my car has cruise control which i have never used does this affect fuel economy if?

Question

i use it when driving down a motorway for 250 miles

Answer 1

generally LESS economical, as you might ease off slightly on the hills and gain it back on the other side.

Cruise control will burn extra fuel just to keep you right on 70 all the way up that hill, but then back off on the side.

Better to read the road and adapt your driving. ie. you see a bend coming up and you just ease off the gas 100yards before it, your car starts slowing slightly before you brake, cruise control wont do this, it will keep burning fuel right until you brake.

Remember, it helps you maintain a speed, by always burning fuel to attain it. loose a few mph against gravity up hill and gain speed down hill using gravity, that is fuel economy. Dont fight gravity, it gets you down!

Try it, run you car for a whole tank, once using it when ever possible and once without, you will be shocked. Driving skills are the way.

EXTRA - the last persons comment about consistent speed is correct, provided that the road is flat, i dont know many 250mile journeys in the UK that are flat. So a good tactic would be us it on flat parts of journeys? Or does the cost of having the product on a car in the first place offset any financial gain?

Answer 2

Cruise control does improve fuel consumption. I have a Hond Accord and I use it all the time, even in 30mph zones as it helps you stay at the legal speed and frees up the concentration required to check the speed every now and again. I use it on motorways too and it helps here by applying small amounts of throttle change to keep the same speed. If you try to do it manually, you use larger amounts of throttle and speed up and slow down too much - increasing fuel consumption. Again, because you aren't worrying about your speed you have more concentration available to scan the road ahead for obstacles. Kicking the car out or cruise is as easy as gently dabbing on the brake pedal, whereupon you will gently slow down as you would by taking your foot off the accelerator.

In short - USE IT!! It's a fantastic driver aid. May be a bit freaky to get used to, but you won't half miss it when you get a car without!

Answer 3

The answer to this question is "probably yes" The cruise control should only be used for hi-way driving where your consistent speed is at posted limit for extended periods. Doing so will provide you with the best-expected miles per gallon of driving pleasure.

The reason is simple. Most of us drive at inconsistent speeds while on the hi-way. Sometimes at the posted limit, then we slack off and re-accelerate to catch back up. Or, at times we inadvertently slowing start to exceed the limit and then back off a bit. This inconsistency causes greater fuel consumption. If we can hold a constant speed for the entire trip, as the cruise control allows us to do, we will use much less fuel.

You can test this if you do a lot of driving or on your next long trip. Fill your tank and record your milage at the start of your trip. Drive to your destination in your normal manor, without using the cruise control. Once at your destination, refuel and note the amount of fuel used to calculate miles per gallon for that leg of the trip. Take the same route home, again with a full tank and record the mileage. This time, use the cruise control and again calculate miles per gallon once at home. You should see a possible 10% improvement, depending on the car, and how much you over-ride the system to pass. In any case, you will find better fuel economy on long trips if you use the cruise control and avoid excessive passing. I hope this helps.

Answer 4

Depends on what type of car or truck you have. If and when I can remember to set cruise it helps conserve the fuel. I have a Chevy HD Diesel, if I am in the mountains it keeps the speed the same no matter if I am going up or down the hill. The Monte Carlo I have with the cruise on cuts from 8 cyclinders to 4. Speeding up and slowing down kills your mpg. If you maintain one speed it is always better.

Answer 5

If you have never used it then it shouldn't affect fuel economy, however some people believe that a cruise control will positively affect fuel economy, especially in a manual car.

Answer 6

It'll allegedly make it slightly better, but I prefer not to use mine, wishing to be involved in driving my car.
The one thing a cruise control cannot do is anticipate what's happening in the distance, such as if you see a hold-up forming you can gently roll off the throttle to suit, or if you see a hill coming you can sometimes gain a little extra speed on the approach to help you remain in a higher gear.

Answer 7

I always use my cruise control when im on the motorway, it does use less fuel

Answer 8

Cruise administration can boost your gasoline milage on point highway by making use of preserving the gasoline pedal and throttle place secure. you're able to do as properly in case you are able to shop your foot secure on the gasoline pedal.. interior the hills cruise administration will probable no longer help because of the fact that's going to attempt to maintain you on the set velocity and so would be establishing and shutting oftentimes. do no longer attempt to keep gasoline by making use of making use of cruise administration on the city and don't attempt to apply it on icy roads (issues are purely too unpredictable)

Answer 9

hi there, no if anything it would increase fuel economy coz you are sticking more to the same speed

Answer 10

you will get a better mpg by using it.