When you are driving, you should always want to be as safe as possible. It is important to go to regular maintenance inspections for your vehicle. This way we can notice if any issues are starting to occur. If you notice anything out of the norm between visits, make sure to bring the vehicle in. Between visits you can also inspect certain parts of the vehicle. One of these is the speedometer. The speedometers are gauges placed in the dashboard of vehicles and are visible to the driver. They are gauges used to measure real time speed and they are universal to motor vehicles. Speedometers were available options for vehicles in the early 1900, and became required equipment around 1910. There are some factors that affect the accuracy of speedometers, mainly related to tires. If tires have a lot of wear on them it can affect speedometer accuracy, as well as temperature, required tire size, tire pressure, and the weight of the vehicle. Non-standard tire diameter is usually to blame for excessive error.
Maintaining the accuracy of a speedometer is vital to driving safely and securely. Even something as simple as changing tires can affect the accuracy of speedometer. Going faster than you think you are really going can put your safety, and the safety of those around you at risk. It can also increase the risk of getting a speeding ticket when you drive. Having a speedometer that reads too fast will cause you to go slower than necessary and can actually decrease fuel efficiency and cause odometers to turn over too quickly.
There are ways to check your own speedometer to see if it is giving out an accurate real time reading. To do this, locate a measured mile, such as those in the interstate systems that are marked on the side of the road. You will need to drive at a constant speed over that mile. If you have cruise control, you will want to use it to maintain that constant speed. You will also need an accurate clock or a stopwatch. Time your vehicle driving at a constant speed over one mile, or even over five or ten miles. Remember the speed at which you were traveling and the amount of time in minutes and seconds that it took to go the distance. You can use this information on many online calculators to check the accuracy of a speedometer on your own.
If you have reason to believe that your speedometer may be reading wrong, or you have recently changed tires, or for some reason are using the incorrect tire size for your vehicle it is important to have the speedometer checked. The speedometer repair process involves us recording the mileage reading. Then they will disassemble the speedometer unit, clean and then inspect it. Speedometers are not always accurate. It is very important to make sure your vehicle’s speedometer is performing effectively.