Does the tach gauge no longer have the digital readout for speed? Or is it just the needle on the speedo that doesn't move? I assume it's just the needle? Connections can get dirty over time - try cleaning them and/or unplugging/plugging a couple times.

 

The needle does not move. I see the speed on the Vessel View. I will look on the tach. Thanks I will try that today.

 

I checked today, the tach does not show the speed either. I removed all the plugs from the hub and the back of the gauges. I did not see any corrosion or dirt.

Can someone guide me to where I can find the pickup for the speed? I don't see a tube out the stern.

 

My speedo (gauge) doesn't work either, but I can see speed mph on VV mobile. I just assumed it was calculating that based on location/gps of the tablet.

My issue is the pitot hardly working. Once I get going it might register a few mph but it's never been any good as long as I've had the boat.

 

Is vessel view giving you any error messages? If not did you ever suppress a speedo warning before?

 

I have a 260 SD with the bravo III drive and the pick up hole for the speedometer is on the lower drive, small hole which must be cleaned out. It could be clogged not allowing sufficient water to drive the speed sensor. There is a small black tube that comes from the drive into the transom, on mine this tube broke and I had to splice it with a brass barbed connector. This may be the reason your speedometer does not work. You can also buy a pitot pickup and run a new tube into your transom and to the speed sensor. Look online for the location of the speed sensor since it is different on the engines and the year of the make. I’ll try to take a photo tomorrow of the tube and sensor location.

 

As alternative til fixed, theres an app for phones called Speedtracker, free. Surprisingly accurate, has some neat features like trip logging. When my speedometer didnt work last summer this works. Check it out.

 

Thanks for that tip. I eventually found one that's ad free and works great for Android.

 

OK, since you don't have digital speed (the needle is just a dumb, redundant copy of the digital)... either the pitot system is clogged or the pitot sensor is bad or there is a crack in the pitot hose.

On the leading edge of your drive, look/feel just above the gearcase housing (the torpedo looking thingy). You'll find a small hole. Take a small drill bit and, by hand, twist/ream the hole out. You won't damage anything. Keep going till you can feel the bit easily bottom out. Now, go further up into the "cavity" by the anti-ventilation plate. You'll find a quick disconnect. You can remove that and verify the pathway from there to the pitot hole is clear. If the rest of the pathway is good, blowing into the boatside of that connection should cause the speedo to register. The next piece in the system is inside the boat - it's the pitot sensor which you can find by following the pitot hose from the inside of the transom.

 

I checked the lower unit yesterday. I found a stick the size of a toothpick in it. Could not get anything in the hole to clean further but did notice a reading of 2 mph now when moving. I will have to wait till I can get it out of the water to investigate further. Thanks for the advice.

 

I took her out this morning. At slow speeds when the speedo says zero, and the digital speed reading says zero, MPH speed on the VV Mobile matches what I see on my Chartplotter which has internal GPS. According to the smartcraft manual it will defer to GPS for speed if it has to. I turned on the location option on my tablet that I use for VV Mobile, which enables the GPS, and I can see an accurate MPH. This winter I'll clean out the pitot and maybe I get a few weeks out of it next season