Re: Aftermarket Cruise Control

[ScoutIIMan@domain.elided]

Morning Digesters,

<< Scott,
On my 78 SSII, I had an aftermarket tell-everything device installed
<snip>
Amazingly good outfit for that time.
I've seen them for sale since, but don't remember the last time I saw
them.
John >>

I still have mine, except the readout module quit working. I bought a 
replacement module about a year before they went out of business at least 5 
years ago. Someday I'll try to fix it. It was by a company called Zemco out 
of the Bay Area. It was pretty cool. I bought mine in 1981 and installed it 
on a 1970 Chevy wagon with a 350 4 barrel. I then went on a trip from Calif 
to Minnesota and back. I learned a few things.

Once you initially calibrated it using the real mileage marker on the 
highway, the mpg was extremely accurate. On the 6000 mile trip mentioned 
above, the unit was only off by about a quarter of a gallon of gas than what 
I had actually used. 

One day as I was cruising down the freeway on a slight downhill grade, the 
mpg reading went over 999mpg. So when I went to minnesota. I tried something. 
I'd use cruise and the mpg's would start around 20 at the bottom of a hill, 
and be about 4 mpg at the top. I turned off the cruise and started at about 
60 mph at the top, and let the car pick up speed and then let it lose speed 
going up the next hill until it was down to 60 again. The gas mileage would 
never go below 15 and would go over 40 at at the bottom.

When I moved the unit to my little Datsun pickup I took a trip and saw a 
difference of 4 mpg between a steady 65mph cruise in the open, and behind a 
semi.

Oh, and to make this IH related, I hope to get it installed in my 74 Scout II.

STeve