Speedo Question

[keith23]

Everyone talks about the Nomad speedo being off.
Is it faster or slower than you are going and by generally how much.
I tried going 60 between mile post and timing it.
I learned two things (1) I’m not coordinated enough to do it or
(2) mile post markers are not a mile apart. Probably number 1 ::)

[Dave]

For my 2007 it's off by almost 10%. when the speedometer read 71 mph, I'm really doing 65mph. This has been verified by too different GPS's.

[mercianbike]

At 60 you are actually doing about 56. I've checked mine against my GPS and against the radar that police often set up on little trailers.

[glwilson]

My GPS calculates speed. When using it on the bike, it appears at speeds around 50 -- 70 that my speedo is 5 MPH too fast. In other words; if the speedo shows 60; I am doing 55. Didn't check it above 70 to see if the problem is progressively worse at higher speeds. Sounds like others have proved it is.

At slower speeds around 30MPH the problem tapers off to only be 2-3 MPH off. So a 10% rule-of-thumb might be a good rule to use.

I know a GPS isn't as good as a radar gun; but the same GPS matches my two different car's speedos exactly at all speeds -- so I am convinced of its effectiveness.

Tire size would make a difference if a change were ever made.

[jamiep24]

It seems we're all about the same: 2-3 miles fast at lower speeds, 4-5 miles fast at medium speeds and 5-6 miles fast at speeds over 70. Checked mine behind a truck and with my gps. The good thing is if you go by your gauge, you'll probably never get a ticket. Jamie

[Cajunrider]

10% fast is where I am with the stock Bridgestone 170/70/16. The 180 Cobra should help a little, I'm thinking maybe 2%. It will be mounted next Monday. I'll post what if any difference it makes.

[keith23]

Thanks guys that explains a lot. http://s2.images.proboards.com/shocked.gif
One of my co-workers passed me on the way to work on the interstate.
He thought I was old man going to town for the weeks grocery shopping. He wanted to know if I had a governor on it. I told him I didn’t want to get a speeding ticket. He said if slowed down about 3 more mph I would get one for going to slow. I’ll speed it up a little now.

[Yellow Jacket]

As nearly as I could tell my 06 with the stock rear tire was right at 10% faster than actual speed. I really don't understand why Kawasaki does this. Surely, their engineers aren't so dumb that they can't design a simple speedometer system to be accurate within 1%. Therefore, I have to assume that it is intentional. Also, my odometer was fast by about 3%.

Going to a larger diameter rear tire can correct some of this inaccuracy. Since the stock Bridgestone has a diameter of 25.3", a tire with a diameter of 27.83" would make a 10% correction. Unfortunately, there are no motorcycle tires that I have found that have this diameter. A 195/80R-16 car tire has this diameter, actually it's right at 28", but to get it to fit you will need to remove part of the brace welded into the front right corner of the swing arm. I don't recommend going to this size tire due to the required modification.

A simpler way to correct for the error would be to install a device called a "Speedo Healer."

http://www.healtech-electronics.com/

http://www.calsportbike.com/cgi-bin/store/index.cgi?cart_id=725308.39361&pid=1988&count=1

This is a rather elegant solution since you can correct for any differing sizes of rear tires that you may decide to install. Such as upgrading to the 180/70R-16 for the rear.

Be aware that if you get the speedometer to be right on then your odometer will probably read slow by about 7%. At least that is the case on my 06. I have installed the 195/80R-16 car tire and the speedometer is dead on as near as I can determine but the odometer now reads 7% slow. (When the odometer indicates that I have gone 100 miles, I have actually gone 107.7 miles.)

[reaper]

My speedo is off by approx 5mph

[pirate]

The speedo on my 08 is off the same as all others mentioned above. I came one mouse click away from ordering a Speedo-healer this winter when I realized, "Why should I have to pay extra for a device to correct my speedometer on a machine that should work correctly from the factory?" Maybe I'm missing something with that line of thinking, but it doesn't make sense to me that the speedometer doesn't register the correct speed. I've never heard of anyone having to buy this type of device for a car or truck.
I know that this problem isn't unique to Nomads either, as the Honda VTX 1300 I previously owned had the same problem. Friends with the same bike have the same problem.
I guess I just don't get it...

[ringadingh]

I just checked mine with my GPS and when I was showing an indicated 80mph on the speedo, I was only going 74 on the GPS.
Below this speed it was basically about 5mph faster than what I was actually doing.

[cactusjack]

Practically every time I ride, I pass by one of those digital readout speed signs. If the gauge says 50, the sign says 45 - which is the predominant speed limit around here on most major roads.

However, I sometimes find myself correcting the speedo error when driving my car, where 50 on the gauge really is 50.

[swcole]

Sounds like my speedo is off more than others. My GPS says I'm doing 70 and the speedo reads 85. I ckecked and the bike does have the stock size tires on it. I wonder what the deal is?

[ringadingh]

Sounds like my speedo is off more than others. My GPS says I'm doing 70 and the speedo reads 85. I ckecked and the bike does have the stock size tires on it. I wonder what the deal is?

I think your bike has a cable operated speedo, whereas most of us have electronic ones. If this is true in your case, you may be able to get a different speedo gear in the drive that will correct this for you. Most speedos are not out as much as yours.

[schoeney]

Welcome to the board swcole. Nice paint!

I have a 2003 1500 and sounds like my speedo is off about the same as others about 8-10%

[strobe]

Sounds like my speedo is off more than others. My GPS says I'm doing 70 and the speedo reads 85. I ckecked and the bike does have the stock size tires on it. I wonder what the deal is?

From what I have heard and read it is federal law in both the US and Canada that speedometers can have up to a 10% error in them from the factory. It is actually common on most bikes and a lot of vehicles as well. Anything over that would be a warranty item for sure, but if the bike is off warranty, you are likely on your own for a fix from a cost perspective. I have not come across anything higher than the 10% before, so your error could be something mechanical if it is in fact a mechanical gear that drives it.

[blowndodge]

My speedo on 2% fast.

[Yellow Jacket]

BD, is that with your new taller car tire?

[blowndodge]

Yes Bob. Had the radar on in last weekend and got 44 in a 45 zone.

[ells]

Since no one has mentioned it on this thread, I will - Some people think that speedos in general run a little fast to avoid issues of potential litigation if the error goes the other direction. Seems to be the case on all vehicles I've driven/ridden. Nomads just seem to be set a little further to the fast side. FWIW I prefer to have the odo correct if I had to chose one over the other, which you likely will with either adjusting tire size or using a Seed-O-Healer.

[johnb]

I have a 2006 and with a 180/70 16 mine reads about 3 mph +/- higher than the GPS.

[dogdoc]

My '05 used to read 5 mph faster than I was acrtually going with the stock stoners. Now i have Avon Cobras and a gps, i checked them. i am only 2 mph slower than speedo. i made up difference and alot better ride.

[swcole]

Thanks for the compliment!

Yep, it is cable driven. As a matter of fact, my cable broke about a month ago and I had to put a new one on. I called all around here in Houston for that cable and no one had it. I could have ordered it online but that would have taken too long. So I got it from a dealer in Dallas.

[reaper]

I think MaKaw made a mistake in her math when converting from kilometers to miles :)

[swcole]

Thanks for the compliment!!

Yes my speedo is cable driven. I just replaced the cable about a month ago after it broke on me. I will look into the different gears for it. Thanks.

[moenko]

Mine was off like everyone else's, until I changed from a 170-70 to a 160-80 Metzeler on the rear. I am still not spot-on, but at, say, 70 mph GPS speed the speedo will show 68 - not bad at all!