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[hotel21]

Fitting cruise to a pre facelift.
Part numbers are:

Clutch switch 90458543 to chassis S1221920
Clutch pedal switch 90494519 after S chassis
Water pump bracket (cruise) 90469353 (not really the right part)
E-clip for cruise cable 11051532 (come in pack of 10)
Brake switch for cruise 9149766

Basic hand spanners and socket set as well as a cross head screwdriver are about all the tools you need.   The electrical wiring should already be in place.  

You will need to obtain a control stalk, actuator motor, mounting box, the control cable and the metal carrier end on the cable if your car does not have the additional hole for the cruise cable.  The standard ‘kit’ you find on E-bay looks like this.



The control stalk should look like this.



Note the extra buttons to I increase or set, R resume and switch O off the cruise.   Sometimes a brake switch is included in these assorted kits but not always.

You need to get the combined motor/control unit which is fitted under the bonnet, connect the cable coming from the motor to the throttle housing, then install the replacement stalk, and fit a new 4-pin brake switch (not always necessary, depends on your car) and a clutch switch.  


Wiring location

Normally on the offside turret top, plugged into a holder.





Fitting the control stalk    

Remove the control stalk cowling.   It's in two halves, separated horizontally.  The bottom half is secured to the car with 3 crossheads in triangle pattern underneath, the top half is secured to the bottom half with two crossheads on front face.   Screws are under plastic covers, not visible until steering wheel turned through 90 degrees to the left and right.  No need to remove the steering wheel as instructed by the Haynes manual.  The steering column adjuster stalk on the left side of the column unscrews to allow removal of bottom half casing.

Stalk and switch body slides out after pressing in side retaining clips.   Wiring plug held in with grey slide.   Remove slide and release plug.

Fit replacement stalk which has one extra little plug on a flying lead.  The additional socket is tucked away beside main socket.   Fit retaining slide and slide main switch body back in until it locates.

Re-fit cowling. Getting the rubber boots to locate properly can be a bit fiddly so take care.

Pedal switches

Access to the pedal switches can be achieved after the large foam sheet thing is removed.  The black plastic holding plugs need a quarter turn anticlockwise to remove.

Brake switches    There are two types.  

A 2 pin looks like this – VX part number 90460325 for petrol models (90458542/90563455 for diesel)



and



but for cruise operation, you will need a 4 pin switch – VX part number xzxzxzxzxz - irrespective of whether you drive a manual or an auto.  Some cars have a 4 pin switch as standard.  If you do, congrats!!   CAUTION - On all switches, there is a red plastic part that moves.  Check out the two pictures above.   This is like a locking mechanism which prevents the release of the locking tangs to allow the switch to be removed.   Take a look at the switches when in place and you will see similar.   These need to be moved outwards, away from the switch body, to allow the switch to be removed.   If you don't, the switch may well break and you will be far worse off.

Note the largish cylindrical bit nearest the connection.   If it looks like this, you are lucky, do nowt else in this area, other than the clutch switch, if manual.    It looks like this when in place.




Clutch switch wiring

The clutch switch wiring is normally taped up next to the brake wiring loom.   Its a white connector and two of the opposite corners of the plug are  'chamfered'.   This corresponds with the connection on the clutch switch.   When in place, it looks like this with the wiring connector beneath the bottom of the switch.



If you are fitting brand new switches ('cos the clutch switch is not fitted as standard and is as rare as rocking horse poo at the scrappies) then take care not to play with them before fitting.

CAUTION - There is a green plastic keeper fitted from the factory to prevent the depression of the switch prior to fitment.   Once removed there is a sort of ratchet mechanism in the switch so that, on first depression, it assumes a 'working' position.   If you play with it before fitting and do this early, it is an absolute bu**er to locate as the moving plastic bit (as in the two pin switch) moves, preventing the depression of the locking tangs.   Ask me how I know....

Brake switch fitting   

The brake switch locates in the furthest away (highest) of the two square cut outs on the brake

[hotel21]

Actuator Unit location

There are three threaded bolts projecting into the engine bay on the engine side of the strut top.   This is where the actuator unit will be bolted.

If like me you have an auxiliary circulation pump as part of your climate control system, there will be a pump holder bracket already bolted into place and two large black hoses which form part of the cooling system.  If you dont, you won't, and the three studs will be bare.   The holder looks like this.





Note there is a lot of slack in the hoses - they can be moved a fair bit!!



If you have this auxiliary pump, you will also need to obtain the pump holder for cruise enabled cars  - VX part number 90469353.

You then need to measure and drill two (8mm?) holes in the cruise actuator bracket.  Check out the finished photograph of mine to get a general location.  There is a lot of slack in the hoses so its not too crucial to get the exactly correct location.  It is held in place by a couple of circlips.  I used spring washers between the rubber and metal brackets to stiffen it up a little.  



The actuator cable is routed upwards on the same side as the electrical plug goes into.  Its top right in this image.



It runs across the rear of the EGR valve into the bracket that the throttle cable passes through.



In order to connect it to the throttle body, you must first remove the existing cable.

If you check this image out, you will see the spring clip has been popped up, prior to moving it backwards towards the windscreen to remove.  You also see the cruise actuator cable held by a circlip.



Prise out the spring clip from the ball end of the cable then slide the pin free.  Once that is out, the ball end can be popped free from the throttle body.

This is what the circlip looks like to help you figure out how it works.



Align the cables like this and then place onto the throttle body pin.



Its not essential to use a circlip to hold the cruise cable in place but its preferred.

Put the throttle cable ball end back in place and resecure with the clip.

Finished connection looks like this.




Basically, that’s it!!

Provided you have fitted and wired in :
•      A 4 pin brake switch
•      A 2 pin clutch switch (if needed)
•      A cruise control module
•      An actuator stalk
•      And attached the actuator cable to the throttle body

there is no reason why it will not work.  

Should not engage below about 19 mph and disengage when either the control buttons are pressed, the brake pedal or clutch pedal is depressed.

If you have never used cruise before, pick a quiet road to practice on.  You switch it on with the outwards nipple on the control stalk.  You can increase speed with the accelerator pedal and when you lift your foot from the accelerator pedal, speed will drop to the last speed set.  As soon as you touch the brake or clutch pedals, it should switch off.  If you then touch the button with the inward depression, it will resume the last set speed, provided you have not switched off the ignition and restarted the car in the interim.  Touching the large button beneath will disconnect the cruise.  Press and hold the outward button and speed will increase in stages.  Release the button to hold this new speed.  If you accelerate by use of the pedal, touch this button when at your new speed and it will keep at that new speed until you do something else.....

Cheers!!

NOTE - The 2.5 TD Diesel is a drive by wire system (no throttle cable) so its the engine ecu that controls the diesel pump electronically.   It uses a BMW management unit and a set of resistors to signal which button is being pressed on the cruise stalk and hence the stalk is different to a standard Vauxhall one (and why there ares only 2 wires).     Facelift models need only the actuator stalk and (sometimes) the pedal switches.  And also need setting by Tech2 whilst prefacelifts (and mini facelifts like mine) do not.