Installing Aftermarket Cruise on Honda Civic VX

[SuperVX]

Hello Everyone,

Has anyone installed an Audiovox CCS-100 aftermarket cruise control system on a Honda Civic VX?

If so, how did the install go?

Problems?

Tips/Tricks?

Please include photos if you can.

This modification is a big step for me. I bought the kit on amazon.com for $85.

I'm hoping to improve my highway MPG.

Thanks in advance



Aftermarket Cruise Control
(http://www.brandsplace.com/0002-ccs100.html)

[guest001]

I've seriously considered doing this on my honda for years. I was thinking about swapping everything other from another model that has cruise control, but I'd really need to find like a whole donor car with everything working and unmodified.

I haven't done this so I'm not really any help other then a free bump on this thread. I haven't really even seen too many people even put these are there car. well hondas anyway. everytime I start a thread on it or search no ones ever actually done it.

[GasSavers_Erik]

I installed the Audiovox CCS-100 on my 87 Civic 2 years ago and it is still working great. You will need a vacuum reservoir and a one way vacuum valve.

I copied and pasted this (below) from a PM I sent to another member that was thinking of doing the same thing:

I was concerned that the unit said that it wasn't recommended for Hondas- my best guess as to why is that the CC unit has about a 1.5 inch total "pull" range and my Honda only uses about 1 inch of pull to get from idle to wide open throttle. So, if you install it where the pulling cable is tight when the unit is off, when you turn the unit on and go up a big steep hill, the unit will pull the first 1 inch and your throttle valve would be wide open, but if your car was still not going fast enough, the unit would keep pulling because it had that extra half inch that it could pull. This extra pulling could possibly damage the unit or your throttle shaft/plate/linkage.

The solution is simple, just add an extra half inch or so of slack in the cruise control cable so it never can pull too much on the throttle valve. Maybe the CC company had a bunch of Honda owners not realize this and damage their car or the unit and they got tired of giving refunds for it.

I first put the unit in the engine compartment, but then the pull cable always seemed to be in the way when I was tinkering with/adjusting the carburetor, so i connected it to pull on the throttle cable just above the gas pedal and I mounted the CC unit up under the glove box. It does make clicking and tapping noises as it adjusts speed but I don't mind.

If you want to mount the unit in the engine bay, you'd just need to have the CC cable pulling from the same point as your throttle cable pulls from or you might need to make a little bracket and make it pull from the valve cover. There are lots of little throttle adapting cables and brackets in the the kit so if you have some mechanical creativity you'd be able to figure something out that would work- just remember to measure it all out and add that extra slack in so it can't pull too hard.

You should be able to find a vacuum reservior on 1970-1985 chevy trucks and cars. It looks like a smooth round black softball mounted on a fender or on the firewall. You will also need a 1 way vacuum valve- its about the size of 3 or 4 lifesavers still wrapped together and it will have 2-3 vacuum hoses coming off of it- just be sure you can blow in one end but it doesn't let you blow through the other way (so that it is one way only).

It will make it easier since you have a 5 speed trans. You can use either the VSS or the tach signal from the ignition coil to tell the CC unit what speed or rpm you are going, but you don't need both. My coil has 4 wires (2 connecters) going to it. 3 small wires and 1 thicker one. The tach signal wire is the small wire that is paired with the thick wire- that's the one I tapped in to.

I put the same model of CC unit on a guy's truck about 2 years ago and he is very happy with it.

There are lots of little sensitivity settings/adjustments that you can do on it to get it working like you want.

[T.P.]

I installed the same kit myself about 4 years ago onto a nissan nx. Good kit, lots of info about installing it on the internet as well. Good luck and have fun!

[Lug_Nut]

I put mine on my 1969 SAAB Sonett (pre-EPA fuel ratings otherwise I'd have it in the garage). I originally had the cruise cable in parallel with the throttle cable and connected to the throttle plate, but driving with one (or the other) put slack in the other cable and it would tend to jump off the pivot pulley the carb uses. I have since connected the cruise to the accelerator pedal to pull it down. Works great, even though pulling all that linkage and having no vacuum reservoir.
The SAAB's freewheeling transmission does confuse the logic when going downhill. The cruise tries to close the throttle (which it does), but the freewheel doesn't slow the car. The logic 'thinks' it has failed and stops controlling the engine speed. I have to hit "resume" at the bottom of the hill to wake it up again.
Well worth the $100 I paid years ago. Easy installation and has worked safely and consistently.

[seeodywhy]

I have the cruise control kit for my HF VX. I went to the junkyard and got the check valve and vacuum canister. That is where I am confused. Do i put a T on it and put the canister between the servo and the vacuum source. And where do the check valves go.

[GasSavers_Erik]

The check valve goes on the vaccum hose coming from the engine (oriented so that you can only blow air toward the intake manifold), then the T, then the vacuum canister on one side of the T and the CC unit on the other side of the T.

A month ago, I helped my BIL put the same brand/model of CC unit on his 97 corolla (1.6 liter auto trans) and he is doing fine without a vacuum reservoir.

[seeodywhy]

Thanks, I appreciate the advice.

[deschlong]

There are a number of DIYs available for retrofitting your Civic with the OEM cruise control setup. Here's a link to mine, another, and another.