Cruise slow to engage:

[Flyinfool]

PM sent.

 

Glad that you found an issue that can be fixed easily.

[gggGary]

I am having a few cruise issues as I mentioned above. I have the throttle side switch apart lubing throttle cables and electrical switches. MY cruise set/accel switch does not self return even after I blew it out lubed and exercised it. I am thinking it should self center but this one pretty much doesn't. before I attempt to tear into the switch, can anyone confirm it SHOULD return to the center position on it's own. This bike got a lot of sticky desert dust inside EVERYWHERE.

While opening the hand control I found the brake handle pivot was dry as a bone with caked dust. Cleaning and lubing the brake, clutch handle pivots should be normal maintenance on every bike that has a few miles and years on it. Left dry they will wear out the aluminum handle hole and the bolt shank.

[Du-Rron]

It should self-center.

[Rolltide]

HI and thanks. I did perform the alignments and check which were really just checks as nothing needed adjustment when I rebuilt the carburetors. I have the same problem Gary mentions with the set point and the actual road speed being different with the initial setting of the cruise.

 

I may start "experimenting" with adjustments to calibrate an offset into this thing to make it work right, or may make something better. This is the first bike I've owned with OEM supplied cruise control and am wanting it to work right. This bike having the wheel speed sensor incorporated into the drive hub would be fairly easy to pick off a signal from to drive an external unit to actuate the throttle.

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

Time for an Indian?

[Condor]

I am having a few cruise issues as I mentioned above. I have the throttle side switch apart lubing throttle cables and electrical switches. MY cruise set/accel switch does not self return even after I blew it out lubed and exercised it. I am thinking it should self center but this one pretty much doesn't. before I attempt to tear into the switch, can anyone confirm it SHOULD return to the center position on it's own. This bike got a lot of sticky desert dust inside EVERYWHERE.

While opening the hand control I found the brake handle pivot was dry as a bone with caked dust. Cleaning and lubing the brake, clutch handle pivots should be normal maintenance on every bike that has a few miles and years on it. Left dry they will wear out the aluminum handle hole and the bolt shank.

 

I think that lubing any switch to get it working will cause it to get bound up again in short order. Dust is a given, and it will collect on any oily surface. What I found is a product called 'Blaster', and available at Home Depot. It's a silicon solvent. What happens is the solvent portion will flash off leaving a coating of dry silicon. Dust will not collect on the surface. It's also a cleaner as the name imply s. So rather than taking the switch out of the control housing... Funny story. I tried to transfer the innerds of one housing into the other. It was like a Chinese jigsaw puzzle in there and gave up. Both housings are laying around in a box somewhere.. :-) But I digress. Anyway just blast the dirt out with the solvent and let it dry. Should get it working correctly again... My 2¢

[gggGary]

I think that lubing any switch to get it working will cause it to get bound up again in short order. Dust is a given, and it will collect on any oily surface. What I found is a product called 'Blaster', and available at Home Depot. It's a silicon solvent. What happens is the solvent portion will flash off leaving a coating of dry silicon. Dust will not collect on the surface. It's also a cleaner as the name imply s. So rather than taking the switch out of the control housing... Funny story. I tried to transfer the innerds of one housing into the other. It was like a Chinese jigsaw puzzle in there and gave up. Both housings are laying around in a box somewhere.. :-) But I digress. Anyway just blast the dirt out with the solvent and let it dry. Should get it working correctly again... My 2¢

 

Thanks.... too late! Apart and back together (almost 100% working) You are completely correct, I was thinking Jenga the whole time I was in there! everything is held by everything else with tiny screws, springs and plastic click latches. I have never run into a stickier "dust/grit" than the stuff all over this bike. My basic problem was a small plastic piece with a pin that pivots one side of the set/res rocker has a chipped off corner, with all the grit out and silicone lube it works but still hangs up on res position, just a finger push back to center. The set side now releases as it should. Cables and barrel lubed, all back in place. Good enough but Condor I'd be interested in your "puzzle box" see if I can get the last little bit right. (more stubborn than "need" LOL)

[Condor]

Good enough but Condor I'd be interested in your "puzzle box" see if I can get the last little bit right. (more stubborn than "need" LOL)

 

The key here is the word 'somewhere' in my last post. You have no idea what I'd have to dig thru in the hopes of even finding that box... :-)

[gggGary]

Oh but I do, trust me, the shed is 40x60 and contains 18 motorcycles and the remains of many more LOL..........

But after I got everything back on the handlebars even the RES position is returning as it should, life is GOOD! Next up; the cruise module, gulp.

[bongobobny]

The key here is the word 'somewhere' in my last post. You have no idea what I'd have to dig thru in the hopes of even finding that box... :-)

GGGGary, if you ever saw a picture of Condor's garage (It was once posted here) you would immediately completely understand his comment!!

[eagleeye]

The cruise control works very well once engaged, but it can take up to six seconds before taking effect. I know this isn't normal and it's not consistently this long. The hose on the vacuum pump looks good with the clamps present, and once engaged, it works very well. It passes all self tests fine and readily accelerates up an incline regulating road speed as should. I usually push the "set" button about a second before releasing and sometimes the engagement is immediate, other times if the throttle is let go road speed will drop about 10mph before the cruise picks up. I've found holding the set button down for about 6-7 seconds is intermittent as far as engagement time also. It has never failed to engage, just varying times for engagement?

 

Don't really know where to start but is there an air filter for this vacuum pump installed someplace, or does it share another air filter someplace?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

I've just read 3 pages of comments on this issue, and just last week I was experimenting on this very thing. Pressing SET, and it lags back before coming up to the set speed. Pressing SET and ACCL and it locks in right now.

The reason that I was playing with this is that last winter I installed a Rostra CC on my Vstrom and when I set that one, it's set. And for as long as I can remember, I've always had to press set and accl on the RSTD.

I was surprised that someone said that the manual says to press set and then accl. Never have read that thing.

 

So I think that the answer to your question is that simple: do as the manual says and press set and accl.

[gggGary]

So my problem was more of a pokey weak cruise than the long delay of the OP. After I got the switches working smoothly I dug into the rest of it. lubed the cables set slack. Still MEH so the tank came off opened and lubed the cable junction

and cruise cable end to end found the adjustment nut hanging loose at the vacuum pot.

 

 

Still not happy so worked cable tension some more. Lubed all throttle shafts on the carbs My vacuum line from pump to cable puller had no clamps and the tube was a bit "not snug" on the nipples so used a bit of sealant and added clamps.

Per the service manual I checked pump and actuator with jumpers to the pump connector from the battery hot to the red wire and ground to the other three wires. Gave full throttle motion.

In my case probably the biggest problem was that a non stock hand grip was causing less than free throttle action, I put the stock grip back on and now have "RSV normal" cruise. holds on hills accels and decels with bumps of the switches. Still no BMW cruise, but fully functional. For me; Case Closed.

Just a heads up that the amount of effort need to move the throttles by pulling the vacuum actuator cable is high even when everything is just perfect. any extra resistance in the throttle assembly will probably drag down the ability of the cruise to work properly.

To get access to the pump and actuator both fairing lowers and all the other plastic bits and air cleaners must come off.

Bonus shot of my UNI air filters

 

[V7Goose]

Now Goose says that he finds the combination of button pushes that people use to be comical. Maybe they are but I can tell you for a fact that it works for me and has on all three of the RSVs that I've owned. I get to the speed that I wish to be at, I push the rocker switch down once and then immediately push it up (accel) once and it sets exactly at the speed I want. If I just push it down then it will lose a little speed and I have to tap it back up to the speed that I wanted. Comical or not, it works that way every time and is very simple to set that way. This method may seem comical but it is quick and easy and after a couple of times, becomes second nature. If Goose was here I would let him see for himself because it is provable and repeatable every single time. Now it may be working exactly as he stated. The drop in speed may not be more than a couple miles per hour, I don't really know. I just know that by using the button combination method, there is no drop in speed at all and that is what I like.

Hey Don, I think you may have slightly missed two points I was trying to make (and I do see we disagree on one). I know you have at least as much experience on these bikes as I have (actually more), and I have no problems at all with your differing opinions. My own knowledge is based only on my personal experience with three RSVs with total miles well over 100,000. I have no way of knowing facts from any other bike without actually working on it. Of course everything is predicated on the system being in proper mechanical condition and adjustment.

 

First of all, the speed setting when I hit "SET" is always dead on - there is no drop of any type. If the speedo is indicating 70 when I touch the set button, then I get 70. Period. And I do not need to play games with other buttons to get those results. The slight drop in speed I mentioned of 1 or 2 MPH is only temporary while the vacuum actuator gets positioned, and then the bike settles in at the original set speed - I do not need to touch anything else to get it to run where I originally intended. And if I wanted to totally avoid that temporary drop, all I need to do is just keep my hand on the throttle 1 second longer after hitting the set button. I suspect your "trick" of playing with more buttons than just the "set" button is simply doing just that - slightly delaying how fast you let go.

 

And the reason I find all of those various tricks "comical" is simply because my experience has shown me that on MY bikes, they do nothing at all to change the way the system operates. They simply change the perception the rider has about what is going on because they do not understand the technical facts about the actual operation. I might be convinced that thumping the gas tank, or maybe touching my right elbow helps too, but I'm pretty sure somebody else would find that comical. In the end, we all have our rituals in life, and to the point they make us feel better, then they all have value. I just personally find that by understanding the technology, I have a much better chance of keeping it operating correctly. As these bikes keep getting older, more and more folks are going to find the rituals don't seem to work as well as they used to!

Goose

[Freebird]

OK...I understand what you are saying and I think that you are probably right. Mine too will set at the speed that I tap it at if I do what you say. It will drop and then come back up or I can hold the throttle until it comes back. No argument. It also makes sense that it should work that way as it will not build the necessary vacuum instantaneously. I guess I just find it easy to do the two button thing and it sets there instantly. The only thing a little puzzling is that it takes literally a second, probably less, to do the two button combo and takes longer if I just press set and wait for it to catch up. Seems that either way should take about the same amount of time. Maybe I'm just remembering wrong. I'll have to do some experimenting the next time I ride.

[V7Goose]

Just as an aside here on the technical workings and how our system is different than a car system that also runs from vacuum - big multi-cylinder engines with an intake manifold have gobs more vacuum with very little pulsing (plus they usually have a big vacuum canister to "store" excess vacuum for future need), and typically auto cruise systems use this to hold the throttle in place. The reason there is no lag on that type of system is because the vacuum is always there, so the set button simply opens a solenoid to apply it.

 

Engine vacuum will not do the job well on a typical motorcycle; that is why our bike has an electric pump for this, and that is why the slight delay in building needed vacuum - I do not believe the electric vacuum pump is running until the system is "set". It is natural for us to expect any switch to cause instant action - technology has conditioned us for that for well over 100 years. We flip a light switch and our hand instantly moves away as we move on to the next thing, and we tend to react this way to pushing the cruise button also - that is why any lag at all is so noticeable, even if it is only one second. So anything at all that we do that holds our throttle hand in place even an instant longer causes us to perceive less lag, and that is why I suspect it is the only thing happening when you set+tap up.

 

HOWEVER, I can speculate that possibly the tap up actually does change the lag time slightly (notice here that I am being very careful to differentiate between stating facts I believe about the bike and guessing). I have never analyzed the finer points about how the cruise system modulates the needed vacuum to hold the throttle in a fixed position - clearly it cannot be applying full vacuum unless it is trying to accelerate, so either the system bleeds off excess vacuum or modulates the speed of the pump. When you hit the immediate tap up, you are actually changing the set speed from where you tried to engage the cruise, so I can see the possibility that the system may actually apply full vacuum to the actuator for just a split second longer to accomplish the call for acceleration. This could effectually cause a more harsh pull on the throttle cable to get it set a tiny bit sooner. Since the lag is so slight in a properly working system, I doubt we could ever devise a way to accurately test any difference. But if the process works for you and makes your ride more enjoyable, then I so no reason to change it.

Goose

[V7Goose]

MY cruise set/accel switch does not self return even after I blew it out lubed and exercised it. I am thinking it should self center but this one pretty much doesn't.

This is not a significant issue. I have noticed on all three of the RSVs I have owned/used, that the cruise switch does not always self-center (two of the bikes were brand new, so not a contamination problem). It bothered me not knowing if that could cause some sort of problem, so I took a look at the cruise schematics. Just going from old vague memory here, but I recall that the cruise system uses a self-latching relay when you turn it on. This means that the power is only momentarily supplied by the switch, and then when the relay activates, it disconnects from the switch and provides its own power loop to stay activated until the power (or possibly ground) is removed.

 

the manual states . press set/dec to activate the cruise control . then press acc/res to set the speed.

Uh, no, it does not. Step 2. says to press "SET/DEC" to activate. Period. The "SET" indicator light comes on at this point to show that it is "SET", not that it might become set if you do something else. End of sentence and end of step 2. Step 3. then describes how to set the desired traveling speed by either pressing "RES/ACC" to "increase the set speed" OR press "SET/DEC" to decrease the speed. By definition, you increase the set speed AFTER it is already set.

Goose

Edited September 9, 2016 by V7Goose

[gggGary]

Doing the "actuator/pump" test from the manual there is one hot and three "grounds" from the control to the pump. The sound of the pump changes as the various wires are grounded, the actuator didn't move till I got all three grounded.... Prolly not worth the effort but a vacuum from the engine into the circuit might be enough to loose that momentary lag as the pump starts up.

The master cruise on off with relay may be part of an agency directive, seems like I recall there is a requirement of (say) 3 completely separate ways to shut off "cruise".

I may fiddle with the cable tension adjuster at the actuator, see if it changes the behavior much (or at all).

I read the owners manual on cruise again after seeing the above comment and came to same conclusion, it calls for one push to set.

Then again it also says a short push on either set or res will change the cruise speed by 1 MPH So far that's not working on my bike....

[yamagrl]

It's no "BMW class" cruiser for sure, my 2002 K1200LT had a rock solid cruise with easy consistent engage and 1.2 MPH adjustments up and down. This Yamaha unit is better than NO cruise but not a lot better. I wonder about a full; cable, mechanism, lube, careful slack setting etc. My bike sat in desert heat and grit for many years and has sticky switches.

 

Thank God for small favors...

Edited September 9, 2016 by yamagrl
typo

[V7Goose]

Then again it also says a short push on either set or res will change the cruise speed by 1 MPH So far that's not working on my bike....

The tap up & down function has always worked perfectly on my bikes. I regularly change speeds up or down 5 MPH with 5 taps when adjusting to speed limit changes.

Goose

[gggGary]

Thank God for small favors...

 

Hey you Waskelly Wabbit! that was a DELIBERATE misquote! Not so sure I wouldn't swap the RSV for a K1200LT even up. ONlY serious LT glitch for 6' 3" me was the cramped leg room.

 

I was comparing the cruise controls not motorcycle models.

 

On the other hand;

 

[h=2]BMW R1200C[/h]

 

How was THIS ever let off the drawing board????

Edited September 10, 2016 by gggGary

[yamagrl]

Hey you Waskelly Wabbit! that was a DELIBERATE misquote! Not so sure I wouldn't swap the RSV for a K1200LT even up. ONlY serious LT glitch for 6' 3" me was the cramped leg room.

 

I was comparing the cruise controls not motorcycle models

 

 

​I figured it would get your attention!

[gggGary]

should have looked better while I had the lower fairing apart; has anyone found, removed, cleaned a vacuum pump air filter? As mentioned this bike was very dirty everywhere.

 

 

Did I mention it was DIRTY?

 

Two hour ride yesterday, cruise is much better now. I think I am mostly even getting the one MPH bump from the switch.

[bongobobny]

Yuck!!!