Cruise control switch keeps getting fried
08-24-2016, 04:50 PM
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Cruise control switch keeps getting fried
A couple of years ago my cruise control just stopped working. It wouldn't turn on at all. Being grossly underpaid at the time, I dealt with it. Last December I brought the Jeep to the dealer to get the dreaded "sand blocking the heater core" diagnosis and hoping I could get it covered under the powertrain warranty (NOPE!) and figured I'd let them diagnose the cruise problem. DTCs indicated a bad switch, so I bought a new one and a couple of weeks later got around to replacing it. It worked on a neighborhood test drive, but the next time I tried to use it the "CRUISE" light turned on for a second, then off. After that, nothing.
Fast forward to last week, I got the factory service manual and figured I'd test the original switch since I kept it. Sure enough, the resistance was out of spec (high) between pins 14/15 with On/Off button pressed. So I bought another switch and tested it in the parking lot to make sure it wasn't DOA (it's a long drive to the dealer). It passed. Installed, took a slightly longer test drive, shut the Jeep down at the halfway point and let it sit before driving home...worked great. I was super stoked because I had about 2,000 miles of highway driving set to start Monday. Well, that morning I used cruise on the way to the gas station, then after leaving and getting on the highway the CRUISE light turned on then fizzled and went out. Dead again.
So something in my Jeep is killing these things. Clock spring? Wheel sensor? Headlight switch? I haven't had any ABS lights, horn problems, stereo control problems (no uconnect), and I don't have any wiring diagrams so nothing to help point me in the right direction. Any suggestions? I don't want to keep throwing $60 parts (headlight switch, cruise switch) or more (clock spring) at the problem if there's a way to actually diagnose it.
Fast forward to last week, I got the factory service manual and figured I'd test the original switch since I kept it. Sure enough, the resistance was out of spec (high) between pins 14/15 with On/Off button pressed. So I bought another switch and tested it in the parking lot to make sure it wasn't DOA (it's a long drive to the dealer). It passed. Installed, took a slightly longer test drive, shut the Jeep down at the halfway point and let it sit before driving home...worked great. I was super stoked because I had about 2,000 miles of highway driving set to start Monday. Well, that morning I used cruise on the way to the gas station, then after leaving and getting on the highway the CRUISE light turned on then fizzled and went out. Dead again.
So something in my Jeep is killing these things. Clock spring? Wheel sensor? Headlight switch? I haven't had any ABS lights, horn problems, stereo control problems (no uconnect), and I don't have any wiring diagrams so nothing to help point me in the right direction. Any suggestions? I don't want to keep throwing $60 parts (headlight switch, cruise switch) or more (clock spring) at the problem if there's a way to actually diagnose it.
08-24-2016, 04:56 PM
#2
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No ideas on why it keeps dying on you but check for a warranty on the part- most are 12mo/ 12k miles but it seems at some date they switched to 24mo/ 24k miles.
08-29-2016, 07:23 PM
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That is great, thanks!
Oddly enough, this switch appears to work about 2/3 of the time. I can't figure out why it's intermittent, but it either works or not...it doesn't quit while in-use. I have no idea what's going on, but I'm keeping that diagram for if/when it dies like the others.
Oddly enough, this switch appears to work about 2/3 of the time. I can't figure out why it's intermittent, but it either works or not...it doesn't quit while in-use. I have no idea what's going on, but I'm keeping that diagram for if/when it dies like the others.