I've searched and found a few previous messages about this topic but would appreciate the list's help so that I can gain good perspective. I have a 2006 white VFR and am planning to head around Lake Michigan in early September. I've done this trip before on a '97 VFR and had a great time.
Before I leave, however, I'd like to add a throttle lock/cruise. I had a Vista Cruise on my '97 VFR; my ST1300 had a Brakeaway Cruise which I preferred a bit more. However, the Brakeaway product took away a bit of grip space and I'm wondering if it would be a little too big for the grips on the VFR. Does anyone have experience with the Brakeaway cruise on a 6th generation VFR? Does your hand still fit okay?
Secondly, if I go with the Vista cruise, is there anything I should know about the installation? Does it create any hassles? (I remember my '97 needed some modification of the handgrip.)
Finally, what about electronic cruise systems? I've looked at the MC Cruise (www.mccruise.com) - - - it looks pricey but I wonder if it's worth it. Does anyone have this installed? Where did you put the controls? Would you pay $500+ again for the system?
Also, what about the Audiovox system? Does anyone know if that works well with the '06? Is it a good thing to use?
Finally, what about electronic cruise systems? I've looked at the MC Cruise (www.mccruise.com) - - - it looks pricey but I wonder if it's worth it. Does anyone have this installed? Where did you put the controls? Would you pay $500+ again for the system?
The MC Cruise is a nice option, but a Audiovox CCS-100 a lot cheaper. Pretty easy to install, you just need to fab-up some of your own piece to get the linkage hooked up to the throttle bodies. I've had mine for about 9 months now and it works great. The only problem with the Audiovox is that it's been discontinued, so good luck finding one (this is one on ebay right now). If you do get one, do a google search and you'll find some installation instructions for a FJR, Concours, and a Mazda Miata.
Vista Cruise Throttle lock works great (as long as its somewhat flat) In FL i've gone 50 miles and never touched the throttle. It's nice when you need to take a break for a few minutes.
The TM is a good, quality piece of work. Can be adjusted while set and I personally like it. However, it is on the pricey side and I believe that the happiest bunch are the ones that believe that they are getting the best bang for the buck, and that is the vista cruise.
BOBINOTTAWA, Jul 24 2006, 08:19 AM The TM is a good, quality piece of work. Can be adjusted while set and I personally like it. However, it is on the pricey side and I believe that the happiest bunch are the ones that believe that they are getting the best bang for the buck, and that is the vista cruise.
Do people generally use the 7/8" Vista cruise for dual throttle or the universal 7/8" model? I wondered if the universal model would be less likely to need extensive mods to keep it from hitting the gas tank, faring, etc.
NYMBYSS, Jul 25 2006, 07:34 PM i would get throttlemeister less $$$ and no wiring and mess easy to use as well.
Can you describe how the TM works? I've had a Vista Cruise and a Brakeaway system but have never seen the TM. Is it difficult to engage while driving?
How about the many minute adjustments which are necessary while driving down the road? Does the TM allow these easily?
Finally, what about cancelling it? Can you release it quickly, without thinking?
I'm sorry if these questions are redundant - - - I can't quite picture the actual operation of it from the online description. Any insights are appreciated.
I like the look of the TM - - - it appears to be a very high quality product. It would also be nice to not have to worry about it hitting the gastank, like the VC is reported to do.
musicmd, Jul 26 2006, 11:30 AM Can you describe how the TM works? I've had a Vista Cruise and a Brakeaway system but have never seen the TM. Is it difficult to engage while driving?
How about the many minute adjustments which are necessary while driving down the road? Does the TM allow these easily?
Finally, what about cancelling it? Can you release it quickly, without thinking?
I'm sorry if these questions are redundant - - - I can't quite picture the actual operation of it from the online description. Any insights are appreciated.
I like the look of the TM - - - it appears to be a very high quality product. It would also be nice to not have to worry about it hitting the gastank, like the VC is reported to do.
Mark
+1.gif another TM vote. It's also nice and heavy to reduce vibrations. Imagine a left-hand threaded bar end that tightens down on the throttle tube. As you roll the throttle on, you do it with your hand further out to the right, and it tightens. You can have it as tight as you want, so you can still make throttle adjustments. It's essentially infinitely adjustable. If you need to chop the throttle, you can still do it if you don't have the TM fully tightened, or you can roll off the throttle with you hand out to the right to loosen the TM at the same time. I never ride with it fully tightened--just slightly more than enough to counteract the throttle return spring, so it make the minute adjustments really easy.
You won't be disappointed in the product. It is a little hard to explain how easily the TM engages and disengages. A little twist tightens the the friction but never to the point that throttle can't be quickly closed. Twist forward while closing throttle during traffic or approaching stop returns the throttle to normal operation. Electronic cruise would be nicer but IMO not worth the price. The only time i desire electronic is when following someone with electronic but the 30 seconds necessary to adjust to their speed is virtually a non-issue. It's not like I have anything else to do at that moment.
awlittle, Jul 26 2006, 11:51 AM You won't be disappointed in the product. It is a little hard to explain how easily the TM engages and disengages. A little twist tightens the the friction but never to the point that throttle can't be quickly closed. Twist forward while closing throttle during traffic or approaching stop returns the throttle to normal operation. Electronic cruise would be nicer but IMO not worth the price. The only time i desire electronic is when following someone with electronic but the 30 seconds necessary to adjust to their speed is virtually a non-issue. It's not like I have anything else to do at that moment.
Upon consideration of all the great input I received, I went ahead and bought the heavy Throttlemeister in polished chrome. I got it from California Sport Touring for about $140, including shipping. Great product, very easy to install and looks wonderful. I thought about the black finish rather than chrome but heard that chrome is by far the most popular finish and know it would look good no matter which finish I bought.
It took me a few tries to get the hand of how it works, especially with engaging. You don't have to twist the VFR throttle that far to get a vigorous response, however, the TM requires at least 1/4 turn to have any effect at all. So, grabbing both the TM and throttle and twisting would bring me to redline before the TM started to engage. Rather, I found that finding a place to coast while I reached out and engaged the TM alone worked best. Once I got the right amount of resistance, the throttle truly locks in position and it was very easy to make adjustments while having a very steady lock on the throttle. All in all, it works beautifully and will take me no time to get really comfortable with it.
Taking the TM off was easy. In fact, this was something which made sense from the start. A small twist as I close the throttle completely released the TM. Any concerns I had about have to fiddle with the TM to get it to release quickly went out the window. It works perfectly in that regard.
Above all, I think this was the best option for me. Certainly, an electronic CC would be wonderful, but I didn't have the time to devote to the install before my trip around Lake Michigan next month. (My fiancee and I are in the process of selling two homes and moving into our new place!). I didn't like the idea that the Vista Cruise might scratch the tank and didn't want to do a lot of modification (my Dremel tool is already packed!).
For appearance, design, quality and ease of use, the TM was the best choice for me. I'm sure I'll love having it as we ride the backroads of Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota.
Thanks, everyone, for your help. I can post pics of the heavy chrome TM on a white VFR if anyone is interested.
NYMBYSS, Jul 25 2006, 06:34 PM i would get throttlemeister less $$$ and no wiring and mess easy to use as well.
Listen to the man. No wires. No fru fru with the throttle linkage.
Nothing to break in the middle of the night 286 miles west northwest of BFE nowhere while it is raining cats and fleas because the dogs have already drowned.
If the thing falls off the bike you can still go. I have never had one fall off but I suppose it is possible.
Adding fru fru to the throttle and wiring seems to be asking for trouble.
A lot of guys on the Concours group use the Cat O-Ring. I have never heard of a failure with that either. Sometimes they get lost or stolen but most of the guys carry a spare or two.
I put a AudioVox Cruise Control in my 2002 VFR. I basically followed the methods describe in the FJR1300 newsgroup to do the install. I don't remember there being any VFR install pages when I did the install in winter 2003/2004.
The system works alright. It took me a while to figure out where to get the different signals from. The tach signal comes from one of the wires on the front left coil-on-plug wire. I pull the speed signal from the TDK speed pick-up. It is almost out of range (8,000 ppm) of the cruise control at highway speed. It actually sends out something like 6 or 12 pulses per rear wheel turn.
I (stupidly) hooked-up the vacuum line to the 4-way vacuum spider which feeds the Mass Airflow Sensor. I say stupidly, because I think it is causing the sensor to send bogus signals when the vacuum is charging in the reservoir. It has been like this for about 40,000 miles, but I'm going to move it over to one of the other vacuum lines (which are only feed by 2 vac ports each) this fall or winter. I don't know if my VFR surge is caused by this or something else on the bike.
I fashioned a bracket to hold the controller and mounted to the top clutch reservoir bolt. I waterproofed the switch according to the FJR dude's page (really really important to get it right).
I made a PCV vac reserervoir and placed it on the bottom left side of the front cowl, behind the turn signal. The vacuum servo is mounted just to the outside and above the reservoir. I'll get some photos posted the next time I have the skins off.
So how does it work?
Usually okay. Sometime it looses speed on up hills. Overcoming the throttle return springs with very little leverage (my homemade lever connecting the CC cable to the throttle body is short, although long as possible given the cramped space around the air box).
I'm going to tweak it more this winter. But I think that it is important enough of a feature that I'm going to almost demand that my next bike come with one (so I'm looking at R1200RTs biggrin.gif ). I've used NEP throttle locks in the past. They are great, until a hill, or a car passes you and they suck you along until you ride on their bumper... unlock throttle lock... adjust speed... lock... repeat...
Being the village contrarian, I would think cruise control and VFR would be an oxymoron. My VFR has probably never been more than 20 miles in a straight line in it's existence. I have another bike with a factory cruise control for that kind of stuff.
The best answer to having cruise control is to have two bikes. Money is for the purpose of buying and collecting toys. Food is only to continue to exist, and housing is for those not satisfied with a cheap tent.
Yeah, it's been a long hard day at work. That's my excuse for the day.
I always wondered about cruise control on motorcycles... never really hear about it, and I thought maybe it was considered dangerous or something? But I think it's a great idea... I commute to work, takes over an hour, and lots of highway riding... cruise control would great!
I was looking at veefer800canuck's pic's just there, but don't really know what I'm looking for... where are the controls mounted? and what's that flap thing on the throttle? never seen that before... or is that the control? surely not!
I've had the vista cruise on my '04 for about 3 months and absolutely love it. It was on the expensive side for an add-on but worth it for a lazy bum like me. The installation was really no problem, especially with the instructions that come with the unit. I guess it took me about 5-6 hours like canuck said but that is one of the parts I enjoyed... getting intimate with my vfr is always a joy. huh.gif
riot grrrl, the controls are mounted on the left bar under the horn button. Which may be the only problem I've had... reach for the "Set" button with my thumb and hit the horn instead. As for the controls hitting the tank, I've never had a problem with that. Just bend the bracket back a little and 'ta-daaaa' problem solved.
I was looking at veefer800canuck's pic's just there, but don't really know what I'm looking for... where are the controls mounted? and what's that flap thing on the throttle? never seen that before... or is that the control? surely not!
LOL
Control pad is on the LH bar, below the switchgear.
It's got SET, ACCEL, RESUME, CANCEL, all of the features normally found on cars. And if you hit the brakes or pull in the clutch, the cruise disengages.
Bent, Aug 1 2006, 06:18 PM Being the village contrarian, I would think cruise control and VFR would be an oxymoron. My VFR has probably never been more than 20 miles in a straight line in it's existence. I have another bike with a factory cruise control for that kind of stuff.
The best answer to having cruise control is to have two bikes. Money is for the purpose of buying and collecting toys. Food is only to continue to exist, and housing is for those not satisfied with a cheap tent.
Yeah, it's been a long hard day at work. That's my excuse for the day.
Great if you live near the twisties.
For me, it'a a full day's ride to get even near any good roads. pissed.gif
smile.gif After seeing how nice the MCcruise worked for veefer800canuck's bike, it got me thinking about cruise control systems. Since I'm a bit of a cheap bastard, I concluded that the MCcruise wasn't in my budget and that I would have to make do with a TM instead. However, the threads about the Audiovox system really got me interested, and I did some digging on the 'net. Looks to be a pretty straightforward install for any do-it-yourselfer with a manual and some tools. Bought an Audiovox CCS-100 on EvilBay for about $130 USD including shipping. I figure for roughly the same price as the TM, why not have the real deal and use a REAL cruise control? I'll be going on an excursion to B.C. in the end of August, but don't anticipate getting it installed before then. There are too many other things to tackle - bike could use a coolant flush and needs a re-assembly after getting spiffy blue paintjob. It will likely be a fall / winter project. I plan on doing a full write-up on the install if no-one else does one first. VFRDave, do you mind helping me out if I get stuck? I might need some help picking out the right harness wires, and I am curious to know which vacuum line to hook up to. Has anyone else installed this on a VTEC?
Q-Dawg, Aug 6 2006, 12:20 PMBought an Audiovox CCS-100 on EvilBay for about $130 USD including shipping... VFRDave, do you mind helping me out if I get stuck? I might need some help picking out the right harness wires, and I am curious to know which vacuum line to hook up to. Has anyone else installed this on a VTEC?
Maybe.
MFP-2241, Jul 22 2006, 10:35 PMThe MC Cruise is a nice option, but a Audiovox CCS-100 a lot cheaper....I've had mine for about 9 months now and it works great.
Cruise control on a motorcycles is like a lot of things in life.......you have no idea how good it is until you try it. My first bike wirth factory cruise was a BMW K1200RS.....I went on a few +5000 mile trips and although I thought CC was rediculous when I first bought the bike, after the first few days of a long trip it became a "must have"! I totalled that bike and really broke up my right wrist, so now cruise control for long distance is a REAL must have. This past summer I did over 20,000 miles on a CC equiped Suzuki V Strom including a trip from New England to Alaska. I never could have done that trip so soon from the last accident without CC. I just ordered two Audiovox CC100s from Amazon ($89.00) and will install one on the VFR and the other on my Ducati ST3. There is a complete write up on how to install these cruise controls on my web page www.rvbprecision.com
Enjoy!
End of thread · 30 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 2 Nov 2006