On my journey into the ownership of a GM B-body station wagon, I've come across things in my car that did not work or needed repair or replacement to work correctly.
What we're going to be looking at repairing today is this little trouble maker:
I strongly suggest that you READ and PRINT OUT this whole thing in its entirety. Yes, I am a long winded person. Deal with it.You see, I'm a spoiled person who likes electrical toys in a car and one of the features I use the most is cruise control*. I noticed right away that the one in my car was difficult if not impossible to set. It worked well in every other regard. I later came to know per the factory service manual that the proper function of the cruise control
seemingly requires that the CHMSL (center high mount stop lamp) to be functional. That's what the FSM clearly says. In this regard, I must lead a charmed existence, as I was blissfully unaware of this and when I could get it to set, the cruise control worked fine. Before you ask, there was no way that the CHMSL
could work on my car, as it was heavily corroded both inside and out. I verified that it did not work.
Yet fixing it did
not make my cruise control any more functional than it had been. If anything, it was worse. Turning it on was almost impossible, as were the resume and acceleration functions. Setting a speed and deceleration worked fine. Once set, it would work reliably.
See where I'm going with this? If you've ruled out issues with the switches on the brake pedal, power to/from the cruise control module, the module itself, broken wiring, and your CHMSL works, that leaves only one thing: the cruise control enable/resume/accelerate switch. After 15-20 years or more of existing, the switch contacts get dirty by the process of oxidation and will no longer make reliable contact to let the cruise control function work reliably. If you use your cruise control a lot, the contacts may also wear out, along with the printing on the stalk.
If the contacts actually wear out, you have to replace the stalk. See below for more details on that, what it costs from a few sources and your options for getting one.
Now, before I get too far into this repair, let's lay some things out and arrive at an understanding. The following advice is presented in
good faith and it worked for me. While I have tried to provide accurate information,
I am not responsible for any outcome should you follow this procedure. Your car may be different than mine. Think before you do, and if you're not sure...
don't. Stop and get qualified assistance. If you're working on a safety critical assembly, which it could be argued that the cruise control system is to some extent, don't
ever compromise your safety or anyone else's by taking shortcuts that may jeopardize your or anyone else's safety. Not buying a new or properly remade "whatever" isn't worth someone's life or well being...don't
ever save money in the wrong place!
Anyway.
The GM factory service manual helpfully tells us that the multifunction stalk is not a serviceable part--that if anything is wrong inside, you replace it. This part was used on a number of GM vehicles over many years and it is still available for an eye-popping
two hundred United States dollars from your friendly GM dealer. (At least they'd darn well better be friendly for that kind of money.) I'm afraid I agree, at least in theory. Don't despair, please read on.
I was apprised by fellow longroofer 95BRMW of an aftermarket replacement stalk made by Dorman and priced around $40 at AutoZone. Which is better, but still rather stiff for a molded plastic assembly. Now you could also go "yarding" and see if you can find another stalk for a more agreeable price. Yet sooner or later it's going to have the same problem as the one you have now.
You need a few simple hand tools to do this job. A needle-nose pliers, flashlight, fine bladed screwdriver or pick should get you through it. Once you get inside, you're going to need a good quality electronics/electrical contact cleaner spray. Ideally this should have a spray tube that can be installed into the spray tip for close up work.
"
Not a serviceable part" means a lot of different things to different people. In the best case, something can be fixed and the manufacturer just doesn't actually want you to do so. In the worst case, something gets broken or a fiddly piece flies off into outer space never to be seen again, or you can't actually put the unit back together without some kind of tool or jig that you can't get/make. This falls somewhere in between. If the switch contacts really are dirty, they can be fixed. If they're worn out or the wiring is damaged, you will have to get a new stalk. Likewise if you rip a wire out of the stalk...you will have to replace it then.
Let's get started. If you'd like, go ahead and disconnect the battery/batteries from your car. I didn't. I'm going to go into a great level of detail here, for the benefit of newbies.
First, you need to remove the trim piece from behind the multifunction lever/stalk. Open the driver's side door on your car. Look at the left hand side (as though you were sitting in the car, ready to drive it) of the steering column. Carefully slide this piece back and remove it. It's just a press fit and should not require excessive force to remove.
Once it comes off, you're going to see some wiring and part of the switch's workings.
It is the fine multi-colored wires that we are interested in. These fragile looking wires are joined with a connector that can be unplugged. This is probably the hardest part of the operation right here. The connector has a peg on it that mates with a hidden hole under the connector itself. Gently pull this free. You may have to work it out of the hole. Again, little force is required.
Once you get it free, use your fine bladed screwdriver or pick to carefully separate the black connector at its latching point. There's a latch on one side that will release if you
carefully pry it up just a little. Then you can separate the connector. Don't get too rambunctious with the wiring or connector.
And now, the easiest part of the whole exercise. If you've ever worked on any kind of car before, I'm sure you will know the
frustration that is a very common experience when you're trying to do even the simplest task. You know the drill: busted knuckles, invented strings of profanity, parts/tools that fall into places where daylight was last seen when the car was assembled, etc. I have certainly wondered at times if automotive engineers go out of their way to make this stuff über-irritating to work on, and just how they manage to get some of these things put together--the right way, even--on the assembly line! I was not looking forward to removing the stalk/lever itself from the steering column as I had visions of rather nasty steering column surgery in my mind, along with the fear of having to handle the air bag.
Fortunately, that is not required. In a truly rare moment of Automotive Engineering Clarity, someone at GM really thought this out! If I ever meet this person, I'd love to shake their hand.
All you have to do is grab your stalk
(stop that snickering) and pull it straight out towards you from the steering column.
I am such a skeptic any more that I could not
believe that anything on a car would be this easy to remove/work on. Therefore, in the name of science, I tried this on my brother's 1988 Buick LeSabre. (That's right, kids. Don't try this on your own car. Do it on a friend or brother's car first.)
Helpful Note: If the stalk refuses to come out, make sure you've turned the windshield wipers
off and that you are not depressing the windshield washer paddle.
This should not take more than a moderate amount of force, and you should stop pulling the moment the stalk pops out. Remember, the wiring is still not free to come loose. Continue to hold the stalk in your one hand while you gently free the tiny wires and connector with the other. You should have something that looks like this when you're through:
Once I had it out, I examined the fortress for weak spots. And I found one.
If you look closely, there is a C-clip (or "circlip") holding the stalk together. You will also have noticed that the windshield washer paddle is just kind of flopping around at this point. Turn the stalk over so you can see the open part of the clip. I
strongly recommend that you only attempt this next part with the clip facing down into a soft/padded surface. Otherwise, you may hear a thoroughly disheartening
PLING! and the clip will be gone to the furthest and most inconvenient portion of your workshop...or another car, if you have more cars than sense as I do. If you are as lucky as I am, this will then damage or short out some expensive or just replaced part on the other car, or require you to find the part to avoid such damage.
I used a pair of needle nose pliers on the two open sides of the clip to gently force it down and off of the metal shaft that it lives on.
If you are gentle enough, the clip should pop off unharmed and can be reused later. (Yes, I know these really aren't supposed to be reused. I have generally gotten away with it.)
Be sure to take this whole mechanism in and look at what $200 would buy you as you continue on this adventure. Ponder what a good living it would be if you could do the same! Gently slide the lower plastic portion (the windshield washer paddle) off and down to reveal the metal shaft that terminates in the "cruise control" end of the stalk. There is a metal keyway in the shaft that matches up with a cutout in the windshield washer paddle that you may have to align in order to get this part to come off. It should slide off easily, no force is required. Carefully guide the wiring and connector back out of the opening in the windshield washer paddle until you can remove the paddle completely. Set it aside.
* * * * ELECTRONICS CLEANER SIDEBAR * * * *
If you're new to working on electrical switches and electronic devices such as this, you may wonder what you should use to clean them. There are lots of credible cleaners out there. One of the best that you can ever use is Caig Labs' DeOxit brand cleaner.
DO NOT use WD-40 for this job. In addition to being flammable, WD-40 is not a really great contact cleaner and it may dissolve some plastics or cause color changes. I also don't recommend the can of stuff that RadioShack sells as "tuner" or "contact cleaner". It used to have some credible contact cleaners in it, but these days it is just freeze spray and mineral oil. The mineral oil will make anything it touches very slippery, and that's not a good combination with steering and other important vehicle controls.
Here is something you can use, however.
RadioShack's 64-057 is billed as an "anti-corrosion" spray, which it is. However, it contains a substantial amount of the DeOxit chemical and a little mineral oil to lubricate any switch cleaned with it. As far as I know, you can't beat the price for this stuff. One can will last you for
years.
Also, if it would help, I have an exhaustive video on
cleaning electronic controls.
* * * * END SIDEBAR * * * *You can now see the bundle of small wires going into the cruise control, well, controls. Have your electronics cleaner ready with the little plastic tube that fits on the spray tip in place and ready to go.
This reveals another chink in the armor, as there is a larger gap than needed to let the wires through. Here's where we start with the actual repair. Gently take the bundle of wires and pull them back toward the outer end of the controls (heading toward the decel/set button).
Now, take your electical contact cleaner and push the straw in gently through the opening, heading downward (toward the surface you are working on). Continue until it stops, and if needed, move to a location where you can make a mess without causing problems. I suggest that if you happen to be smoking, that you stop before dispensing any of the cleaner. Otherwise you may be smoking long after you finish, and so may your car!
Don't be stingy with the spray. I put enough cleaner through mine until it dripped out of the "decel/set" button at the end. Then I cleaned it up with paper towels. About halfway through your spraying activities, remove the tube from the hole, and work every switch (especially the on/accel/resume slider) a number of times. Then hit it with some more cleaner.
Once you're done, it's time to put things back together. Assembly, as they say in
the Haynes manuals is the reverse of disassembly. There are a few things to watch out for and make sure of.
Start by bringing the windshield washer paddle into place. Slide it over the metal shaft and carefully guide the cruise control wiring through the opening in the back. As you put the paddle back on, make sure you're putting it in approximately the right place. Its protruding tip should be level with the "off" position (or printing, if yours still has any) on the outer plastic piece (with the cruise control stuff on it). As the paddle reaches the end of its travel, look for the plastic keyway in the end of it and rotate the paddle until this part lines up. Otherwise you won't be able to get it back together.
While holding the paddle so that it is "upright" and in its normal resting position (protruding tip aligned with "off"), take it back to your car, hold it in the appropriate position and press it back into the waiting socket. It should click into place with little resistance. If it doesn't, something is wrong or positioned incorrectly.
Carefully route the wiring back through the opening where the stalk emerges, just as it came out the first time. Reconnect the connectors, route the wiring so it won't be pinched or crushed, put the connector bodies in the appropriate position and press inward. You should feel a small "click" as the peg seats. Check the wiring once more, and put the trim piece back into place, making sure not to pinch any wiring.
Take your vehicle for a test drive. If the switch was merely dirty and there is no other problem, your cruise control will now work as it should...turn on, resume, accelerate, decelerate...everything should now happen as it ought to. Mine now works perfectly, and it took longer to write this up than it did to do any of it.
Comments and feedback are welcomed, especially if there is somewhere you feel these instructions could be clearer, or if a certain procedure applies to some cars/model years and not others. I only know about the 1993 cars.
Next Time on UXWBill's B-Body Electrical Repair and Snide Remarks Corner: Cleaning faulty electrical contacts in the thermostat mode switch, so that I can actually
use my car's defroster setting!
Large pictures are
here.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* did any of these cars
not have factory-installed cruise controls?
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Thu Aug 16, 2012 5:42 pm
I am a fine one to talk.Been engaged to 3 different beautiful woman 
), I would certainly like to hear how it went for you.