Cruise control on while towing?

[Mr_D]

Just made a trip from WA to Fresno, CA due to a death. I found my cruise control wasn't working. In fact, nothing on the Smart wheel is working. Need to pull the center cover off and check the clockspring.
Normally I almost always use the cruise control on the highway.

[JohnBoyToo]

I only use cruise when dry, rain, uphill, downhill, towing, not towing, in my truck with 5er, in the coach, in the jeep toad... so, yes, all the time...

re the straw man of drive tires breaking loose with 20k+ lbs on them? can't fathom they could (an they never have), but if they do, easy enough to turn it off

The only time I MIGHT turn it off, is in heavy traffic,
usually I have the engine brake on and my foot by the brake so my reaction time is faster if needed.... if you are aware you may even accelerate BEFORE an uphill making it easier to hold the speed before you start to slow down...

Good luck, and just like with psi in your tires, you'll learn what's best for you !

[Crasher]

Originally Posted by JohnBoyToo

re the straw man of drive tires breaking loose with 20k+ lbs on them? can't fathom they could (an they never have), but if they do, easy enough to turn it off

It wasn't with the cruise control, but I did have the rear wheels of a Discovery DP break loose on wet pavement. On my first DP in heavy rain outside of Corpus Christi, I had just cross a bridge and let off on the accelerator when the transmission downshifted. I was in a slight curve and the rear wheels broke loose and slid into the oncoming lane. The coach was at a 45* angle to the road when I added power to regain traction. We then pulled back into our lane just before we met a car. My problem was that I had left the exhaust brake on which cause the downshift. Since that time, in wet conditions, the exhaust brake come off and so does the cruise control especially in freezing temps.

[Coral]

I always use cruise control based on traffic conditions.

[NC25T]

As others stated nothing wrong with using the cruise when towing, its standard equipment for a reason

I do not like using it and only used it a few miles on my gasser. My issue was with the slightest incline like a gradual/gentle overpass it would shift down a gear or two and floor it, in the attempt to maintain speed at all cost. To me this was suppose annoying and I would rather use my own foot to travel down the highway, it was especially annoying on really long hills where again it would try to hard to keep the speed up.

I also rarely use cruise in my car

[Bigd9]

Originally Posted by RayJr

If your not on cruise how can you get up and get a drink??

[Bigd9]

I always use the cruise control going up hills. Just sit back and let the coach do its thing.

[Hgrace56]

Originally Posted by FrankAN

Thanks everyone for all your responses. Looks like the obvious consensus is no problem using cruise control. I suppose my somewhat slight hesitation was because I am towing with a gasser and wasn't sure if that made a diferrence vs. towing with a diesel pusher.

No e is a gasser too. Use it all the time.

Originally Posted by kentdavido

I never use cruise control on any of our vehicles.

[Phoelix]

I never subject my engine to cruise control...I baby that 454...

[les.warden]

Cruise on, except big hills, then manually shifting. Towing a Jeep Wrangler.

[WillandJane]

Originally Posted by A Traveler

Time to move into the 21st century...

"thumbs up"

[Cloud Dancer]

My MH uses a 8.3 Cummins capable of 1050 lbs of torque. Cruising on cruise control while towing my 4x4 GMC Envoy is NO problem. However, I do NOT cruise with the engine brake armed. AND, IMO in event of a front tire blowout it's safer to NOT do ANYTHING with my feet (until I decide it's safe to do so). I totally believe that the most important and most intuitive first step is to immediately/firmly steer with the steering wheel as necessary to stay in my lane (by the looks of it, I only have a couple of seconds to do so).

[aether_one]

Originally Posted by JoeSR

I don’t use cruise in the motorhome for two reasons.

First, the main reason, I generally drive on two lane roads without a lot of traffic. My MH is a GP (gas puller). An educated gas foot can control when or even if the transmission downshifts on hills (noise control).

Second, the last two threads that I have read on steer tire blow outs went something like this… “I was driving by class A DP when I felt a vibration or heard a noise. I did not apply the brakes. I just tapped the brake to take cruise control off. I could not keep the MH on the road.” So, I wonder if that act of suddenly removing power by touching the brake contributed to the loss of control. I know that I want both hands on the steering wheel at all times if this situation happens to me. I also know that I do not want to suddenly remove power from the rear wheels to take the cruise off.


I use cruise on my other vehicles but never on slick roads. The danger of breaking the drive wheels loose when going up hills can be dramatically reduced by not increasing throttle pressure to maintain a constant speed.

1 - Sounds like the perfect time to use cruise control.
2 - Most modern cruise controls have a "Disengage" button on the steering wheel.

[evereddie]

Originally Posted by tfryman

That condition was already covered in the premise of the question. Maybe we should add other obvious situations like driving in ice or snow?

My question is: why would you not use cruise control while towing in a situation where you would use cruise control if you were not towing?

Mountains = hills.
Got it.