Audiovox or Rostra

[Wistrick]

Wanna add cruise to my 2007 FJR but can't decide if I want to go with CS100 or the Rostra...The Vacuum one about a 100 buck cheaper???..I installed the Rostra on my Tenere and while it worked but not as well as I would have liked....

thoughts

Dan

 

[AuroraTom]

Wanna add cruise to my 2007 FJR but can't decide if I want to go with CS100 or the Rostra...The Vacuum one about a 100 buck cheaper???..I installed the Rostra on my Tenere and while it worked but not as well as I would have liked....
thoughts

Dan

Dan,

I would go with the Audiovox. I just installed one on my 2015 Versys 1000 without any issues. They always seem to work if installed properly and with the correct switch settings. I used magnets on the rear rotor bolts for the speed sensing input but it can also be configured with a pickup from a spark plug coli wire.

I installed a McCruise (High dollar Aussie unit) on my 2004 FJR that was approx. 15 years old and had been removed from a 1998 ST1100 by a previous owner. It was provided to me when I purchased the ST1100 in a cardboard box along with several other removed farkles. That installation was a little more complicated because the unit was not custom made for the FJR. It utilizes a unique design with a cable interface mechanism that makes the throttle connection a little safer. It also uses vacuum to pull the throttle and works well. I understand the newer McCruise units use an electric servo similar to the Rostra. McCruise is also popular because of their excellent customer service before, during and after the sale.

I have no experience with the Rostra but many users seem satisfied. It doesn't require vacuum and seems to be more compact. The only downsides might be slightly higher cost and higher power consumption.

Good luck whatever you decide and please keep us informed.

Tom

 

[mcatrophy]

For what it's worth, I did a CCS100 installation, wrote it up here. Mine was a YCC-S '06, but no significant differences to your '07 A.

Full picture pictorial here.

Worked well after an initial peculiarity, described in the thread, and easily fixed.

 

[wfooshee]

There is a significant difference in the CCS install between '06 and '07, namely the Gen-II brake lights need the isolating relay for the CCS's purple wire almost every time. For some reason the Gen-II brake light wire doesn't go all the way down to zero volts when the brakes are off, and any voltage will keep the cruise from setting.

 

[mcatrophy]

There is a significant difference in the CCS install between '06 and '07, namely the Gen-II brake lights need the isolating relay for the CCS's purple wire almost every time. For some reason the Gen-II brake light wire doesn't go all the way down to zero volts when the brakes are off, and any voltage will keep the cruise from setting.

The wiring diagrams for the '06 and '07 are identical (at least for the UK variants). I didn't need a relay on my '06 or on my '10, both worked equally well.

The brake lights are very low resistance to zero volts, I'd suggest any relay requirement was for some other issue such as a poor ground run to the actuator. Or, possibly the ground return to the brake lights (spider?), but then I'd expect the ABS to complain since it also senses the brake circuit going to zero volts (ok, "zero" could be higher for the ABS than for the CCS100, but not much).

 

[RBEmerson]

FWIW, I installed a CCS100 in my C10 Connie, and currently have one in our '90 Vanagon Westfalia (pop-top camper). Both work(ed) as they should. I used the low voltage side of a spark coil for both, not fiddling with magnets, hall effect sensors, etc. I've had no problems with either installation; the C10 installation lead me to use the CCS100 on the "Westy". One "must have": the added vacuum canister to handle sudden changes in intake vacuum. Figuring out where to hide the canister in a bike frame was challenging. There's plenty of room in the Westy's motor bay.

CCS100? Two thumbs up!

 

[wfooshee]

There is a significant difference in the CCS install between '06 and '07, namely the Gen-II brake lights need the isolating relay for the CCS's purple wire almost every time. For some reason the Gen-II brake light wire doesn't go all the way down to zero volts when the brakes are off, and any voltage will keep the cruise from setting.

The wiring diagrams for the '06 and '07 are identical (at least for the UK variants). I didn't need a relay on my '06 or on my '10, both worked equally well.

The brake lights are very low resistance to zero volts, I'd suggest any relay requirement was for some other issue such as a poor ground run to the actuator. Or, possibly the ground return to the brake lights (spider?), but then I'd expect the ABS to complain since it also senses the brake circuit going to zero volts (ok, "zero" could be higher for the ABS than for the CCS100, but not much).

'07 is completely different wiring on the US models. First year of the Gen-II bikes, with the now-famous ground spiders. Apples and oranges, I guess, between UK and US for 2007.

BTW, my CCS-100 has been on the bike for 11 trouble-free years! Bike's had other issues, but the cruise control has been flawless!

 

[mcatrophy]

...'07 is completely different wiring on the US models. First year of the Gen-II bikes, with the now-famous ground spiders. Apples and oranges, I guess, between UK and US ...

Think you'll find the '06 was the first Gen 2 year in the US as well as for the UK. Check the Comparison Matrix.

 

[RBEmerson]

Installing the CCS-100 on the C10 was fairly simple. Mounting the actuator and vacuum reservoir, routing the wiring, routing the actuator cable all took a bit of "cut and try" but weren't big challenge. The biggest problems were finding a good vacuum source and tying the actuator cable to the throttle arm. mcatrophy's write-ups show it's not close to "easy-peasy" (ironic understatement). If I'd thought adding the CCS-100 (or Rostra) was fairly simple, it might have kept the C14 on my possible replacement for my previous bike. As it is, it was a deal breaker almost soon as I looked at the later C14's.

While I am quite happy to have the CCS-100 in our VW, it's not as well integrated into the vehicle as an OEM installation. I found a VW cruise control stalk, but the switch wiring wasn't compatible with the CCS-100 control head. FWIW the '90 Vanagon options list included a cruise control - hoping to find the needed components, 28 years later, is like hoping for perfect riding weather 365 days in a row...

Using the "speed up" and "slow down" buttons doesn't give immediate results, and certainly aren't "one tap, +/- 1 mph". Disabling the CC comes from 1) brake lights (relay needed when sensing LED brake light current), 2) tap the on/off button, 3) over-revving (de-clutching). Each has it's problems. Tapping the brakes enough to trip the brake light might just be seen as ...um... a "brake test" for anyone close behind. Turning the unit off and back on works, but loses the previously set speed. The consequences of over-revving should be self-evident. OTOH, almost anything except stepping on the gas (some OEM units see extended gas pedal pushes as a signal to drop off) will disconnect the CC.

All of that said, anything that eliminates the IMNSHO suicidal throttle lock is to the good. Anything that allows removing the right hand and giving a break from a continuous grip on the throttle is to the good.

 

[wfooshee]

...'07 is completely different wiring on the US models. First year of the Gen-II bikes, with the now-famous ground spiders. Apples and oranges, I guess, between UK and US ...

Think you'll find the '06 was the first Gen 2 year in the US as well as for the UK. Check the Comparison Matrix.

Yep, I got the year wrong. I was thinking blue, though!!! The last Gen-I year was blue!!! Sorta just had the wrong blue one...

Still, most Gen-II CCS100 installs had some issue with the brake light line, and not just the guys with LED add-ons, or brake light flashers.

 

[Harald]

My AVCC installation worked fine on my 07 for a while and then developed problems. During troubleshooting, I found a slight voltage on the brake line and installed a relay to bypass that problem. The CC worked for a while after, but then started having problems again so I'm not sure the brake voltage was really a problem. The latest troubleshooting had me inspecting everything (including opening up the vacume chamber and manually pulling the throttle output) and it started working again. I suspect lack of use might have been my problem, so now I'm using it regularly if only for a minute to keep it working. Still worked this morning, which is about a year since my last CC maintenance.

 

[RBEmerson]

If you have an LED brake light, there isn't enough current to trigger the CCS-100 brake sensing. A relay is the only practical way to go.(a resistor capable of handling the wattage an incandescent lamp would use will work, but it's going to be big, and expensive. The resistor forces drawing 10 watts or whatever, wiping out the advantage having an LED)

It's more likely having a poor vacuum supply caused your problem. Do you have the auxiliary reserve canister?

 

[Harald]

If you have an LED brake light, there isn't enough current to trigger the CCS-100 brake sensing. A relay is the only practical way to go.(a resistor capable of handling the wattage an incandescent lamp would use will work, but it's going to be big, and expensive. The resistor forces drawing 10 watts or whatever, wiping out the advantage having an LED)
It's more likely having a poor vacuum supply caused your problem. Do you have the auxiliary reserve canister?

No LED lights on my 07 and I do have a reserve canister that leak checks good. It's working now, so I'm happy for those occasional long slab trips.

 

[RBEmerson]

If it works, life is good.