L400 Rostra Cruise Control

monnomania · Post by **monnomania** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 12:43 pm

Hola
I have had a few folks ask me about the cruise control installation.

Note 1: it is a Rostra UNIVERSAL cruise control; it is an electronic module and NOT a vaccuum control pack
Note 2: L400 3L V6 Gasser so might not be so fun for the diesel powered folks.

The mounting of the electronic module went under the bonnet, next to the airbox up under the overhang. The supplied mounting bracket was modified - cut - removing about 8cm off (left 2 holes in the mounting bracket) to permit bolting into position. Take care to bend/shape the bracket to permit the bracket and module to be out of the eliptical movement of the windshield washer transmission.

Wiring harness passed along the length of the firewall behind all the tubes and wires to the firewall hole in the footwell of the passenger (left) side. Wiring then follows inside the firewall to the steering column. There is plenty of wire in the harness and it is nice to have a convenient way to deal with all the excess wire.

Wires: Brake hot and cold are easy to find with a circuit tester. TACH wire and Speed Sensor wire connected BEHIND the instrument cluster. When you remove the instrument cluster, you will see on the back side symbols TA (tachometer) and SP (speed). Using 16GA round ended wire clip you can screw the Tach and Speed wires to the back of the instrument cluster.

Ground is done inside the engine compartment at a convenient place. Power is clipped into the fusebox at a KEY ON live source.

The cruise control switch mounted on the steering column below and forward of the gear shift and windshield wiper stalks to ensure clearance.

Throttle Cable Connection:
The cruise control cable is connected to the throttle cable with the WIRE LOOP connector. Because, also, there is MORE than 41mm of throttle movement i could attach the cruise cable to the throttle cable direct with the bead connector (ie no other beads for lengthing necessary). The bead connector is ziptied to the throttle cable to keep it inline and not bound up.

Furthermore the cruise control cable is placed in line by a modified cruise control cable mounting bracket supplied with the kit. I cut the mounting bracket to ONE bolthole and the SQUARE slot to permit clipping in the supplied clip. The one bolthole side of the mounting bracket is connected to the passing cable kickdown mount. see pics

DIP SWITCHES
there are three important switches to consider when following the switching pattern of the instructions. i used:
1 - 4000 pulses per minute
2- increased "sensitivity" to high to permit more sensitive advancing of the throttle and thus giving a more smooth transition in throttle and transmission shifting.
3- on dip switch manages the type of cruise control stalk and if it is incorrect it does NOT read the instructions. I cannot remember the proper position...but if you have no cruise control switch the stupid thing to the other side. it is a 50-50 chance!

Good luck

about three hours and a 6 pack

monnomania · Post by **monnomania** » Fri Feb 10, 2012 5:44 pm

PS, it just occurred to me that this cruise should work for the Diesel models as well as all the electric inputs for the cruise control come from the dash (speedo and tach) and not from the motor.

Good luck

Mr. Flibble · Post by **Mr. Flibble** » Thu Apr 26, 2012 12:22 pm

monnomania wrote:PS, it just occurred to me that this cruise should work for the Diesel models as well as all the electric inputs for the cruise control come from the dash (speedo and tach) and not from the motor.

Good luck

Wonder if the lower RPM's of a Diesel would change things?

monnomania · Post by **monnomania** » Wed May 02, 2012 11:46 pm

If I recall correctly the control unit 'dip switches' offered different rpm levels to choose from thus giving some flexibility.

In the case of the v6 I cruise between 2000 and 2500 rpm with steep climbs causing a jump to 3000 rpm.

doodah · Post by **doodah** » Thu May 03, 2012 9:54 am

I'm very intrigued by these.... Anyone installed cruise on their L400 diesels?

I'd love to have one on my 96 Jasper for those long drives across the prairies and southern US states....

Post by **nxski** » Thu May 03, 2012 9:59 am

doodah wrote:I'm very intrigued by these.... Anyone installed cruise on their L400 diesels?

I'd love to have one on my 96 Jasper for those long drives across the prairies and southern US states....

If you're on a flat and want to make things simple, a manual throttle control will allow you to cruise at a set speed.

doodah · Post by **doodah** » Mon Aug 20, 2012 8:25 am

Okay, anybody know where one can get a cruise control installed in the lower mainland?

I'm also interested in a large sunroof (or two) being installed.

doodah · Post by **doodah** » Sun Aug 26, 2012 6:22 pm

Surely, someone must have had this done? Help?

izack98 · Post by **izack98** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 12:02 am

Just reviving this thread in an attempt to get some more information. Has anyone successfully installed a cruise control in their L400 with a Diesel engine? Or if they have one already installed can they provide me with the make & model #.
From what I have managed to gather from the UK site. Some owners have had success with installing the Rostra 250-1223 with the 250-3743 control stalk on the right side of the steering wheel. As I understand it the issue some have had is the signal from the VSS wire. Some say they can't get it to work, and some have had success with tapping into it instead of using the magnets strapped around the driveshaft. I'd prefer not to go with the magnets.
I installed this Rostra system on my 2002 Toyota Tacoma several years ago and it worked fine.
I contacted the guys at Autron (Aussie owners indicate they make good system). They require me to take some voltage measurements, if those match their previous readings from L400's they said they could probably provide me with a system. But that system is about $750+. I'm looking for something cheaper.

Has anyone had success with any cruise control installs? Any tips?

Firesong · Post by **Firesong** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 9:41 am

I remember reading on the Aussie site that people are putting then into their units with success. It was a bit ago so I can't really say more. I'd do a search but tapatalk doesn't search the forums.

I don't believe they were using magnets.

izack98 · Post by **izack98** » Tue Aug 27, 2013 6:29 pm

Yes, I read that too. But there were also some guys on the Aussie forum that said they couldn't get it to work as the VSS doesn't output enough of a signal or something to that effect. So they ended up using magnets and said it worked great. I don't like the idea of magnets.
Seemed to be about 60/40 that got them to work with VSS. I am going to try. Just wondered if anyone had any success and had some tips.

pj_jazzy_janz · Post by **pj_jazzy_janz** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 8:40 am

Hey izack,

Any luck with your cruise? That will be one of the first things we'll want on ours as we drive it home from Vancouver to the snowy wastes of Manitoba this summer (the wastes aren't quite as snowy in summer, but if the steretype fits...)

Has anyone else put cruise on an L400 yet?

izack98 · Post by **izack98** » Sat Jun 06, 2015 4:39 pm

Hey pj, no I haven't had a chance to pursue this further. Just too many other priorities.
I have decided though, that I won't be going with the cruise from Autron as it's just too much money.
I agree, it would be nice to have cruise control.

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