I am thinking about fitting cruise control to my Land Rover Discovery and would like to know if they help with towing an dwhat about fuel.
Denis
Denis
Cruise Control
- Thread starter landynut
- Start date
Dont know about Landrovers but I only use my cruise control in roadworks to avoid a speeding ticket.If you LR is a manuel then fuel economy will be worse with cruise control
I don't necessarily agree with plotter on this one.
There area a number of factors that will affect economy. Obviously any change in the MPG you achieve will depend on how economical you drive without CC, and CC suits some engines better than others.
CC will work better with engines that have a wide power band, so turbo diesels are usually quite effective. CC is always reactive rather than proactive, so it will not anticipate changes in incline and adjust the throttle in advance.
A highly attentive driver can anticipate the conditions ahead and may be able to out perform a CC on hilly roads, but on long basically flat runs (i.e. motorways) I believe the CC can be more consistent than a human, and thus offer driving with less stress and worry. In general as a driver tires, their speed can creep upwards, this not only reduces economy, it increases the wear rates and stress on components.
CC is also kinder to the cars mechanics; because any changes in throttle are smaller so instantaneous changes are less dramatic.
It also helps to protect your driving licence from breaking the speed limits
Using CC does not allow you to abdicate your responsibilities as a driver, you must still be aware of how the engine is coping, and just as if you are driving manually, if the engine is labouring, then you should be anticipating change to a more favourable gear ratio.
On balance I believe the CC fitted to my car does provide better economy, and it certainly helps with driving within the speed limits. In my area I have a stretch of road that has 8 of Gordon's yellow/grey money-boxes within a 2 mile stretch, and numerous others on other local roads.
There area a number of factors that will affect economy. Obviously any change in the MPG you achieve will depend on how economical you drive without CC, and CC suits some engines better than others.
CC will work better with engines that have a wide power band, so turbo diesels are usually quite effective. CC is always reactive rather than proactive, so it will not anticipate changes in incline and adjust the throttle in advance.
A highly attentive driver can anticipate the conditions ahead and may be able to out perform a CC on hilly roads, but on long basically flat runs (i.e. motorways) I believe the CC can be more consistent than a human, and thus offer driving with less stress and worry. In general as a driver tires, their speed can creep upwards, this not only reduces economy, it increases the wear rates and stress on components.
CC is also kinder to the cars mechanics; because any changes in throttle are smaller so instantaneous changes are less dramatic.
It also helps to protect your driving licence from breaking the speed limits
Using CC does not allow you to abdicate your responsibilities as a driver, you must still be aware of how the engine is coping, and just as if you are driving manually, if the engine is labouring, then you should be anticipating change to a more favourable gear ratio.
On balance I believe the CC fitted to my car does provide better economy, and it certainly helps with driving within the speed limits. In my area I have a stretch of road that has 8 of Gordon's yellow/grey money-boxes within a 2 mile stretch, and numerous others on other local roads.
I always get better fuel consumption on cruise.
As for the bit in John's post about CC being reactive the easy way round this is to gently take the speed up about 3 mph before hitting the hill. As the car loses momentum on the hill you can take your foot off the accelerator once the preset speed has been reached and hopefully this extra momentum will see you up the hill without the need for a gear change or the engine laboring.
As for the bit in John's post about CC being reactive the easy way round this is to gently take the speed up about 3 mph before hitting the hill. As the car loses momentum on the hill you can take your foot off the accelerator once the preset speed has been reached and hopefully this extra momentum will see you up the hill without the need for a gear change or the engine laboring.
There are right and wrong ways of using C.Control. It is good for keeping to specific speed limits and on long motorway journeys towing or not it can aid fuel consumption. Poor consumption is normally caused by incorrect of the resume button
Yeeaaars agggoo(1985ish) the Caravan Club did tests on cruise controls with caravan attached and it consisted of up and down a motorway with/without cruise engaged
They concluded a couple of mpg better with cruise engaged
I was so impressed at the time that I went and bought a cruise control and have fitted them to every car since until the present XT where Nissan saved me the trouble and fit them at the factory
I use mine a lot on the motorway towing and solo to keep within speed limits
The biggest drawback is the tendency not to want to cancel when approaching a slower vehicle and yourself being overtaken/approached so that its tempting to get a tad too close to the vehicle in front
But its a great help on long trips to Spain etc to be able to rest the accellerator leg an have a wriggle on the seat !!
They concluded a couple of mpg better with cruise engaged
I was so impressed at the time that I went and bought a cruise control and have fitted them to every car since until the present XT where Nissan saved me the trouble and fit them at the factory
I use mine a lot on the motorway towing and solo to keep within speed limits
The biggest drawback is the tendency not to want to cancel when approaching a slower vehicle and yourself being overtaken/approached so that its tempting to get a tad too close to the vehicle in front
But its a great help on long trips to Spain etc to be able to rest the accellerator leg an have a wriggle on the seat !!
I've had CC for the last 10 years and would not be without it. It comes into its own when towing on the motorways. Personally I have found the mpg is better overall when using CC.Also it gives the right foot a rest.
Cheers
Alan
Cheers
Alan
I have the vw 140 bhp with dsg , and i use cc when ever i can , even in town to control my speed to the 30 mph or whatever it is, it makes driving much less strestful which to me is a bonus. Would not be without cc or dsg.
CC is brilliant, safety tested it for manufacturers in the past.
With manual use with care, far better with Auto diesel.
With manual use with care, far better with Auto diesel.
Facebook
Twitter