What is Cruise Control and Do You Really Need It in Your Used Car?

Cruise Control is a cool feature to have in a car! But the coolness of a specific feature often does not justify the price that the used car carries. Since 2007, automotive technology has exponentially improved. Car manufacturers started packing high-tech features into their vehicles that can pull-off impressive stunts and simultenously, car prices also steadily rose.

Today, if you go out to look for used cars for sale in Fountain Inn that specifically has cruise control, you will see that the price of such cars is way above than the ones that just have the basic and necessary features. Hence, you must ask, do you really need cruise control or will ever use it? Let’s answer that here. But first, we need to understand what cruise control actually does.

What is cruise control in cars?

Say you are driving on the highway. And every car before and after you is driving at the same speed given the lane’s limit. To maintain your speed, you will need to apply a constant pressure on the gas pedal frequently and this routine can go on for hours. Having cruise control in your car helps you to rest your legs. The system then takes over from you, managing the gas pedal and applying the pressure, while you can take your foot off the pedal without losing your car’s speed.

Adaptive cruise control takes this feature a step further. It detects the speed of the car in front and varies the pedal pressure accordingly so that you remain at a safe distance while on the highway. You will need to keep your hand on the steering wheel to keep the car in the lane while the cruise control maintains the speed that you were cruising at last.

Rumor also has it that running your used car on cruise control on highways helps to increase your vehicle fuel efficiency by 10-15%. We have to admit that the feature is helpful during those long drives you might take across South Carolina.

But do you need it?

In other words, should you pay the extra price to get cruise control in your next used car? For this, contemplate where you will majorly drive your vehicle. Will you be frequently traveling to other counties or will you just use your car to commute to work within your city? For urban dwellers, cruise control is a useless feature because you cannot delegate driving to your vehicle when the roads are busy. Cruise control only works on highways where everyone is cruising at certain speeds.

Also, the 10-15% fuel savings just happen while cruising. If you never use the feature, do not expect your fuel efficiency to improve. Look for standard vehicles in used car lots in Fountain Inn instead. For that one-off trip once every two to three years, paying the extra sum for the feature is not worth it.

Plan your next used car

And consult with your dealer regarding the features you need and the features you can skip. Family Auto, one of the best used car dealerships in Fountain Inn, SC, sells you vehicles that maximize your returns. We do not push unnecessarily expensive vehicles on you. We do not entice you with extravagant car features. Get exactly what you want and need at Family Auto, along with bad credit financing, car trade-in offers, flexible down payment, and a comprehensive 2 years/36,000 miles warranty.