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1. I have a 4-cylinder minivan, that needs to down-shift to go up a decent incline at speed. If I'm going 70 and I cant take a hill without downshifting, I'm perfectly happy to go up the hill at 65, rather than suck it up the hill at high rpm's at 70
2. On the freeway, when I gain slowly on the guy ahead of me in the driving lane and the traffic is fairly heavy, I don't like playing chicken to try to guess whether I can get into the passing lane before I rear-end the guy.
I have no trouble holding the gas pedal right on my desired speed without pumping up and down, so cruise is just something that I have to keep switching off and on. Maintaining speed with my foot forces me to be attentive.
Apparently you simply have a combination of driving environment and vehicle where cruise don't work. The 87 Camry has cruise and I don't use it on hilly roads because of your issue #1 - I'd rather feather off the gas than get that damned autobox downshift to about 3rd at 70 MPH, resulting in a sudden rise in RPM from about 2300 to about 4000. There is nothing technically wrong with what the car does, I just don't like it.
Cruise is not and never was intended for driving in any kind of significant traffic.
I do like it and use it on reasonably empty, flat roads though.
Something most people don't seem to realize is that while you are in cruise, you can still step on the gas manually to go ahead and get around someone you are passing, either on the freeway or not, and once you take your foot off the gas the car will coast down to the cruise setpoint, where "Iron Mike" will take back over.
i have a long freeway commute and use CC whenever traffic allows it. unfortunately, the freeway is not all that flat. i don't have the power issue the OP posted about (even though it is just a little 4-cylinder 5-speed xB), but people CANNOT hold constant speed on them to save their life! they slow down up the hill, which means i end up right on their butt. i move over to pass, but then we crest the hill and they speed up like no tomorrow. it's so friggin' frustrating! of course, some seem to be inable of holding constant speed even on flat ground, but that's another story.....
I will use cruise control on long highway stretches, but where I tend to drive the most (NYC, DC, etc.), it's not always feasible as there is a much higher level of traffic than many other areas. I have generally not had an issue with using it, though I do not like people who accelerate and decelerate via the buttons, since it makes more sense to just take the cruise off and set the new speed, IMO.
Location: Still in Portland, Oregon, for some reason
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I just took a 1,900 mile drive from Portland to Kansas City and across the plains where the terrain is mostly flat and there is no other traffic to speak of, it is your best friend. I will never buy a car without it.
The only thing I dislike about it is how it magnifies the infuriating driving habits of others. I'm always amazed by how many people will pass me and then slow down. And by how many speed up when I swing out to pass them.
Most of the cars I've owned in recent years are easily capable of humming along at 90+ mph as smoothly and drama-free as if it were driving 55. If I don't use it, my speed will gradually creep up. It would just be too easy to get a ticket without it.
If you anticipate the hills a bit you can use have the cruise on and still use the accelerator to speed up a bit just before the base of a hill or going down pick up some speed for the next and sometimes that is enough momentum to stop the need for a downshift. Then just ease off the pedal on the flats and let it do its job. In light traffic and fairly flat roads I keep that sucker about 7-9 miles per hour over the speed limit and feel confident I'll get there plenty of fast and without a ticket.
Cruise Control = better gas mileage, because once you find your car's sweet spot and set it to cruise, you will increase your mileage.
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