Cruise control

So I'm fairly new to most of the tech in my new ride, so maybe this is common. I had cruise on at about 60 mph on the highway. There was a frost heave in the highway, but I figured I just got a "off road" truck so the suspension should handle it so I left the cruise on. When I hit it the cruise cut out for like 5 seconds, then sped back up to speed. This was not that bad of a frost heave, I'm not sure my wheels even left the pavement.

Is this normal for these trucks or should I take it back to the dealer? This thing only had like 200 miles on it. I know they have sensors in the front end but I was the only vehicle on the road.

 

I’ve never heard of “frost heave,” what is it?

 

It probably sensed wheel slip, engaged traction control, then re-engaged the cruise and sped up.

 

Huh? 99.9% of the people in the US don't know wtf a "frost heave" is.

 

If the cruise stayed on, no wheel slip/ traction control happened. Probably just slowed down due to increased drag, did the truck downshift?

 

A frost heave is where there is a sub base failure under the road. The road generally sinks in a foot or so across the whole thing and is from a few feet to a mile in length. Think of a speed bump only sinking in instead of bulging up. This one was like a inverted speed bump that was about 4 feet wide and about 9 inches to a foot deep. We get them because of the permafrost in the ground.

 

Manual transmission. Shocks compressed then went to full extension but I don't think tires left the ground.

 

How sensitive are these sensors? If the front end suddenly dipped, would they see the other side as a obstacle and try to stop me?

 

So u went "downhill" then the truck noticed it didn't need more throttle, leveled out, then reapplied throttle? Sound like that's what happened? If tss noticed something, it wouldn't put the cruise back on, only off.

 

Kind of, truck basically dropped 9 inches, went forward about 4 feet, and then up 9 inches, while at 60 mph. By the time the cruise applied throttle I was doing about 45 mph. I know I felt the front shocks bottom out, that surprised me on a TRD OR. My soon to be ex wife takes the same frost heave at like 70 or 75 in her Nissan Juke. Although her juke does get a little air and occasionally bottoms out.

 

That sounds pretty exceptional to me. You took the truck over a 4 foot long 1 foot deep pothole at 60 and it barely even noticed. My dad totalled a Chevelle doing something similar.

Also the off road's bilsteins are worthless imo.

 

It's the main highway. Everybody gets a little air sometimes. It is how i broke the shock mount in my ford f350. If you slow down for frost heaves you will never get anywhere on time. Just life here. I'm just trying to figure out if this is normal because of the sensors or if something is loose or poorly connected.

 

If one tire span faster than the other 3 it will engage traction control, killing power. The cruise system will wait for a green light and engage when it's acceptable.

 

Thanks Bishop84. One of the tires must have left pavement.

 

We have frost heaves in Alberta but nothing like Alaska, you also have a fuck ton of moose on your highways haha. I'll take a heave over a moose!

 

People got to eat something. Every moose that gets hit by a vehicle goes straight to the food bank. Our homeless people are kind of spoiled, fresh moose all the time.

 

If you freaked it out or it had a lose connection I'm confident it would let you know. Even heavy rain will make it shut off.
It sounds like the same as when you press the clutch. it lets of the throttle for a few seconds then re-applies. I'm guessing a wheel left the ground and it sensed it as a neutral condition.

 

The first few posts made me chuckle.. “wtf is a frost heave??” Haha. Then I look at the location and see CA. Spend a winter in the north and you’d be quite versed. The potholes in VT are so bad right now that on one street people have made a path around them in the grass next to the road.

 

Amazing the tech they put in these things. Think my new ride might be smarter than me. Well, I can live without cruise control.

 

Out of curiosity, any of you northern guys using a master switch on your battery? I leave my ride at a trailhead for a month or two in the winter while out at the cabin trapping, wondering if I need to with all the electronics in it draining the battery. 40 below and a slow power draw equals no ride back to town.