How To Disable Odometer From Reading Mileage (Step By Step)

Are you wondering what is a simple way to disable a vehicle’s odometer? Well, look no further as we have all the answers and a simple step-by-step guide for you. But also a desire to dispel some myths that are very popular on the internet.

So, how to disable the odometer from reading mileage? There are three ways to disable an odometer, and we will give you a simple to follow step-by-step guide for all of them. Depending on the odometer, one of them has to work.

Here is how you can disable your odometer from reading the mileage:

• by removing its fuse,

• by removing its internal gears,

• or by installing a mileage blocker.

Table of Contents

What Is An Odometer?

An odometer is a relatively simple device that displays the mileage your vehicle has traveled. They can be both analog and digital types, which practically depends on the age of the car. Older cars have analog, while never have digital odometers.

They are easy to tell because the analog type uses simple wheels with numbers, while the digital use some type of digital display.

Usually, one that already exists in the instrument cluster.

How Odometer Work?

In many places on the internet, you will find various explanations of how odometers work, and most of the time they are pure nonsense. Some say sensors are measuring the number of rotations of wheels, some say some other sensors measure something else, etc.

Odometers are connected to speedometers and based on the speed reading and passage of time they display traveled mileage.

Analogs have a set of gears that depending on the position of speedo needly move slightly faster or slower.

While digital odometers receive the information from the ECU which calculates based on the speedo’s reading.

How To Disable Odometer?

There are three ways to disable the odometer:

by removing its fuse,
by removing its internal gears,
or by installing a mileage blocker.

Whether one of these three methods will work depends on the design of the odometer and your desires or needs.

Method 1: Removing Its Fuse

Whether it is a digital or analog odometer its operation depends on the proper function of the speedometer and speed sensor on one of the axles.

Removing the speed sensor will lead to various errors, and on many cars lead to them not starting. But, the electrical signal from that sensor travels through a fuse before reaching the speedo.

So, removing this fuse will make the speedometer inoperable, and when it doesn’t work the odometer can’t measure the mileage you drive.

Step 1 – Identify The Fuse

On many vehicles, there is a fuse for just the speedometer circuit and no other devices. The easiest way to identify it is by consulting the fuse box diagram in your vehicle’s user or service manual.

Rarely car manufacturers do not label it properly and easy for you to find. But, if you do not have the manual there is a way.

The first to know is that it is in the fuse box closest to the instrument cluster, and it is a 15A fuse. So, you can pull one by one 15A fuses and attempt to start the engine. When you take out the right one, the engine will start but the speedo needle will not move.

Step 2 – Remove The Fuse

Now that you know which fuse is for the speedometer circuit, all you have to do is to yank it out.

And that’s it, your vehicle will stop sending the reading of the speed sensor to your speedometer, and thus the odometer will not measure traveled distance.

On digital instrument clusters, the ECU will “think” that the vehicle is stationary.

Method 2: Removing Odometer’s Gears

If you are dealing with an analog odometer, and skillful enough to disassemble the speedometer and then put it back together, because they are very tamper-proof, you could in theory remove the internal gears of the odometer.

This is arguably the most finicky way to go about it because it is tricky to open the speedo.

Step 1 – Removing The Speedometer

Depending on the age and design of your vehicle, you will have to remove certain cosmetic parts of your dashboard and steering wheels to reach the nuts that hold the speedo or whole instrument cluster.

Once that is done you can disassemble the speedometer, and get to the internal gears of the odometer.

Step 2 – Remove Odomoeter’s Gears

There are always three internal gears, or more precisely geared shafts in the odometer. They are positioned perpendicular to each other.

They are the devices that move the actual digits on the screen of the analog odometer. And all you have to do is to remove them.

If you plan to later set everything back, you should remember or take a picture of how they are set.

Step 3 – Replace The Speedometer

Once you have removed the gears and managed to close back the speedo cup, all that is left is to reassemble the dashboard.

This time you need to go backward. Depending on the design of your dashboard put the speedo back into the instrument cluster or screw it back in its place.

And then put back the cosmetic pieces you had to remove to get to the speedometer.

Method 3: Installing A Mileage Blocker

Arguably the easiest way to disable the odometer on a modern vehicle is to install a mileage blocker.

Modern vehicles store the mileage in the memory of the ECU, and it is actually ECU that measures it based on the speed reading.

So, preventing the speed reading from reaching the ECU is the key. And that is what these devices do.

Step 1 – Remove The Speedometer Cluster

The first step is to disconnect the speedometer/instrument cluster from ECU. This you need to do by first removing cosmetic pieces under the cluster, to reach the bolts that hold it in place.

By gently pulling the cluster you will reveal its wiring, which you need to disconnect before completely removing the instrument cluster.

Step 2 – Install The Module

Mileage blocker modules are designed to be connected between ECU and instrument clusters, and they use the same type of connectors as the OEM wiring.

This also means that there is only one way to connect it. ECU and cluster wires, one has a male connector the other has a female, and it is impossible to connect male to male, and thus have the module backward.

All you have to do is connect the wires of the module to the ECU wires.

Step 3 – Put Back The Speedometer Cluster

Now you need to put everything together. It is important to first connect the module to the instrument cluster and then tuck all the wires behind the cluster while being careful to not pinch any of them.

To operate the module you need to consult its manual, but it is always some combination of the buttons on the steering wheel.

Does Rolling Wheels Back Work?

This has to be the silliest advice about cars that you can find on the internet. It says that you need to get a drill and make some sort of contraption that will allow you to spin the wheels with it.

And by spinning the wheels backward, the odometer reading will be rolled back too. Well, it doesn’t work that way.

Whether you are moving backward or forward, or the speed sensor is on the axle or in the gearbox, it generates an electric signal because some shaft is rotating. And that’s all the wisdom.

Is It Legal To Disable Odometer?

The US Federal laws say that it is illegal to alter or modify the speedometer or odometer reading. Whether you are increasing or decreasing the mileage, you would be committing a misdemeanor. If they get you caught. Also, it is illegal to disable either speedometer or odometer, or to in any way tamper with them or disconnect from the vehicle.

how to stop odometer from counting mileage while driving >> Check out the video below:

Conclusion

That would be our step-by-step guide on how to disable the odometer from reading mileage.

Remember that most modern cars, only displays the mileage, and it is actually stored in the ECU, so the best way to do this is by using mileage blockers, which prevent this information is stored in the ECU memory.

References

https://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-driving-safety/safety-regulatory-devices/odometer.htm