Most truck drivers today are familiar with cruise control, which can significantly ease our driving experience and reduce fuel consumption. However, some truckers have misconceptions about how to use cruise control, leading to potential increases in fuel consumption and even safety hazards while driving.
In simple terms, cruise control allows the vehicle to maintain a set speed determined by the driver. This benefits drivers by freeing up their right foot, ensuring the vehicle travels at a consistent speed. There are two advantages to this: 1) the driver doesn't have to continuously manage the accelerator pedal, reducing fatigue, and 2) unnecessary speed variations are minimized, leading to fuel savings.
How to use cruise control?
Cruise control is most suitable for highway stretches or good road conditions and can only be activated when reaching a certain speed. Depending on the vehicle model, the required activation speed varies, but for most trucks, it typically needs to be above 40 km/h.
Cruise control operations come in two types: rotary knob and button. Regardless of the type, general controls include an on/off switch, a cancel button, set current speed (SET), resume set speed (RES), increase speed (+), and decrease speed (-).
To use cruise control, follow these steps:
Turn on the cruise control system with the on/off switch. The dashboard will display the cruise control indicator light.
Accelerate to the desired speed or above the system's minimum speed, then press the SET button. Cruise control will then maintain the speed at which the SET button was pressed.
To adjust the cruising speed, use the "RES+" and "SET-" buttons.
To deactivate cruise control, there are three methods: pressing the brake, the cancel (CANCEL) button, or the on/off switch.
If cruise control was deactivated by the brake or cancel button and you wish to resume the previously set cruising speed, press the "resume set cruise RES" button.
Which road sections are most suitable for cruise control?
The primary function of the cruise control system is to maintain a "set speed" for the vehicle. The engine's fuel supply is adjusted by the computer based on current conditions like road quality, speed, and driving resistance. If the resistance is greater than the tire's driving force, and it cannot be overcome by fuel injection, cruise control will typically deactivate itself (in manual transmissions) or force a downshift in automatic transmissions to maintain the set cruising speed.
Thus, it's best to use cruise control on flat highways with minimal traffic.
Moreover, since the cruise control system only maintains the set speed, it should be used cautiously or deactivated in the following conditions:
Urban roads, regular roads, or congested highways.
Rainy days or roads with standing water.
Icy or foggy conditions.
Highways with numerous bends.
How to use cruise control most efficiently?
When activating cruise control, if there's a significant difference between the current speed and the set cruise speed, the computer will assume it needs to reach the set speed immediately, causing the vehicle to accelerate rapidly. For instance, if the current speed is 60 km/h, and the set speed is 80 km/h, the computer will "notify" the systems to accelerate quickly to 80 km/h, leading to a surge in acceleration, thereby increasing fuel consumption and potential safety hazards.
Furthermore, when a slight speed increase is required, such as 1 km/h increments, the + button on the cruise control can be used. However, if a larger speed increase is needed, like in increments of 5 km/h or its multiples, it's better to gradually accelerate using the pedal until the desired speed is reached before activating the cruise control, instead of using the cruise control buttons, for the reasons mentioned above.
