still needed some tweaking, it's pretty tight under there with the trans shifter linkage nearby.

Bird an, I see you have another thread about NP242 swaps.  I'll post more info over there, I should have some pictures.

[derf]

The early electric speedometers on Jeep NP2xx transfer cases were driven by an electric sending unit that goes in place of the cable drive and it uses the same gears as the cable drives.  They, along with the Dodge units, are pretty much all interchangeable as long as you stay in the 90's to early 2000's or older.

As you get into the mid to early 2000's, you'll find that Jeep switched over to using the ABS sensors to drive the speedometer and the newer NVG2xx cases don't even have speedometer senders at all.  That started in 2002 with the Liberty (I think) and 2007 with the JK Wranglers (I know that for sure).  I don't know about the Grand Cherokee or the Dodge trucks.

And if anyone is looking for an electronic sender, I have an extra laying around.  I had a spare NP242 that I used parts of when rebuilding the 242 in my 2001 XJ Cherokee.  It's one of the leftover parts I didn't need.  If anyone wants it, I can dig it out and throw it in a box for cheap.

[TheBirdman]

I was looking around the junkyard last weekend and saw a 2001 grand cherokee with a np242 that didnt have a spot for a vss

[derf]

I was looking around the junkyard last weekend and saw a 2001 grand cherokee with a np242 that didnt have a spot for a vss

It would make sense to me that the WJ (1999-2004) Grand Cherokee was the first of the Jeep vehicles to fully commit to the ABS sensor setup and ditch the VSS in the t-case.  That's the one that people pay a lot more for so they probably get that one set up first as it will pay off the research money.

After that, they probably ran the other Jeeps out until they got to a model switchover.  So the 01 XJ (Cherokee) would have a VSS but the 02 KJ (Liberty) doesn't.  Also, the 2005 TJ (Wrangler) would have a VSS but the 06 JK (Wrangler) doesn't.