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Sid_Sidow
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A Car's Cruise Control??

01/01/2023 11:58 AM

My brother-in-law's shop was damaged by a car running off the road and into the side of his building.

Odd thing is that the shop is over quarter mile from any highway and surrounded by rough farm fields.

The theory is that the driver (missing from the scene) fell asleep with cruise control set at a high speed. I keep wondering, first - wouldn't the driver be startled awake by the rough field (unless medical condition). But more so - I would think the cruise control may be 'smart' enough to realize the car was off the road and disengage?

We know that the car was still at a high rate of speed because it bent a large steel post in the building.

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lyn
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#1

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/01/2023 1:56 PM

Year, make and model of the vehicle, please.
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SolarEagle
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#2

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/01/2023 2:36 PM

...any disgruntled former employees?

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Rixter
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#3

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/01/2023 9:04 PM

On every car I've driven, the cruise control could be disengaged either by the switch on the steering wheel or by touching the brake or clutch.

I guess it's possible the driver was asleep and when the car left the road was physically or mentally unable to disengage it.

There is no cruise control I know of that will disengage itself when the car leaves the road.

https://auto.howstuffworks.com/cruise-control.htm
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Brave Sir Robin
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#4
In reply to #3

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/01/2023 10:36 PM

My 2005 VW base model Jetta will disengage the cruise control if one of the wheels 'gets air' on a rough road surface and disengage the cruise control. I suspect the sudden increase in speed is what triggers it to disengage. I've had it do that when hitting a patch of ice in the road as well. The same thing happens if I were to 'feather' the clutch with cruise control on, which is probably a mismatch between engine speed and road speed ratio. There is no switch at the fully engaged position of the clutch pedal but there is a dummy switch at the fully depressed position that you must engage in order to start the vehicle. Even if the tranny is in neutral. (Thanks to the lawyers, no doubt.)
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Rixter
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#7
In reply to #4

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 8:00 AM

I'm thinking you're right. "Feathering" the clutch on my car disengages the cruise control, and I always assumed there was some sensor switch. But the tach and speedometer are both electronic, so sensing the change in ratio between the two would be the logical way to disengage the cruise control.

On my next opportunity, I might try to test it by pushing it into neutral without using the clutch on a gradual downhill incline.
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Brave Sir Robin
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#12
In reply to #7

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/04/2023 1:23 PM

Done it. I unload the gearsets with just a skosh of throttle and I can slip it into neutral. And it does kick it out of cruise control. Really, once the car is rolling in first, the clutch is entirely optional anyways.

However, on vehicles with automatic transmissions, I'm not sure the same thing will happen. My 2002 Suburban will downshift on hills with the cruise control on. And then the ratio thing is all off because you get into the torque converter with its attendant slip. I have had the cruise control on the Suburban kick off on rough road surfaces, but I'm not sure of the process that determines there is a problem. It might be a sudden change in road speed due to wheel slip perhaps.
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BruceFlorida
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#5

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 6:41 AM

In Florida we learn to never underestimate what can happen when you combine alcohol, drugs and people. What you described sounds like just another Saturday night. Driver missing from the scene? Yes, drugs and alcohol can make that happen.

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Randall
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#6

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 6:59 AM

The car must have a registered owner: surely the police can figure out if it was them driving. Or has it been reported stolen?

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phoenix911
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#8

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 9:27 AM

The car wouldn’t happen to be a Toyota?

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Deefburger
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#9
In reply to #8

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 12:23 PM

Kia Sorento. Said so in the video.

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phoenix911
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#10
In reply to #9

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/02/2023 3:01 PM

I grabbed the wrong video…

Prius has the same problem…

https://electricvehicleforums.com/forums/toyota-camry-hybrid-49/cruise-control-doesnt-shut-off-13358/

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PWSlack
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#11

Re: A Car's Cruise Control??

01/03/2023 3:24 AM

The fortunate thing is that the value of recovery from the incident constitutes a solid claim on the driver's insurance policy.

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Brave Sir Robin (2); BruceFlorida (1); Deefburger (1); lyn (1); phoenix911 (2); PWSlack (1); Randall (1); Rixter (2); SolarEagle (1)

Previous in Forum: Why is bamboo ply made with the grain all in one direction.   Next in Forum: Salt water in bottle efffect on freezing

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