Anyone help, cruise control prolems

[grancpe]

I have a 95 camry wagon and the cruise control doesn't work. It will surge and let off the throttle trying to find the correct speed. This seems to happen at all speeds. It is NOT vacuum controled. Anyone have a clue. Thanks.

[toyomoho]

Does this car have a cruise control light on the instrument cluster? If so, do this light blink when the cruise control is malfunctioning and does the cruise control turn off? If is does, a trouble code might be stored in the ECU for later readout. If the light blinks the problem could be one of the following: Cruise control actuator, speed sensor on trans, throttle position sensor, a problem with the transmission.

If the cruise control stays on and light does not blink, it could be the actuator control cable is not adjusted correctly or the cruise control ECU. The cable goes form the large black box next to the battery and the throttle valve.

[Dave's]

Some cruise controls have a box with a wheel being turned by the cable. A sensor reads the speed of the wheel (which has holes or metal strips etc.). The wheel can get dirty or the sensor or circuitry becomes faulty, (broken solder joint, perhaps).

[Ruchi]

With my 93 LE, the cruise rarely will work for more than a few minutes, unless the road is completely flat. The light starts to flash and it disengages. You have to turn the car off and restart the car in order to reset the cruise control to use it again. I've been wondering if this is a simple fix, but nobody has posted anything yet. It's pretty common I believe.

[grancpe]

Thanks for the suggestions, I will check into it and see what happens.

[Dave's]

For those which are vacuum controlled, you may need to add a vacuum canister. Had one which did almost Ruchi's and that's what it took. Going uphill or under heavy acceleration it would lose vacuum and kick off. But it took months to figure it out.

[grancpe]

Thanks I will try that.

[csaxon]

Look for the cruise control actuator next to the battery behind the radiator. The actuator is concealed beneath a cover at the other end of the cable connected to the throttle body. Look for a loose or disconnected connector on the front of the cruise control actuator. Might just be the electrical connector on the cruise control is loose. See if taking the connector off and pushing it back on solves the problem.

One other option is the brake light switch. Pressing the brake disengages the cruise control. The switch maybe loose and need adjusting or may be worn out and needs replacing. If out of adjustment it may short out periodically.