The 7 causes of cruise control not working include:
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- Issues with the cruise control switch
- Problems with a brake light switch
- Troubles with the fuses
- A check engine light illuminating
- Troubles with the vehicle speed sensor
- Issues with electric system
- Problems with the cruise control cable
Over the years, automotive experts and manufacturers added many features to give you the most luxurious drive possible. Some of these features are more for improving your driving experience, while others are more for improving your safety.
The cruise control system was added to vehicles starting back in the 1950s. Now, almost every vehicle has cruise control which allows you to maintain your speed, especially if you're driving on interstates or highways where you want to keep the same speed without troubling your foot pressing the gas.
Since the cruise control is not designed to last forever, you'll get to the point where it might fail due to various reasons. This article provides all the details you need to know about the main causes of cruise control not working. It also highlights some information about small repair options and repair costs.
What is cruise control, and what does it do?
Before we dive into the details about the main causes of cruise control not working, we must get a general understanding of what is cruise control in the first place?
Not every driver is aware of this feature, and it might be a bit complicated in the first place, but the whole concept is very simple.
Cruise control is a feature added to your vehicle that allows you to maintain a constant speed without pressing on the guests all the time. You can engage this cruise control and rest your foot during your trip.
Although different cruise controls depend on the vehicle's type, all vehicles and all cruise controls have the same main components. Typically, you'll find a speed sensor responsible for measuring your vehicle speed, a throttle position sensor, and other things to control the throttle plate and allows your car to supply the amount of gas to your vehicle.
The cruise control communicates with your vehicle's computer and tells it how much the throttle should open to achieve the required speed needed and set by the user. The same system communicates with the transmission to allow it to switch gears depending on what you're looking for in terms of speeds and where you're driving, especially if you're driving up or downhill.
What is adaptive cruise control?
To make things even more fun, experts created a new type of cruise control that is more complicated and uses more advanced technology. However, this adaptive cruise control does not secure equal to a constant speed; it sits your vehicle speed depending on the traffic, and it might change depending on how many vehicles are around you on the road and adjust depending on your purposes.
The adaptive cruise control achieves a job through cameras and sensors connected to the radar. These sensors look at the road around you and communicate to determine the distance between you and the nearest vehicle. As a result, your car computer adjusts to achieve the safest drive distance and speed.
7 causes cruise control not to working
Unfortunately, although this cruise control system is a great addition to your vehicle, you cannot enjoy it all the time, especially when it's running through problems. In other words, this system is like any other system in your vehicle where it will face some troubles and will not work at some point.
Warning one or two things about the potential causes of cruise control not working are essential. It helps you pay attention to what could go wrong and prevent any bad driving habits that could shorten the lifetime of your vehicle's cruise control.
Luckily, automotive experts could narrow down the list and determine the seven most common causes of cruise control not working. Let's take a closer look below at these causes:
1. Issues with the cruise control switch
The cruise control switch is the first and most common reason that could result in your cruise control not working. This is the button you engage or turn on to activate the cruise control system.
The cruise control switch can go bad for various reasons, and when it fails, you will not be able to communicate with the system and activate it and need it. As a result, you'll think that the whole cruise control system is not working when it's just that switch you need to fix.
2. Problems with a brake light switch
If you want to engage and activate the cruise control system, you'll typically need to press the brake pedal, so the system turns off. If there's any simple problem with your brake pedal lights, the system will not detect this brake light and will not understand whether you're trying to turn it off or not. As a result, you could easily deal with situations where your cruise control is not working.
If the cruise control system does not detect the brake light, it will assume that there is something wrong in your vehicle, and that's why it will turn itself off automatically.
3. Troubles with the fuses
Did you know that your vehicle contains a bunch of fuses that work together to support the elliptic connections? These fuses are minor and don't typically cost much, but they can result in major problems or make important systems not work.
A simple blown fuse can easily prevent your cruise control from working, so before you get very worried and assume complicated high repair costs, look at your fuse box and see if there's anyone blown out.
If you confirmed a blown fuse, you'd have to replace it immediately for your system to work again. However, replacing a blown fuse is not complicated and doesn't cost much money. In fact, it's something you can do on your own without even needing a professional.
However, if you're driving a luxury car and you're not comfortable touching the fuse box, you can always reach out to mechanical and easily replace it without costing you a lot of money.
4. A check engine light illuminating
Your vehicle communicates with you through warning lights on the dashboard to bring your attention to internal problems. Would have the very common warning lights that you'll deal with is the check engine light.
This light is away for your car to say something wrong internally, but it doesn't specifically tell you exactly what's going on until you scan the computer and translate the error code.
Interestingly your vehicle's cruise control is smart enough. When it realizes your car has a check engine light, it will assume the worst-case scenario, and we think there is a major problem with the engine or the transmission. So, as a result, the whole press control system will turn off immediately.
You don't need cruise control to deactivate to fix your check engine light problems. However, we always recommend you take these warning lights seriously because they could indicate a major internal problem.
5. Troubles with the vehicle speed sensor
The cruise control system needs to understand your vehicle is at the correct speed. Therefore, it has to communicate with the vehicle speed sensor, and if the sensor is not providing the right information, how will this cruise control system work?!
Therefore, it's not surprising that the cruise control system will not work properly if you have a problem with the vehicle speed sensor. So, you must fix the speed sensor first for this system to operate properly and be activated in the right way you want.
6. Issues with electric system
The cruise control system relates to many wires, and its main energy source is the electric system. So if there's any problem with the connections or the wires, this cruise control system will have trouble communicating and doing its job.
Therefore, if you're having trouble with the cruise control system, check with your mechanic and have him look at all the potential voltage through the entire electric system to ensure everything is working properly. So it's not disturbing the work of your cruise control system.
7. Problems with the cruise control cable
Finally, the cruise control system relates to a cable that must be connected Securely. If this table is broken or loose, the system will not function properly, and you will be looking for the main causes of cruise control not working.
Take a look at this cable and perform a quick visual inspection. If you realize any signs of breakage or lose connections, try to tighten them up. Still, if things are broken, or there are some damages, it's better to leave it to professionals because there is a chance that you might get into electric shocks, which is something very dangerous.
How much does it cost to fix cruise control not working?
It depends on the root cause of the problem. As we mentioned earlier, many components could go wrong and lead to impacting the functioning of your cruise control system.
To fix the general problems in this system, expect to pay somewhere between $125 and $400. But, if you wait for another problem for a long time, things get more complicated, where repair costs might pile up and prevent you from fixing your vehicle.
Before you spend a penny trying to fix the cruise control, it is essential to evaluate the situation carefully. Then, as we always say, you need to calculate and determine the whole number for repair costs which includes everything that is going on wrong in your car.
Once you have that total number, the next step is to compare it to your vehicle's value. If you determine that the vehicle's value is getting close to their hair costs, then it might not be worth fixing the car, and instead, you should sell it and buy another one.
Can I fix the cruise control not working by myself?
As you mentioned earlier, some of the problems in your cruise control might be just related to a simple problem like a blown fuse. If that's the case, you can easily replace this fuse and have your cruise control system work again.
However, there are some instances where you might be dealing with sensitive sensors like the speed sensor and other complicated components that you want to mess with unless you have the right mechanical skill sets.
That's why we typically recommend checking with your mechanic and seeing what's going on first before you determine whether you can do it on your own or not. There are tons of YouTube videos that could walk you through some recommendations on how to replace things but keep in mind that you might introduce mistakes that will cost you a lot of money. Therefore, let's keep it to professionals unless you have the right skills.
Final thoughts
The cruise control system is very effective and helpful in many situations. It allows you to maintain specific speeds, so you don't overstress your foot pressing on the gas pedal in long-distance driving.
Over time, this system might fail because of problems with many of the internal components. This article walked you through the 7 most common causes of cruise control not working.
Your mechanic needs to determine the root problem causing the issue, and once it's detected, the next step is to replace the faulty component.
If repair costs are going to be extremely high and they're getting close to the vehicle's value, that's when you might need to consider selling your car rather than wasting your time and money.
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