GEM changed cruise settings !

[Botus]

18 months back I had installed cruise control on Mk2.5 1.6vvti and it worked reliably.

To set a speed you needed to be above 22 MPH and you could then slow it down to 19 MPH just about slow enough for speed bumps near me.  Further attempts at speed reduction left cruise enabled but with no further reduction in speed

I swapped out the GEM 3 months ago to one made 6 months later with more options - mirror and auto lights etc. (of course flashed with my 3 original config files - cruise modified ).  But just now I just worked out why cruise is annoying me these days.  This GEM is different.  It can only set a speed if the vehicle is above 25 MPH and ANY attempt to reduce back to the 20 MPH it did before immediately turns cruise off  

that's completely rubbish, what idiot modified it the wrong way and why?     was 7M5T-14A073-CB  - now 7M5T-14A073-FB  it needs to do 15 or less not 25 or more !!!

[gillyallan]

I'm finding it strange you'd be using cruise control at those low speeds but hey guess you have your reasons.

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[Botus]

use all the time round town relives stress.... my BM bike could set from 8 mph, most modern cars drive in traffic using it stop starting all on their own.... some since 2006

[gillyallan]

Ok no bother. Sorry I can be no help on your technical side but was curious lol

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[TomsFocus]

17 minutes ago, Botus said:

...most modern cars drive in traffic using it stop starting all on their own.... some since 2006

But the Mk2 Focus never had the option of active cruise or any low speed collision detection.  I would think it was done for safety reasons in low speed areas.

I've seen people saying about it on here before though, my 08 will sit at 20mph but read complaints of later ones not going below 25mph.  I use it at 20mph for long stretches of speed bumps same as you, not tried any in the mk3 yet, will be interesting to see how low that allows.

[Dee_82]

mines about 25. to be honest Im not sure id want to use it at slower speeds, your going slow for a reason which probably means you could be close to people or cars, some folk can get caught out with CC especially if it was previously set to a high speed when they tap the reset button, wooooosh! lits like someone lights a rocket up your bottom. :) 

[Botus]

20 MPH speed limits or roads covered in speed bumps.... you can then drive sensibly looking for kids and mums instead of staring at the speedo... makes it many times safer (all cruise systems turn off the instant you brake, there can be NO safety issues)

still if its programming inside the GEM that creates the min set point, would give an easy starting place for an IT bod to reduce it to 10MPH where it should be

[Dan P]

There are loads of 20mph speed limits in and around London so I use the cruise control to stop me from speeding.

My 56 plate Focus Mk2 only allows setting of cruise control from 30mph.

[gillyallan]

In my mindset I don't set cruise until I'm in top gear. I'd guess that would be a use for my limiter, of which previously I didn't really see a point in.

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[Botus]

but cruise does a better job than the pointless limiter....   and is far safer as if you need to accelerate out of trouble its all normal

[gillyallan]

Yeah I don't personally get the limiter but then I use cruise to rest my feet. I have often thought though while on cruise, would I miss the brake in a panic.

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[TomsFocus]

The limiter isn't as pointless as I first thought.

There's a dual carriageway stretch here that's restricted to 60mph with average cameras.  Trouble is most people can't keep a constant speed because they're too busy eating or on the phone so you can't use cruise behind them as they're up and down between 55 and 65 the whole way.

This is where the limiter comes in handy because I can set it to 60, knowing it won't go over, but can ease off the throttle when necessary to avoiding tailgating them when they've lost 5mph for no reason at all making me look like the *****! 

 

[iantt]

speèd limiter can be overidden at any time just by whacking the right pedal down. 

[Botus]

13 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

The limiter isn't as pointless as I first thought.

There's a dual carriageway stretch here that's restricted to 60mph with average cameras.  Trouble is most people can't keep a constant speed because they're too busy eating or on the phone so you can't use cruise behind them as they're up and down between 55 and 65 the whole way.

This is where the limiter comes in handy because I can set it to 60, knowing it won't go over, but can ease off the throttle when necessary to avoiding tailgating them when they've lost 5mph for no reason at all making me look like the *****! 

 

ok, yes that would make sense.  I was near Nottingham two years back and this empty winding dual carriageway that should be done at 90 had been infected with ave distance 50 mph for 15 miles !  

 

[Phil21185]

12 minutes ago, Botus said:

ok, yes that would make sense.  I was near Nottingham two years back and this empty winding dual carriageway that should be done at 90 had been infected with ave distance 50 mph for 15 miles !  

 

Yes that has always bugged me.

Single carriageway with speed limit of 60.

"Let's spend millions dualing it to ease congestion and allow smoother travel for everyone!!

But let's make it slower than it was before..."

[Botus]

re thread title - today I realised that ELM config states both GEMs use software version v.8 (29.01.2007). 

However this leaves me confused as to how the cruise control behaves differently (with a different min speed to activate, and cutting out on the newer one if you try to reduce the minimum set speed).  At first made me think, great ! there must be a different setting yet to be found (which could drop the set speed ideally lower than 20MPH setting - allowing one to use it in traffic, speed bumps or 20 MHP speed zones).  But, if its just a case of a setting that could subsequently be added to an update of EMLconfig what causes the later GEM to kill cruise if you sensibly try to drop it down for speed bumps etc.?

the differences.... 

original GEM a CB - To set a speed you needed to be above 22 MPH and you can then slow it down to 19 MPH, further attempts at speed reduction leaves it enabled.

6 month newer GEM an FD - This can only set a speed if the vehicle is above 25 MPH and ANY attempt to reduce, immediately cancels set speed (which is very frustrating)

[Botus]

wow just noticed another change with the later GEM

 

the car must know what gear its in as the cruise no longer works in 2nd gear...it didn't care on the earlier GEM

I use predominantly to cope with these stupid roads infected with mega speed bumps....   the old one you got to 22 set the speed and knocked back to 20 mph then do 2 miles at peace.... and you could use 2nd or 3rd gear....

today trying to charge the battery after a lot of non use, I was in 30 mph motorway roadworks with ave distance cameras !!! so thought I'll try in second gear I was at 29mph in second and about 3200 rpm and the cruise would not set... did the whole process over dead.  Put it in 3rd all's good

so why did the idiots change set speed (from 22 to 26) and how on earth does it know what gear its in and why did they change that feature between a GEM only 6 months later and how do you fix so it works like a grown ups car and can set at the 10mph you need in any gear?

 

[WireyWhenWet]

I completely appreciate and understand this exact headache. Did my 58 (09) plate exactly as you, went from having a happy 2nd gear neighbourhood cruise setting to FFS this is doing my F*$%ing head in!!!

I never got to the bottom of it all, I had the CKP sensor get eaten due to a bad mechanic not bolting my engine back together properly following a clutch change.. Subsequently PX'd it in for my current but that one thing ALWAYS bugged the living hell out of me.

I'd love to know it's a setting, and I'd feel like a legend for knowing it, but I don't. And it still erks me. I fitted cruise to a couple of the guys cars at work and not one believe me that I had that before, and theirs are all the newer crap.

If you never do find it, do share? I'm sure there will be one or two others that feel exactly the same as me and thee!

/rant

[Botus]

thanks for the reply, the worse bit is before you could slow to 20mph

the later GEM only sets at 26 (4 mph faster) and if you try to go slower it disables cruise (bunch of f*ckwits)

 

cruise on my KTM bike has to be 4th gear or higher... then you can slow down to less.... till the bike stutters with the revs way too low, doh !!!!  but still about 37mph an older BMW was only from 36mph.... the people touching software like this shouldn't be allowed to live.

the latest BMW bikes can set in 1st gear and 3mph if you want, like it should be.....

[Tizer]

My MK4 goes down to 20 mph, but no lower. It doesn't disable C/C it just will not scroll any lower.

[Botus]

I went back and converted the speeds.  In kph the changes are clearer.  Same car, same technician, same driver, the ONLY change was to unplug one GEM and plug in another.

 

The original GEM where I enabled cruise myself via a tweak to the PCM and then a tick box exercise in the  HEC and GEM used to set at 22mph (35kph), you could then go minus, minus, minus and drop to 19 /20 mph (30kph).

 

As soon as the new GEM went in this changed, (obviously flashed with the 3 very same config files and nothing else – aside from two more ticks for rain sensor and auto lights in the higher spec GEM).   From the get go and still 22 months on, this GEM meant you must always be above 25mph (40kph) to set a speed and as soon as you touch minus, cruise cuts out first press every time.