Cruise control failure

[Cowboy 2]

Power on cc doesnt come on but every once in awhile and works until i cancel by braking and then it will not come back on until next day sometimes. I checked the voltage to the red power wire to the cc on and set panel on the fake tank cover with the ignition switched on and got 12 volts need help diagnoseing anybody have suggestions please advise . This is my first kawasaki voyager its 2003

[SgtSlag]

Note that the CC Electronic Control Unit (CC ECU) will not engage the CC unless the speedometer is at 35 MPH+, and in 5th gear only... The XII's CC is very particular about "safety" of the rider. Ma Kawi made it as safe as they could (mostly to avoid lawsuits).

Here is a link to a folder of useful files pertaining to the XII's, including service manuals, and a Hi-Res Wiring Schematic Diagram. Download them now, and keep several copies as the Internet is volatile, and things can/do disappear from it, without warning... Note that very little changed after the 1986 models, so the manuals are 99 and 44/100% accurate for 1987-2003 models.

Print, and laminate, a copy of the engine oil change instructions (torque values for sealing nuts are critical...). You will need this often, on the floor beside you, when you change out the oil + filter. Print, and laminate, a color copy of the hi-res wiring diagram: you can take a thumb-drive to any office supply store, and they will print off a color laser copy for you, for <$2 per page; they also offer lamination services for similar prices -- worth every Penny! Get two copies, and save the spares in a well-remembered, safe place. Punch a hole in one corner, and hang them on a nail/peg/whatever, in your garage/shop.


Pledge Furniture Polish, lemon, is great for cleaning your windshield, your visor, your eyeglasses (safe on plastic lenses) along with your laminated printouts, with a microfiber cloth. I carry Pledge and microfiber towels in the trunk, on ever ride...

Pull the front fairing off, and look for the large, zip-tied wiring bundle: cut the overly tight zip-tie, and replace it with a looser one of your own. This factory zip-tie'd bundle often causes a host of issues, many of which can be intermittent.

Get a copy of the enhanced wiring schematic, folder link above. Trace out every CC connector: pull, clean, add di-electric grease, re-seat. If you find bad connectors or broken/frayed/exposed wires, fix the issue by either installing new connectors, taping the exposed wires, soldering and covering the wires while eliminating the connectors, or whatever else needs to be done to fix the connection issue. Replace any bad switches found.

It could also be caused by looseness in the actuator cable: the CC is designed to disengage if the speed of the bike drops more than 5 (10?) MPH below the set speed. There are videos on YouTube for how to remove the slack in the actuator cable. This is a maintenance issue which needs to be addressed every so many years, as slack returns, over time. If the CC does not track immediately after setting, slack in the actuator cable is the culprit; if you have to hold the throttle, releasing it s-l-o-w-l-y, to allow the CC to catch up... Adjust the actuator cable.

There are five(?) safety switches which will disengage the CC: Front Brake, Rear Brake, Clutch, Speedometer/CC ECU, and one in the transmission (must be in 5th gear or the CC will not engage -- will still power on, though). Check all of the switches you can reach (the CC ECU and the transmission switch, are the most challenging). You can try to test the switches, by connecting a continuity tester/test light bulb in-line with the switches, to see if they light up when the switch is engaged.

If none of that helps, it might be a bad CC ECU, but you need to go through this list, first, before you try to source a replacement CC ECU. Cheers!

[cushman eagle]

Very good reply,SgtSlag
You pretty much hit all the bases.
I had adustment issues twice with mine ,the first was with the rear brake switch,which would keep the CC from engaging,
the other was the front brake switch which would disengage the CC when I hit a rough bump.
All they took were some minor adjustments.

[Nails]

There are many posts here about fussing with the cruise control. Mine has been, um, difficult pretty much all the time I've owned the bike. And it hasn't worked for a couple of years now -- I'm hopeful of finally figuring it out when I swap the engine head this winter. (I suspect a frayed cable somewhere among that cable cluster-F.)

The manual has a great section on electrical and other diagnostics. This system is a touchy wench-biscuit, partly due to weird circuitry apparently to get around using latched servos ... or maybe "an abundance of caution". But whatever, it's a fragile design that some engineer somewhere undoubtedly is terribly proud of. On the plus side, you'll soon be adept at taking off the fairing.

Sorry, but I don't think you're gonna get a simple cookbook here. Your problem could be a large number of things ranging from the carb rail to the actuator and on to the many cancel switches (the manual diagnostics include a step to rule all of them in or out in a single stroke). Many of these potential problems could be crossed off your list by going through the manual's steps.

So mix yourself a strong margarita and curl up for some quality time with the manual ... and then the bike. I obviously have nothing better to offer, given all the various gremlins I'm still chasing.

[GrandpaDenny]

My cruise control didn't work at first, seemed like sometimes it would engage, sometimes it wouldn't, and wouldn't keep the speed constant. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Just like the described symptoms? Adjusting the cable inside the right fairing did the trick, and the cruise has been flawless ever since. Directions on how to do the adjustment are in the Tech Center.

I also bypassed and removed the switch and light assembly on the tank so I could run a big kronkin' tank bag. Now the cruise is available all the time, and with SEVEN safety switches, I'm not at all worried.

The switches are:
1. on/off (bypassed on my bike, so that makes SIX switches)
2. clutch
3. front brake
4. rear brake
5. throttle closed
6. speed goes up by >5mph
7. speed goes down by >5 mph
8. 5th gear switch
9. speed over 85mph

Hey that makes NINE, man I didn't think of the high speed safety feature before. I guess it actually doesn't count because the cruise won't disengage at that speed, it just won't accelerate past 85mph, and won't engage at a higher speed.

It would be nice if the cruise would engage higher than 85 mph. Seems like she'd run over 100mph all day long and be quite happy. Ok, I'm the kind of guy that is the reason why the cruise won't go higher than 85 mph!