[smartlib]

I use Waze as I’m driving and I’ve noticed that the speed my car shows is consistently 2-3 miles higher than the speed Waze says I’m going. Anyone know why and is there anything I can do about it?
Thanks!

 

[jwight]

Do a search - plenty of threads on the subject. They are set up that way from the factory. You can change wheels/tires to get the speedometer to be more accurate...

 

[ElementalDragon]

Yeah, I've basically trained my brain to automatically knock a few mph off of what it says I'm doing. Construction zone limit of 55? Do 58 max. 25mph school zone? 27 max.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

 

[smark]

Normal all vehicle Speedometer are like that. Not exact speed reading. Nothing you can do about. My Tom Tom will give a different speed reading, while the car. It’s Giving a Satellite speed. I can be driving side by side next to a Honda Civic, on the highway. I can see he’s digital speedo on the its dash. A different speed reading.

 

[smartlib]

Thanks - I've never had anything else with which to measure my speed so I was not aware of that.

 

[smartlib]

I'm a LOT more aware of it now since I got a ticket for going 93 in a 70 last month!

 

[smartlib]

Thanks. I may have to do something about my wheels soon anyway: I recently got the "Wheel sensors missing" message and I'm not sure what that's all about. When I got the low tire warning, I took it to a tire shop and they couldn't read the sensors but didn't have any clue about Smarts. My regular shop is much more knowledgeable so I'll see what they say.

 

[OliverB]

Three cars - my 1990 300E, 2004 Mazda RX8 and previous 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee all were spot-on at 70 mph. Both my previous 2013 smart and the 2016 I have now are off as others have experienced.

 

[Miss Mercedes]

It's normal, all smarts do it to some degree! I've also asked some engineers about this and the consensus is that while the speedometer will read fast, the odometer should be actual.

Fun fact: Federal law says speedometers must be accurate within +/- 5 mph of actual at 50 mph. Most people misquote the law as meaning you can't design a speedometer that runs more than 5 mph faster than actual but it actually means plus or minus. From the federal perspective, an automaker can release a car that reads 50 mph when it's actually going 53 mph and it would be federally legal. Though I'm sure that would open up the automaker to lawsuits over speedometer accuracy. Thus, many automakers tune their speedometers to run faster than actual.

Many automakers like GM, Toyota, and Ford will all read dead on. My 1997 International 3800 also reads dead on at any speed. Of course, that runs the risk of your speedometer running slow should you upgrade to taller tires.

 

[smartlib]

It's normal, all smarts do it to some degree! I've also asked some engineers about this and the consensus is that while the speedometer will read fast, the odometer should be actual.

Fun fact: Federal law says speedometers must be accurate within +/- 5 mph of actual at 50 mph. Most people misquote the law as meaning you can't design a speedometer that runs more than 5 mph faster than actual but it actually means plus or minus. From the federal perspective, an automaker can release a car that reads 50 mph when it's actually going 53 mph and it would be federally legal. Though I'm sure that would open up the automaker to lawsuits over speedometer accuracy. Thus, many automakers tune their speedometers to run faster than actual.

Many automakers like GM, Toyota, and Ford will all read dead on. My 1997 International 3800 also reads dead on at any speed. Of course, that runs the risk of your speedometer running slow should you upgrade to taller tires.

Interesting!

 

[smark]

I have a analog speedometer, and digital combined in the Abarth. They both give out different reading.

 

[smark]

I'm a LOT more aware of it now since I got a ticket for going 93 in a 70 last month!

The speedo, aren’t that far off.

 

[Bob Ricewasser]

The speedometers in both of our 451 smart cars read about 3 mph faster then the speed indicated on the Ultragauges that are in both cars.

 

[Rambo4]

I have a speedometer app. It says I'm going 55 and speedo reads 58. I just put Can-Am Spyder tires on the front (165\55-15) and giant 205\55-15 on the back. The tires I replaced were 175\65-15 and 195\60-15 and was dead on for a 453.

 

[vadsoom]

If it bothers you that much, the speedometer needle can be removed, moved slightly counter-clockwise and reinstalled. The trick is to make sure the needle is in the correct position at 0 before reinstalling. It may take a few attempts to align it correctly. I had to take mine apart because of an LED backlight issue.

 

[smark]

My speedometer is very accurate.

 

[vadsoom]

Hahahaha! Brilliant!!!

 

[Harry]

I use Waze as I’m driving and I’ve noticed that the speed my car shows is consistently 2-3 miles higher than the speed Waze says I’m going. Anyone know why and is there anything I can do about it?
Thanks!

If you put bigger tires on your car that will do it

 

[Shalmaneser64]

I'm running 185/65R15s front and 205/60R15s rear, and speedometer seems accurate when compared to GPS readings. Tires are 25.5 and 24.7 inches in diameter. About as close as I could get with different front and rear combo.