12oClockLabs LLC
SpeedoDRD
Speedometer "Digital ReCalibration Device"


Frequently Asked Questions & Troubleshooting Help

Where is my speed sensor? Where is the connector for it?
There are a few places the speed sensor can be...
  • On the Upper Rear of the engine case: most common
  • On the Front Sprocket Cover: 2nd most common
  • On the bottom of the rear engine case: not very common, seen on some Yamaha R6's R1's
  • On the Rear Wheel: Seen on some Ducati's and MV Agusta's
  • On the front wheel: Seen on Boulevard C50, some KLX's, some V-Stars, etc
  • On the shaft drive: Seen on Honda VTX 1300, and other shaft drive bikes, etc
..once you've found the sensor, trace the wire up to the connector, sometimes it's hard to do that, in which case, some of the most common places to find it are;
  • Under the fuel tank on the right or left side: Common for Suzuki, some Yamaha's, few Honda's
  • Under the seat (sometimes in a rubber boot): Common for Yamaha's, some Hondas, and few Suzuki's
  • Hidden in front of the rear mono-shock: Common on the 1999-2006 Honda CBR's
  • Inside of the headlight housing: Seen on the Suzuki Boulevard C50
  • Inside the plastic cover beside the keyswitch: Seen on the Honda VTX 1300
So you think you found the connector, let's verify, with the bike ON (not started), jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, you should see a speedometer reading, now unplug the sensor connector, and jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, the speedometer should NOT have any reading (should say 0), if you have a speedometer reading with the sensor unplugged, you have selected the wrong sensor connector.

I installed the unit and calibrated it, but it does not seem to be adjusting the speedometer
Perform this simple test; Remove the SpeedoDRD and plug the factory connectors back in to each other. With the bike ON (not started), jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, you should see a speedometer reading, now unplug the sensor connector, and jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, the speedometer should NOT have any reading (should say 0), if you have a speedometer reading with the sensor unplugged, you have selected the wrong sensor connector.

I have a Yamaha, and my tail light no longer works after installing the SpeedoDRD
You have the SpeedoDRD plugged into the tail light connector instead of the speed sensor connector. Look again for the speed sensor connector, this time let's verify, with the bike ON (not started), jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, you should see a speedometer reading, now unplug the sensor connector, and jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, the speedometer should NOT have any reading (should say 0), if you have a speedometer reading with the sensor unplugged, you have selected the wrong sensor connector.

I Can't Recall my Max Speed
Try clearing the max speed (hold the SpeedoDRD button, turn bike key ON while continuing to hold the button, release the button when the light is RED, you will see an Orange flash confirming the Max Speed has been reset). If this keeps happening the SpeedoDRD may be picking up some noise on the signal line. Make sure your SpeedoDRD is mounted at least 6 inches away from high voltage spark plug wires, close proximity to high voltage pulses can cause interference, causing the unit to record an out-of-range max speed reading, which will not display on your speedometer gauge. If you still have trouble Contact Us.

SpeedoDRD is always blinking RED
This is a low voltage indication, most commonly caused by wrong wiring, or being plugged into the wrong sensor connector. Do this simple test; Remove the SpeedoDRD and plug the factory connectors back in to each other. With the bike ON (not started), jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, you should see a speedometer reading, now unplug the sensor connector, and jog or walk with the bike down the driveway, the speedometer should NOT have any reading (should say 0), if you have a speedometer reading with the sensor unplugged, you have selected the wrong sensor connector. If you still have trouble Contact Us.

Speedometer Readings are Jumpy
This is caused by noise on the speed sensor signal line. Make sure your SpeedoDRD is mounted at least 6 inches away from high voltage spark plug wires, close proximity to high voltage pulses can cause interference. If you still have trouble Contact Us.

I don't see an Orange Light, I see Red and Green on together
Red & Green both on at the same time makes orange, if you are in bright sunlight or any very bright light, the mixing of the colors to make orange is not as apparent, when in a normal work environment such as a garage the orange will be very apparent, you can shade the SpeedoDRD from bright sunlight to make the orange light appear much more apparent.

Will my Speedometer be accurate at all speeds using the SpeedoDRD?
Yes, the SpeedoDRD corrects your speed based on a percentage of error, you may have noticed your speedometer error increases the faster you are traveling. Example: if your GPS reads 54mph while your Speedometer reads 60mph, that's a difference of 6mph and 10%, now when your GPS reads 108mph, your speedometer will read 120mph, your now off 12mph, but it's still 10% of error. For this reason SpeedoDRD uses percentages to correct your speedometer error. There are some rare circumstances where you may notice your speedometer itself has some slight linearity error, speedometers usually have no more than 1% to 2% linearity error, if any. Other things to consider when calibrating your SpeedoDRD is the accuracy of your GPS device, most GPS devices are accurate to about 1% or better at speeds of 55mph or higher, at lower speeds your GPS device can start to have in-accuracy anywhere from 1 to 14%, with higher in-accuracy the slower you are moving, and also higher in-accuracy depending on satellite signal strength. Also, another thing to consider is that most vehicles speedometers usually only give whole number readouts, as well as most GPS devices, thus when your GPS or vehicle speedometer reads 55mph, you could be traveling 55.0mph or 55.9mph, when calculating your error percentage at multiple speeds remember to take this into consideration, this situation as well as possible GPS accuracies, may very well account for any suspected speedometer dis-linearity.

What is the best method to calibrate my SpeedoDRD
A GPS device is usually the best method, make sure the device has good signal strength, and you are traveling at least 55mph or 60mph (or 100kph) as displayed on your GPS, you'll want to hold the speed completely steady at least 5 to 10 seconds, so that both the vehicle speedometer and GPS is at a steady reading, then use those readings for your calculations. Also, another thing to remember is that most vehicle speedometers usually only give whole number readouts, as well as most GPS devices, thus when your GPS or vehicle speedometer reads 55mph, you could be traveling 55.0mph or 55.9mph, when calculating your error percentage at multiple speeds remember to take this into consideration, this situation as well as possible GPS accuracies, may very well account for any suspected speedometer dis-linearity.

If I disconnect my battery, will I need to reprogram my SpeedoDRD?
No, you will not need to reprogram your SpeedoDRD after disconnecting the battery, the device saves it's settings to onboard EEPROM memory which has a manufacturer data retention estimated at 20 years.

I'm having trouble programming my SpeedoDRD?
Read your directions carefully, version M does program differently than version X, there are different menu options for displaying what is programmed, and for entering into programming mode. If you feel it's possible you may have made a mistake during programming, and you want a fresh start, perform a factory reset; HOLD the SpeedoDRD button, and while holding turn your motorcycle key to the ON position (don't start the motorcycle) once the LED on the SpeedoDRD turns ORANGE, release the button, you will see a single ORANGE flash, this lets you know the unit has been reset to factory defaults. (all setup & data cleared). This procedure is the same for version X and M.

I programmed my SpeedoDRD, but my Speedometer is still way off or worse than before?
Double check to make sure you have selected the correct Correction Percentage. If you have, most likely a mistake was made during programming. Read your directions carefully, version M does program differently than version X, there are different menu options for displaying what is programmed, and for entering into programming mode. Try programming again after a factory reset to get the unit back to fresh defaults, to perform a factory reset; HOLD the SpeedoDRD button, and while holding turn your motorcycle key to the ON position (don't start the motorcycle) once the LED on the SpeedoDRD turns ORANGE, release the button, you will see a single ORANGE flash, this lets you know the unit has been reset to factory defaults. (all setup & data cleared). This procedure is the same for version X and M.

How do I know if I have a SpeedoDRD version X or M?
On the back of your SpeedoDRD device (side without the button), there will be a sticker with a version number, if you don't have a sticker on your SpeedoDRD, look for the version number on the microchip board itself. The version number will have an X or an M at the end of the number. Another easy way to tell, without having to look for any numbers, is to turn your vehicles key-switch to the ON position, then HOLD the SpeedoDRD button. If you have a version X, the LED will change colors from GREEN to RED to ORANGE. If you have a version M, the LED will blink RED every second. Once you have determined the version, you can turn the vehicles key-switch back to the OFF position.

Is this device compatible with a fuel programmer or other devices?
Yes, make sure to connect the other device directly to the speed sensor, then connect the SpeedoDRD; The SpeedoDRD should be the last device in the chain of devices, so it connects to the main harness which goes to the ECU or Gauge Cluster.

Why would I need a Speedometer/Odometer Calibrator?
Many vehicles (especially motorcycles) come from the factory inaccurate, sometimes as high as 10% off. Also, modifications such as tire size changes or gearing modifications can cause significant speedometer inaccuracies. Thus the speedometer calibration device is used in series with the speed sensor in order to correct the signal before it reaches your vehicles ECU computer. SpeedoDRD works for vehicles which are manufactured with electronic needle or digital readout speedometers, with 2 wire or 3 wire speed sensors.

How accurate is 0.1% correction steps?
If you were traveling 60mph (or 60kph), 0.1% of that would be 0.06mph (or 0.06kph)
If you were traveling 200mph (or 200kph), 0.1% of that would be 0.2mph (or 0.2kph)
If you were traveling 300mph (or 300kph), 0.1% of that would be 0.3mph (or 0.3kph)
Thus correction steps of 0.1% are more than enough to get your speedometer more accurate than your gauge cluster is capable of displaying.

Odometer vs Speedometer Correction Explained...
SpeedoDRD does allow for Speedometer and/or Odometer correction, although sometimes getting them both 100% correct continuously is not possible, this is because some vehicles have an odometer error rate which is not equal to the speedometer error rate, since your ECU or Gauge Cluster uses the same signal to determine both the odometer reading and the speed reading, this type of problem lies within the ECU or Gauge Cluster itself. If you find yourself in this situation, you will be able to get your speed 100% and the odometer very close. Or you can choose to get the odometer 100% and the speed very close, or you could even choose a happy medium between the two, and get them both equally close, its up to you, and it depends on how far apart the two error rates are from each other.

To determine your Distance error rate, use this formula:
100 - ((Actual Miles Traveled / Miles Displayed on Odometer) * 100) = Distance Error Ratio
where "Actual Miles Traveled" is a mileage reference which is known to be accurate, such as by a rolling wheel ruler, or laser distance measuring tool, GPS device, etc.

To determine your Speedometer error rate, use this formula:
100 - ((GPS Speed / Speedometer Readout) * 100) = Speed Error Ratio

To determine the correction ratio for an error rate, you simply invert the sign, example:
for a 7% error rate, you would need a -7% correction ratio entered into your SpeedoDRD device

Another factor to consider is that your odometer has probably been racking up inflated miles for quite some time now, so if your odometer is around 4% errored and your speedometer is around 6% errored, and you already have put 1000 miles on your vehicle with an errored speedometer signal, you really only have only put 960 miles on your vehicle, thus if you correct for the speed using a -6% correction ratio to get 100% accurate speed readings, you will cause a -2% correction on the odometer. This means that 2000 miles after using your -6% correction ratio, your odometer will finally read what it actually should. This is the most common situation among users which have error rates which are not equal, because the speed almost always has a higher error rate than the odometer if the two error rates are not equal. For this reason, and in most circumstances, it is usually best to go ahead and select to calibrate your speed to be 100% accurate.