Nobody vants to help this dude???
Ok, here goes:
1) is the noise "creaking" (what the he77 ever THAT is) or is the sound more of a "spooling/rotational" sound?
Two things come to mind:
a) you did not get the cable in the back of the cluster properly, AND
b) the cable is probably worn out internally (they get worse in the very cold).
2) when it comes time to remove the cable from the rear-top of the transmission, you MUST be very careful NOT to pull too hard and separate the cable from the little nylon gear (which is in the trans). Why? Because the gear will fall INTO the transmission and your life turns to sheet.
Help yourself by performing a search on speedometer cable or speedometer gear on this forum. Read the horror stories about loosing the gear in the trans.
I highly suggest using rather liberal doses/applications of PB blaster and lots of patience applied to the cable where it enters the transmission, prior to attempting to pull it. In the past, I have also used a small sharp screwdriver to gingerly help "pry" it upward and outward before pulling on the cable.
Just last week I sold my pristine storage unit princess '87 GTI 16-valve to a guy. And, I agreed to replace the rectangular gasket at the speedo/trans insertion spot. The car had been sold and I was VERY nervous the gear might decide to stay in the trans. I used Pb and lots of patience and it (thankfully) came out with no problems. This luck is not always the case. So, beware.