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From: doug@prime.UUCP (Douglas Hamilton)
Newsgroups: net.auto
Subject: Re: Cruise controls: non factory-instal
Message-ID: <135@prime.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 13-Sep-85 18:43:35 EDT
Article-I.D.: prime.135
Posted: Fri Sep 13 18:43:35 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 16-Sep-85 00:21:37 EDT
References: <8100010@ada-uts.UUCP> <689@rduxb.UUCP>
Organization: Prime Computer, Inc., Framingham, MA
Lines: 60

> > 
> > Does anybody have any experience with non factory-installed
> > cruise controls?
> > 
> 
> Yes, I installed a Sears (made by Dana) unit several years ago in my
> then car, a 79 Honda Accord.
> The installation wasn't difficult, but it was time consuming.  It took
> about 8 hours, if I remember correctly.
> The unit performed flawlessly for the 30 odd thou miles I had the car.

I had a similar (but not quite as good) experience with the Sears unit
on an 81 Accord.  Installation time was roughly the same (despite the
claim by Sears that it should be around an hour or two,) but I did run
into some trouble "debugging" the thing.  You have to mount a cable
thingie (technical term (-:) onto the carburator; in doing so, I had
somehow bent or otherwise affected the adjustments such that the car
would no longer idle at all.  (It'd immediately die as soon as you let
your foot off the gas.)  Being far from a real auto mechanic, it was
a lot of trouble to find out what was wrong especially since there were
only skimpy debug instructions.  (To fix it turned out be a simple
adjustment of idle screw on the carb.)

My experience with the unit since then has also been good but not
outstanding.  I'm now on my third "control box," the little panel with
the set & resume/accelerate buttons, because the first two failed at
15,000 miles (give or take) due to cheaply-made switches.  (Perhaps
coincidentally or perhaps because of the cold, both failed in the
middle of winter.)

Also, I'm not all that happy with the linkage to the clutch & brake
pedals.  You have to mount a little pulley on wall behind these pedals
with a chain running to each.  On one pedal, you mount a switch assembly
such that if you step on either pedal, the switch causes the cruise
control to turn off and the same time, releases the vacuum from the
solenoid pulling via the cable on the carburator.  The bottom line is
that with all this junk down by the pedals (all of designed to mount
on anybody's however-odd-shaped pedals) it can be rather crowded.  If
you have either big feet or a pension for wing tips, figure
to get a few gouges in your shoes now & then.  Also, it can be easy
to kick the wires loose.  Finally, I notice floor mats have a tendancy
to ride up against the pulley & chain.  I've never had it prevent the
unit from disengaging (thank God!) but I have had to reach down and
pull the mat back to get the unit to turn on.

All in all, would I do it over again?   You bet!  Cruise control is
the greatest thing going for avoiding fatigue on a long drive, avoiding
tickets due to your speed accidentally creeping up and generally
making the drive more pleasant.  (Incidentally, I find 55 to 60 mph
very tolerable with a cruise cntl given that the drive is so much
easier that I am less hell bent to get where I'm going so I can be
done with it!)

-- 
Douglas Hamilton       Prime Computer,Inc.
617-626-1700 x3956     Video Products Group
                       492 Old Connecticut Path
                       Framingham, MA  10701

{seismo,ihnp4,allegra,ut-sally}!harvard!prime!doug