Speedometer error?

Blrfl

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According to the site, it doesn't mess up the odometer, but several people in this thread have said that it does. I'm confused.
The Speedo Healer changes the number of pulses per mile that get fed to the ECM by the vehicle speed sensor. If the speedometer is off but the odometer isn't, correcting one will have an effect on the other.

--Mark
 
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According to the site, it doesn't mess up the odometer, but several people in this thread have said that it does. I'm confused.
Not exactly correct. First, the Speedohealer's website is ADVERTISING copy. As such it is subject to a looser set of rules (read laws) than some other forms of speech. Some claims may be exaggerated or 'shaded truth' (in my lexicon, read 'lies' or 'untruth') because the courts have said that people know - or should know - that advertising is meant to sell products. Blatant lies are out (see VW).

The website says, and I cut and pasted this directly: [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]What do you gain with Speedohealer? - Accurate speedometer and/or odometer no matter what you change on your vehicle[/FONT][/FONT] So there you have it, one or the other or both. They are right because of the way the bike gives you speed and distance measurements (see Mark's post above). It is possible that other bikes separate these functions and measure speed independently of distance. I don't know if this is the case, but analog systems (gears and magnets) all work off one speedo cable and electronic ones usually use the same signal - like our ST's.
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular][/FONT][/FONT]
I want to point out an inconsistency in their claims. If we look at their claimed accuracy - [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Widest calibration range along with the finest increments (0.1%) from +9999.9% to -99.9%
- The most accuracy (0.025%)
[/FONT] - you see that you can adjust your bike up or down by .1% increments. So while the unit may be accurate to +/- .025% you are only going to see changes on the level of .1%. Misleading? I think so. My technical side wants my bike to read absolutely correct speed and/or mileage, but it is now reading about 2 mph fast at a real 70 and the odo is around .3 mile low in 100 miles. Close enough for horseshoes and handgrenades. Am I happy with my Speedohealer? Absolutely.
 

ST Gui

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- Accurate speedometer and/or odometer no matter what you change on your vehicle
That's a pretty big inconsistency right there based on real world reports from members here. We all know that ad copy very frequently plays fast and loose with the truth often stretching the limits of credulity to infinity and beyond. The "and" part doesn't seem to jibe with what many here have reported such as:

If the speedometer is off but the odometer isn't, correcting one will have an effect on the other.
If I could have both an accurate speedo and odo I'd spend the money. For $80 I'd sacrifice odo accuracy. And in real world practicality so what if the odo is a little off as long as you can discern it's degree of error. At an indicated 1000mi (or km if that's how you roll) have you traveled more or less and by how much. A less than accurate odo won't get you a performance award. Or maybe you tune both to be as close as each will allow the other.

According to GPS my ST reads 3mph fast at 65mph. That's all I need to know.
 
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As I posted earlier in this thread there is a difference in the error factor in the speedo and odometer. The Speedohealer WILL NOT CORRECT BOTH. I also prior to my purchase contacted the manufacturer directly and their email stated the same thing. If the error percentage was the same then yes, but in the case of my ST1300 and I assume others that is not the case. I opted for an accurate speedo readout rather than an odometer. Accurate meaning compared to GPS speed since that is the only comparison most of us have.

Also I tested speedo readout against the GPS speed read out at several different speed and averaged them for the correction. This was do because the speed difference is not linear and the correction on the speedohealer requires a percentage difference. I cannot remember exactly but I think I did like 35, 50, 65 & 75 mph. These are speeds that I see the most as to where I ride. This average correction has seemed to yield a very close comparison between the corrected speedo readout and the GPS speed. Any where from a few miles an hour to triple digits.
 

dduelin

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As I posted earlier in this thread there is a difference in the error factor in the speedo and odometer. The Speedohealer WILL NOT CORRECT BOTH. I also prior to my purchase contacted the manufacturer directly and their email stated the same thing. If the error percentage was the same then yes, but in the case of my ST1300 and I assume others that is not the case. I opted for an accurate speedo readout rather than an odometer. Accurate meaning compared to GPS speed since that is the only comparison most of us have.

Also I tested speedo readout against the GPS speed read out at several different speed and averaged them for the correction. This was do because the speed difference is not linear and the correction on the speedohealer requires a percentage difference. I cannot remember exactly but I think I did like 35, 50, 65 & 75 mph. These are speeds that I see the most as to where I ride. This average correction has seemed to yield a very close comparison between the corrected speedo readout and the GPS speed. Any where from a few miles an hour to triple digits.
Error correction of -5 mph works really well across the range 35 to 75 mph. 35 indicated is about 33 actual, 75 indicated is about 70.

I know that is not acceptable to many so speedohealers and police bike speedometers suffice for those than can't or won't do the mental conversion of -5 mph from indicated or use a GPS. Pick your solution and ride!
 
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St Gui,
Some rally guys use a bicycle computer for ODO and MPH for the last % in accuracy.
You'd just need to find one that doesn't get confused at 99mph. It's pulling it's pulses from the wheel rotation so adjustments to store wheel size tweak distance and speed correctly. They're not bound by ODO legal requirements, customer expectation that MPH is not pessimistic and non linear thingy that moves the speedo needle.
 
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Error correction of -5 mph works really well across the range 35 to 75 mph. 35 indicated is about 33 actual, 75 indicated is about 70.
It appears that these bike do not necessarily have the same correction required from bike to bike although they are the same model. I have seen in other thread difference variances for different bikes. I think it is like anything else in manufacturing there are tolerances and if things fall with in the spec they are considered good.

As mentioned earlier mine is -7.5% off from the GPS
 

Blrfl

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And in real world practicality so what if the odo is a little off as long as you can discern it's degree of error.
In some states, it means you have to check the "odometer does not show actual mileage" box when you sign the title over to the next owner, which could be a turnoff.

--Mark
 

dduelin

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It appears that these bike do not necessarily have the same correction required from bike to bike although they are the same model. I have seen in other thread difference variances for different bikes. I think it is like anything else in manufacturing there are tolerances and if things fall with in the spec they are considered good.

As mentioned earlier mine is -7.5% off from the GPS
I could have perhaps more accurately said "my 2005 demonstrates about 7 to 7.5% error across tens of thousands of miles on many different tire brands. The actual error depends on individual bikes and their tires based on wear and inflation".

But that doesn't really change the thought that -5 works pretty good across the given range 35 to 75. It's pretty hard to see .5 or 1 mph on the standard speedometer face. There is that much variation just in tire wear.

By all means go with the best solution that makes you happy.
 

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You know, when it comes right down to it, it's so easy to know if I'm above 50MPH, I'm doing -2 MPH than what it shows! 50 and below is spot on. When I'm riding, I don't want to have to "Guess" my speed! Too many :cop2::law1: out there with radar and since I ride very close to max speed to get away with, I want to know my speed!

And I do have a GPS, but it's usually on the music screen! ;) Why is it on the music screen? because I grabbed 4,000 songs from my MIL's old computer and I need to get rid of about 1,500 of them! :eek:4:
 
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My gps says the speedo is reading 3% fast, on a worn Metzler front tire. As I am usually knocking on 15km's/hr over most posted limits, the 3% gives me a bit of margin in the right direction, against a points ticket. I should not really be discussing this,,, as I may jinx my 40 year no motorcycle ticket streak !! touch wood,, Cat'
 

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In some states, it means you have to check the "odometer does not show actual mileage" box when you sign the title over to the next owner, which could be a turnoff.
I had no idea but that could be a problem.
 
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My coworkers and I were throwing this around.

1. If you were to purchase a brand new bike from a dealer with this issue and send it in for repair, what would the dealer do to fix it?
2. In Michigan if you take it in for the same repair 3 times, within a certain time frame, it is cover under the lemon law.

How would the dealer approach this fix? if you or the dealer decided to purchase the aftermarket speedo healer would that void warranty? almost any aftermarket item like that will void the factory warranty.

This kind of stuff from manufacturers just really kind of irritates me, as you can tell.

Anyone care to add their 2 cents on the new bike dealer warranty thought?
 
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Originally Posted by Blrfl


In some states, it means you have to check the "odometer does not show actual mileage" box when you sign the title over to the next owner, which could be a turnoff.



I had no idea but that could be a problem.
So does that mean that because the odometer is +2% that that falls under this actual mileage statement? I highly doubt it. It is not worth the effort to think about. The purpose of the mileage statement is for odometer roll back.
 

Blrfl

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1. If you were to purchase a brand new bike from a dealer with this issue and send it in for repair, what would the dealer do to fix it?
Nothing. The speedometer was designed to work within DOT's allowable tolerance, works within that tolerance and is therefore not defective. Same reason you don't get a certificate of calibration for the temperature indicator that's traceable back to NIST. It's not a laboratory instrument.

2. In Michigan if you take it in for the same repair 3 times, within a certain time frame, it is cover under the lemon law.
Can't speak for Michigan, but in most states there has to be an actual defect, not just something that could be done better.

if you or the dealer decided to purchase the aftermarket speedo healer would that void warranty? almost any aftermarket item like that will void the factory warranty.
Installing aftermarket accessories doesn't void the warranty. If something on the bike fails, it's still covered by warranty if what you installed can't be directly tied to the failure.

--Mark
 

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Installing aftermarket accessories doesn't void the warranty. If something on the bike fails, it's still covered by warranty if what you installed can't be directly tied to the failure.

--Mark
Good reason to remove anything you added that might have caused a failure! ;)

BTW, when my windshield motor assembly failed, I had a VStream windshield on it and it wasn't an issue!
 

Blrfl

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So does that mean that because the odometer is +2% that that falls under this actual mileage statement?
That depends on whether or not 2% is beyond what's considered okay. I couldn't find any regulations that say how much they can be off.

Honda got sued ten years ago because the tolerances of its odometers were -1%/+3.75% and some were reading as much as 4% high, causing legitimate warranty claims to be denied. While the case was underway, Honda acknowledged the problem and changed its tolerance to ?2.5%. So there's at least one figure that somebody found acceptable.

--Mark
 
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That depends on whether or not 2% is beyond what's considered okay.
And honestly that 2% error is based on GPS and street map data and there is an unknown error factor in that data as well. Street map data is typically measured on a 2 dimensional plane. So all distances are on the horizontal and does not take elevation changes into consideration from point to point. Without contacting the GPS manufacturer I would suspect that the horizontal distance is used as well and elevation is not used to calculate distance, just a simple 2D calculation like the street maps. There is also the inherent error in the GPS positional accuracy too that does vary as much as 30 feet or more. So the 2% error is just based on the difference between bike odometer and GPS odometer. Nothing overly scientific here.

The error will also change at least in my test as much as 0.4% based on if the road is straight or curvy. That error can be attributed to one of two things or a little of both. They are the distance calculation of the GPS and/or the diameter of the tire on the sidewall. Which is a smaller diameter than the diameter at the face of the tire.

Without doing a scientific study who really knows the error factor. And who really cares other than it makes a good thread.
 

Blrfl

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And honestly that 2% error is based on GPS and street map data and there is an unknown error factor in that data as well.
...
Without doing a scientific study who really knows the error factor. And who really cares other than it makes a good thread.
Why drag GPS into it? Calculating odometer error is easy: turn the wheel until the odometer turns over a mile, count the number of revolutions it takes to get to the next mile and see how that compares to 5280 divided by the circumference of the tire in feet.

--Mark
 
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