Variable Cruise Control

[Quint]

Can anyone think of a technological reason that you can't have two modes for a cruise control:

1) How most currently work, where you set a speed and the engine and transmission work to maintain that speed

2) Economy mode: where the cruise control has a range (that the user can set) so that the vehicle can slow up to 5 or 10mph before the engine tries to maintain speed.

When I have my foot on the accelerator, my truck speed will slow as I go up small hills especially when towing. Using cruise control, you waste a lot more gas trying to maintain a specific speed. It would be nice if you could set the cruise control to maintain a speed between 55 and 65mph.

 

[lonewolf2873]

Then your not really needing cruise control for its purpose. You can always hit cancel button when climbing hills and resume when you flatten out.
I don't know about your state, but in Michigan you can get a ticket for going under posted speed. If your driving through mountain terrain, cruise is not safe to use, especially towing. Just my .02

 

[Andy578]

I don't know about your state, but in Michigan you can get a ticket for going under posted speed. If your driving through mountain terrain, cruise is not safe to use, especially towing. Just my .02

isn't that only when they also post a minimum speed?

 

[Upthewazzu]

isn't that only when they also post a minimum speed?

No. Washington (state) has a minimum speed for highways/freeways but it's never posted. I don't remember what it is, but I know I learned about it in drivers ed.

 

[darthdzl]

No. Washington (state) has a minimum speed for highways/freeways but it's never posted. I don't remember what it is, but I know I learned about it in drivers ed.

Well, I'm fairly sure Arizona doesn't, as long as you're not obstructing traffic. So I guess it's something that can be different in each jurisdiction.

 

[loki223]

Generally if your going 20 mph under posted speed you can get a ticket, however if you turn on your emergency flashers to alert other drivers that you are going slow then you'll be fine (Washington state CDL holder )

 

[EagleChief]

Generally if your going 20 mph under posted speed you can get a ticket, however if you turn on your emergency flashers to alert other drivers that you are going slow then you'll be fine (Washington state CDL holder )

Every state has it's own laws regarding this. In Oklahoma, I believe it's the same as what you stated... 20 mph under the posted speed limit and you'll get in trouble. May not always get a ticket, but will definitely get pulled over.

I was towing an old boat from my Grandmother-in-law to home. It had bad tires (looked fine upon inspection). Going down the highway, we had a blowout on one of them. Changed it, back on the road. 50 miles later, the other tire starts warping and going bad. I slowed down to 55-60 (75 mph speed limit) and put our flashers on. Highway Patrol pulled us over and said we were driving too slow and we had to speed it up. I drove 65-70 and 5 miles down the road, the tire blew out.

Anyway... that's sidetracked from the original question... Some of the newer vehicles do have variable speed control, but it's only for judging traffic. If it senses another vehicle in front of you, it will slow down to match that vehicles speed, until you move over to pass. There is a radar mounted in the front of the bumper for this. As far as hills, you're on your own. If it's a hilly region, you are best not to use cruise control. One, because of the terrain changes, but Two, because of an increase in traffic also. Not every car will climb and descend hills the same. So, it's better to not use cruise control. It will save you gas in the long run.

Sorry, that was a long post.

 

[Quint]

I'm not talking about climbing mountains or doing 35mph on an interstate, purely just something that recognizes that when I'm driving/towing and go up a regular hill on the highway, it doesn't kick down two gears to maintain 65 or 70mph, but can ease off the throttle +/-5 or 10mph. It's a more economical way for cruise control to work and better on the transmission.