hairen

I had the same issue when installing a remote starter. I bet you tapped into a wire directly at the headlight switch instead of at the smart junction box. To temporarily turn off the lights, you can tie the wire you tapped into to ground. You will have to replace the head light switch (about $30 at the dealer) to regain functionality. When you try to remote start the vehilce, the remote starter module applies 12 volts which is shorted directly to ground through the headlight switch; that is what killed it.

2010 Ford Fusion SE - 3.0L V6 - 6F35 Transmission Cruise control set at highway speed (say 55 - 70 MPH). Slow down / stop. Hit resume around 25 MPH. Car accelerates to set speed, but doesn't shift out of 3rd gear during acceleration. Car DOES NOT shift until several seconds after achieving set speed, then will shift to 4th. A few seconds later will shift to 5th. A few seconds later will shift to 6th. Obviously 70 MPH in 3rd gear results in relatively high RPM. I'm not concerned about engine damage, but I can't possibly imagine this being classified as "normal" behavior, despite what the Ford dealership told me this morning. I normally handle acceleration myself to within a few MPH of the set point and then hit resume; finding this behavior was a fluke and it is easy enough to deal with / work around, but now that I know it does it, it's bugging the heck out of me! Has anyone else experienced this? Would you consider this normal? I've owned multiple vehicles with cruise control, including several other Fords, and have never experienced this...

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The dealer stated that the brake switch was incorrectly installed and fixed the issue. The brake switch now activates at the slightest hint of pedal motion. Thanks to all for the responses. Off topic: The CEL is an evap leak at the wonderful EasyFuel capless fuel filler.

From the owner's manual: The issue is that the brake pedal switch is not triggering soon enough. The switch is mounted above the pedal and has a spring-loaded plunger that is held in when the pedal is up. When you press the brake, the plunger is allowed to come out of the switch body and this 'flips' the switch (which controls BOTH the brake lights and the cruice control cancel...SO if your cruise is not cancelling, your brake lights are not on either i.e. the cruise disengages and the brake lights come on simultaneously). There appears to be an adjustment for the brake pedal up travel, but I'm afraid that won't do in my case. I have to press the pedal enough that the brakes physically engage before the cruise control shuts off, so it would have to be adjusted to the point that the brakes are on all the time. Definitely an issue that will require service. As a side note, I got in the car to take it to the dealer this morning and the check engine light was on. Not cool @ < 200 miles.

Thanks for the responses. That is what I suspected, but I wanted to make sure it was not common on this model before I sought service. I will take it to the dealer in the morning and see if I can get it resolved. Thanks again.

Thanks for the response. Let me clarify. The brake lights come on and the cruise control disengage at the same time. They are both triggered by the brake switch and work 'normally' in that regard. The issue is that I have to press the brake pedal down a couple of inches before the brake switch is triggered. If I slowly and gently depress the brake pedal, there is a point where I can definitely feel the car slowing due to the brakes physically engaging, yet the brake switch is not yet triggered (and the cruise control is not disengaged nor are the brake lights on). Specifically the issue is that there is what I would consider a significant amount of brake pedal travel before the brake pedal switch is triggered. I am comparing them to my Focus and Cougar (and any other vehicle I've driven) where the slightest hint of touching the brake pedal (just brushing it with your foot) triggers the brake pedal switch, shutting off the cruise and lighting the brake lights.

I have a 2010 Fusion SE 3.0L - I have a question regarding the cruise control. I also own a '01 Mercury Cougar and '02 Ford Focus, both with cruise control. With the cruise control set on either of these vehicles, so much as breathing on the brake pedal will disengage the cruise control. When I 'tap' the brake pedal on the Fusion to disengage the cruise control, I can actually feel the car slow down slightly which I initially perceived as engine braking after the cruise control disengaged. But, this is not the case. After 'tapping' the brake, the car accelerates slightly because the cruise is still set. Apparently when I tap the pedal, I am depressing the pedal enough to physically engage the brakes, yet the cruise is not disengaging. Has anyone else experienced this? Is this normal for this vehicle, or should I pursue having the vehicle serviced?