Does anyone have any tips for highway cruising without cruise control? The 300 SL doesn't have it, and, without constantly glancing at the speedometer and making small adjustments to the throttle, I can't seem to keep a steady speed.

Both of the other cars I've owned have had cruise control (C230 and E320), and I never realized the extent to which I depend on it. Without it, I find myself focusing too much on the speedometer at the expense of awareness of the outside road and traffic environment.

Should I resign myself that maintaining a steady speed without cruise control isn't realistic, or am I missing something?

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230

My '96 is the first car I've owned with cruise control. The new Jetta has it too, but we're not using it until we get a few more miles on the engine.

One only needs a quick glance at the speedometer, once you know where the numbers are. It hardly keeps my eyes or attention off the road. Hell, back in the old days, you had to also occasionally glance at the other gauges!

That engine has a few happy spots in top gear. That is what will be dictating a comfortable cruise speed. You give up the infinate adjustability. You learn to feel the engine and it will stay within a couple mph's once you learn where the comfy spots are. You will get better gas mileage without the cruise.

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"Danger takes many forms"

Yes. Thank you. That's an eloquent way of saying what I've been unsuccessfully trying to do. I never developed that skill and clearly need more practice "feeling it". Right now, if I don't look down every few seconds, I end up going significantly faster than I want.

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230

My AMG doesn't have it - it's the first car I've ever owned that didn't have it. Driving it back from Chicago to Houston was a pain without it, but I got used to it after the first few hours.

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- Brian


1989 500SEL Euro
1966 250SE Cabriolet
1958 BMW Isetta 600

You just need more cockpit hours, you'll figure it out eventually. I have cruise and I don't use it even on 500 mile trips it always seems to me like people are getting in the way when I use cruise control . Now a radar guided cruise I would definitely use.

Not having it makes me realize how good Mercedes' cruise control system is. I think they call it tempomat or "speed control governor". Darn good system. Without taking my eyes off the road, I can easily cruise and adjust speed as needed. The little stick is right at your 10:00 fingertips. Without even removing my hand from the wheel, I can tap the stick up or down and speed increases or decreases by one kilometer per hour (or roughly one-half mile per hour) for each tap. Want to go five miles and hour slower, count ten quick clicks and whala, speed is adjusted without removing my eyes from the road. On open roads, I set the speed and forget about it (leaving me more energy to focus on the road). In more congested situations, tap the control to precisely adjust speed up or down. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think it's a superior method to govern one's speed. I'm seriously considering having it retrofitted on the SL.

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230

both of my Mercedes have the cruise control...eh it dont work though...

i ve done 6-7 400-500 mile trips without the cruise control. i can just let my foot lay on the pedal and the car seems happy. i dont like cruise control because driving at different speeds makes the long trips semi-interesting...

i've never had any difficulty driving, in fact i quite enjoy driving long distances in my little 190E...

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I haven't used the cruise control on my car for years, mostly because it doesn't work smoothly anymore. If I'm in traffic, which is most of the time (even traveling between cities), I just drive with the flow of traffic and almost never look at the speedo. If I'm in a place where I can cruise for long stretches, I just set the speed with my foot, then rest the right side of my shoe against the transmission tunnel carpeting, and that (plus the heavy accelerator pedal) helps keep my foot in the same spot.

Anthony