Cruise Control — do people really use it?

[Anonymous]

Cruise control is somewhat obsolete. Once you drive the newer and smarter ADAPTIVE cruise control, which brakes and speeds back up automatically, you will never go back. And the newer higher-end systems are even better e.g. Tesla's Autopilot, GM and Cadillac's Supercruise, etc.

[Anonymous]

If you care about the environment and gas mileage, use cruise control. You'll get much better efficiency because it's more gradual in accelerator pedal usage basically.

I use it always on the highway -- mine is adaptive so it will slow down if a car in front isn't going as fast, then speed up after. I also have stop-and-go which is a godsend in heavy traffic. It will bring the car to a full stop, then accelerate again once it clears up -- so much easier in backups on 495.

I even use it on local roads like Connecticut Ave at 30mph when I know the road is full of speed cameras.

[Anonymous]

We took a long trip this summer, traveled mostly down I-81. Our Subaru Legacy has Eyesight, which slows you down if you get too close to another car. I sometimes went for an hour without touching the brake or the gas. It’s great.

[Anonymous]

I don’t even know how to use the cruise control (which is apparently adaptive) in the car I bought a few months ago. 😂

[Anonymous]

I use it when I take a long trip that doesn't involve 95. I love my cruise control when I drive through central PA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had long commutes many times in my life, and I just had to complete a 10 hour drive in one day.

Not once have I used cruise control, not even to the point of wishing I had it?! I can see value in self driving where I go read, work, or nap (especially if it’s late and I’m tired) but driving esp highway driving is so easy I don’t see why everyone is excited for them. The worst is FSD lite, where you don’t need the driver except in that split second of panic, how in the world is that more restful?

No. Never. I don't want to go to sleep while driving and the traffic rarely travels at a steady rate.

[Anonymous]

I have adaptive cruise control and I use it all the time on the highway.

[Anonymous]

I don’t use it on city streets, but the adaptive cruise control has been a game changer for long trips out of town on the highway. I definitely feel more relaxed on the drive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t use it on city streets, but the adaptive cruise control has been a game changer for long trips out of town on the highway. I definitely feel more relaxed on the drive.

Me too. Drive up and down 95 a couple times a year (at least) taking stuff to beach house/kids to camp. It’s awesome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had long commutes many times in my life, and I just had to complete a 10 hour drive in one day.

Not once have I used cruise control, not even to the point of wishing I had it?! I can see value in self driving where I go read, work, or nap (especially if it’s late and I’m tired) but driving esp highway driving is so easy I don’t see why everyone is excited for them. The worst is FSD lite, where you don’t need the driver except in that split second of panic, how in the world is that more restful?

My car has adaptive cruise control, so there is no split second of panic. It can go all the way down to a dead stop if necessary. Of course I pay attention to the road; it’s not meant to be self-driving. But it’s awesome for long road trips.

+1. Love my adaptive cruise control.

This! The adaptive cruise control in my Telluride can literally drive for miles and miles. It adjusts to conditions so well.

[Anonymous]

I used to use it. Nowadays people's driving feels more eratic. I used to have frequent road trips - I put 150k miles on a car in 4 years. I remember using the cruise control constantly. It was actually a thing to find a "partner" on the road to cruise with, and we would swap lead every once in a while for "speed radar shield" duty.

Not any more. I still drive a long road trip every now and then and it's maddening. People would drive 60mph in one stretch, and 70mph the next. They would suddenly speed up to 80, and back down to 60 again. I've had an adaptive cruise on a few cars now and I hate it. If the lane I'm in slowed down, my car would slow down with it, and when I switched lanes, instead of slowly getting up to speed again, the car would kick down a couple of gears and accelerate like it was drag racing someone. All of the adaptive cruise cars I've owned behaved this way. So I got in the habit of turning off the cruise when I change lanes just so I wouldn't experience this ridiculous acceleration.

I do still use the cruise control in normal mode some times. If a car in front of me is slow, and I start to get close, my car doesn't slow down, and I just change lanes and the car keeps going at the same speed.

The one modern cruise control feature I *DO* like is speed limit sign reading - where if you set your speed limit to say 5mph over the current speed limit, the car will maintain that gap and change its speed by reading speed limit signs on the side of the road. That's quite useful.

[Anonymous]

I use adaptive cruise control all the time. I can't wait for self driving cars!

[Anonymous]

All the time. I have a lead foot and it is really easy for me to hit 90 if no cars are around me.

[Anonymous]

No,never. That and the countless other "amenities" automakers are loading cars up with these days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No,never. That and the countless other "amenities" automakers are loading cars up with these days.

You sound like a friend of mine who used to dislike anti-lock brakes, electric windows and automatic transmissions.