I’ve been having issues recently with my speedometer randomly going out while driving. It’s a really weird experience, and one that was rather uncomfortable, seeing as right when this would happen, the Air Conditioning would conk out as well.
So, took it to a few car repair shops…several of whom were quite puzzled. Finally, one shop in the Mount Pleasant area figured it out:
The brake light switch was shorting out.
Yes, it’s random. But $90 later, it’s fixed. The car guys said the brake light shorting was causing the electrical system to malfunction, knocking off the speedometer and the Air Conditioning all at once. The radio, other instrumentation (RPM, warning lights, et al) were not affected.
This is for a 2005 4-door Jeep Liberty Sport, 2WD, 5-speed.