Howard May

[Mr. Grumpy]

Does anyone know if Howard May are still trading? They supplied and fitted my cruise control four years ago but it has recently stopped working. I have e-mailed twice, receiving an automated acknowledgment but nothing else and left a couple of messages on the answer phone, again with no reply. As it originally cost £400 I would like to get it repaired rather than replaced, I think at £100 per year it would have been quite expensive if I have to start with a new unit. There is nothing on the unit to tell me who the original manufacturer was.

[Guest Tracker]

They seem to be based in the Rugby area although no address on their website.

Can anyone living near Rugby help this chap?

 

This is the website link.

 

http://www.howard-may.co.uk/12923.html

[Dave Newell]

Hi Mr. Grumpy. I may be able to help you with sorting out your cruise control. firstly what is the vehicle and year?

 

I'm pretty sure that Howard May use the same cruise control systems that I fit so I can tell you how to run the diagnostic test.

 

First press and hold the Fix (set) button and turn the igntion on, keep pressing the fix button and after a few seconds you will probably hear a high tone. If there is a fault in the electrical side of things you will get a tone lasting eight seconds.

 

Switch the system on and press each of the buttons in turn, each button press should get the beep tone, press the brake pedal and then the clutch pedal, again a beep tone should be heard on each pedal press, if no tone heard then there lies the fault.

 

One of the most common reasons for CC systems to fail on last generation Ducatos is a blown brake light fuse caused by plugging a trailer light board in. The standard fuse is only 7.5 amps but the total load with a trailer board is around 8amps. If the brake light circuit is faulty the CC system will not engage because it would not detect the brake pedal being pressed.

 

If there are no electricla faults indicated then it will likely be mechanical and the most likely cause is a broken operating cable.

 

Hope this helps, D.

[mike 202]

Mr Grumpy, if Dave's tests don't provide you with an answer or you don't feel competent to try fault finding, you may be better off taking the van to Dave N. My friend had a CC fitted to his Renault/Knaus by Dave (travelled Portsmouth to Telford ) and is very pleased. Much more like going to see a family friend than a business owner.

Good luck either way

Mike

[Mr. Grumpy]

Thanks for the replies. Dave actually fitted a rear view camera for me earlier this year, when the cc was still working otherwise I would have had him look it over. We are up in Cumbria (see left) so it's a long way to go to have it checked. I'll try the suggested check over the w/e and report back.