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53 type s - VSA light and cruise control not working?

30032977

30032977

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Location
Telford, Shropshire
Car
Accord type s tourer
Hi, new to the forum.

Picked up my new Honda this week, very first non German car. Have to say i may have been converted.

School boy error, i never asked how the cruise control works so this may be me doing it wrong. I held the cruise button in, light come on but nothhappenedpned?
fiddled withaccelerationation button but still nothing????

Also today the VSA light come on half way through a journey? After restarting car it was gone? Should i worry about this or wait until it decides to stay on?

Cheers in advance
Dan = ]
 
Replace your brake pedal switch. Will cost you about £40 from Honda, easy to fit yourself too. When faulty this switch will trigger the VSA light, and cruise control won't work.
 
cruise control works normally by pushing the cruise button then pressing the set button. But by the sounds of it you need to do what MutsaiP or look in the DIY section, I think there is a How to clean this switch.
 
Don't buy a replacement. Clean the one you've got ;) .

Clean your VSA/Cruise-Control break pedal switch

Then, once all that's sorted, there's a latching button to enable the cruise control mode. But this doesn't switch on the cruise control, just arms it, primes it, whatever you want to call it.

Then you have an up/down button that mirrors the volume control on the other side of the wheel. Get to the speed you wish to cruise at and then press the bottom half of the CC up/down button. This sets the CC and an additional light will come on the dash and you can lift your foot off the gas and continue cruising.

Should you wish to speed up or down, every push of the up/down button will give a 1mph increase/decrease. If you hold it down, it will increase/decrease until you release the button.

If you brake or use the clutch or press the cancel button, the cruise control disables. Tap the top half of the up/down switch and feel the car accelerate back up to the previous cruising speed or press the lower half to reset a new cruising speed.

The CC doesn't work below 25mph. Get into the groove/rhythm of cancelling, reengaging etc and you can cruise around town in 6th gear between 25-30mph driving the car at about 1000 revs with your thumb, like a video game almost and getting good mpg while you do it.
 
Really appreciate all the quick feed back. I will try the cruise again tomorrow as didn't use a set button? Where will the speed be displayed when increasing with the button?
 
I was waiting for that lol! Wasn't sure if there was a digital display before you set it otherwise could just hit cruise then set and sit at current speed lol
 
Stevearcade said:
Don't buy a replacement. Clean the one you've got ;) .

Clean your VSA/Cruise-Control break pedal switch

Then, once all that's sorted, there's a latching button to enable the cruise control mode. But this doesn't switch on the cruise control, just arms it, primes it, whatever you want to call it.

Then you have an up/down button that mirrors the volume control on the other side of the wheel. Get to the speed you wish to cruise at and then press the bottom half of the CC up/down button. This sets the CC and an additional light will come on the dash and you can lift your foot off the gas and continue cruising.

Should you wish to speed up or down, every push of the up/down button will give a 1mph increase/decrease. If you hold it down, it will increase/decrease until you release the button.

If you brake or use the clutch or press the cancel button, the cruise control disables. Tap the top half of the up/down switch and feel the car accelerate back up to the previous cruising speed or press the lower half to reset a new cruising speed.

The CC doesn't work below 25mph. Get into the groove/rhythm of cancelling, reengaging etc and you can cruise around town in 6th gear between 25-30mph driving the car at about 1000 revs with your thumb, like a video game almost and getting good mpg while you do it.
Click to expand...
Cleaning the switch made mine worse!! Yeah try cleaning it first;)
 
The first time I put mine back together I'd made it worse. There's a bit of plastic that can catch on the metal and a tiny bend of the metal and little grease can make the switch super smooth. Mine was originally worse, I redid it a bit more carefully and it's not given a single fault since. :)
 
Hi been away from the Internet over Xmas so explains the late reply! Oh and merry Xmas lol :)

Took the switch out today and gave it a good clean up, the contacts were pretty bad so would possibly explain the fault. Drove a couple of miles to pick wife up with no lights :)
Including heavy braking and bringing the traction control to work and nothing. Happy with that, cheers guys
 
Result! :)
 
Scratch that, after a while of working i realised that the light wasn't coming on because the switch wasn't being operated due to me not installing it fully.
On re-installing it correctly the VSA light come back on.

For those of you that know more about this than me, if i was to say ignore said light. Would this eventually lead to significant problems?
 
Problems?? I think that would be crash bang!! Traction control is helpful in icy conditions. I'd buy a new switch- about £40 from Honda
 
Aye mate is that likely to be the culprit as the switch IMO looked in good shape?
Don't know if it's worth getting it scanned?

So worse case is the traction control and that side of things won't be working, that's a relief I suppose.
I contacted the dealer yesterday and he said 52 inc vat, just seemed expensive to me I suppose but is the the best way to go now then?
 
Use a multimeter to definitely prove that the switch is working OK (or not)... it sounds like it is the switch, as when you work on it the problem comes and goes. Bur - if you don't have a multimeter (or can't even borrow one) - then make up a series circuit with the switch, a battery (maybe the car battery), some jump leads (or other cables) and a suitable lamp (maybe remove one of the number plate lamps and use that?) and you can then adjust the switch until you witness it switching the lamp on/off as you press it.
 
^ or go to Maplins, Multimeter's are £6 ;) . Check the switch for definite. I got mine wrong the first time too.

Even the tiniest mis-reading from the switch will throw the VSA light. That's why the switch has to be buttery smooth and like new feeling. Ensure the contacts are super clean with contact cleaning fluid of some sort. The moving parts where the metal and plastic contact and rub must be super clean and give them a tiny grease too. I actually slightly bent the tips of the metal back so the edge of the metal didn't touch the plastic at all. Reduced friction of movement greatly as the sharp, cut edge of the stamped metal wasn't grinding against the plastic. I think this is where the wear come in and dirt from this constant friction is what builds up and sticks to the contacts causing the switch to fail in the first place.

Then I stretched the spring ever so slightly to make the switch more taut. The combo of the bent metal tips greased against the plastic and the stretched spring meant the switch felt firm and smooth ;) . (Put's on Swiss Tony voice and says "Cleaning your VSA Switch is very much like making love to a beautiful woman" ;) )

Then check for continuity with the multi. Hold it in place and very slowly press the switch and hold. Then press it fast and hold. Basically, put it under different loads. Ensure you get a clean connection/beak in signal not on/off/on/off during the switch being inactive. Any friction under use may cause problems.
 
Just to let you know i decided to take the switch out the other day and re-clean and grease.
Used electrical contact cleaner this time instead of carb cleaner =O

We havent had a singal light all week. Over the moon, cheers guys =]
 
Result!
 
Good result fella
 
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