Cruise control button
Switches cruise control on, so the car holds a speed you set without your foot on the accelerator. Pressed again, it switches it off.
What pressing it does
On most cars the button only arms the system: a grey or white lamp lights and nothing changes until you press SET (or SET+ / SET−) at the speed you want, which stores it and turns the lamp green (Opel, Renault, Peugeot, Fiat). Lowest working speeds in the handbooks: about 20 km/h for SEAT and Mercedes-Benz, about 30 km/h for Hyundai, Opel, Renault, Fiat and MINI, 40 km/h (25 mph) for Peugeot. The brake pedal pauses it, RES returns to the stored speed, and switching it off (SEAT: press and hold) deletes the stored speed.
Check your car's manual: makes and models differ in what a button does, which positions a switch has and whether it works with the engine off, and your owner's manual is the authority for your car.
- What it looks like
- A speedometer dial with an arrow pointing at the needle (Opel, Peugeot, SEAT); Hyundai and MINI draw a car in front of the dial. On the steering wheel or a stalk, beside SET, RES and + / − controls
- Also labelled
- Speed control (Mercedes-Benz); Cruise control system, CCS (SEAT); Driving Assist button (Hyundai); CRUISE, SET, RES, CANC
- Standard
- FMVSS 101
What your car's handbook says
The handbook for your exact car is the authority: each row is one named handbook for one model and year, not proof for every model of that make, and the wording in the last column is ours. 8 of the 8 handbooks we checked show this button.
| Make | Handbook's name | What that handbook says pressing it does |
|---|---|---|
| Hyundai | “Driving Assist button” | Above 30 km/h, press the button at the speed you want: the set speed and the Cruise indicator light up and the car holds that speed without the accelerator. The + and − switch changes it by 1 km/h per press.Source: Hyundai 2025 Tucson (general market, English web manual), web manual page, checked 2026-10-12 |
| SEAT | “Cruise control system (CCS)” | Press the button to switch it on, then press the set button while moving to store and hold the current speed (above about 20 km/h). It only works the accelerator. Press and hold the button to switch off and delete the stored speed.Source: SEAT Ateca owner's manual, UK English, edition 06.21 (model year 2022), PDF, PDF page 236, checked 2026-10-12 |
| Peugeot | “Cruise control selection” | Press 1-ASSIST to select cruise control (shown grey, paused), then 3, 4 or OK at the speed you want to activate it and store that speed (green). Needs at least 25 mph (40 km/h).Source: Peugeot 3008 / 5008 handbook (UK English, 2024 edition, PDF), PDF page 137, checked 2026-10-12 |
| Renault | “Cruise control (switch 1)” | Press switch 1 until cruise control is selected (lamp grey), then SET/+ or SET/- above about 30 km/h to activate it at the current speed (lamp green); RES recalls the stored speed.Source: Renault Captur user manual (UK English, NU 1466-1, edition 01/2024, PDF), PDF page 227, checked 2026-10-12 |
| Opel / Vauxhall | “Cruise control” | Press the button: the control indicator lights white. Turn the thumb wheel to SET/- at the speed you want to store and hold it; the indicator turns green. Pressing the button again switches it off and deletes the stored speed.Source: Opel Corsa E owner's manual (UK English, edition August 2017, PDF), PDF page 159, checked 2026-10-12 |
| Fiat | “Electronic Cruise Control (button 1)” | Press button 1: a grey symbol lights to show the device is on. At the speed you want (above 30 km/h, not in first or reverse) press SET + or SET – to hold it; the symbol turns white.Source: Fiat Tipo 5 door / Station Wagon owner handbook (English, edition 01/2017, PDF), PDF page 118, checked 2026-10-12 |
| Mercedes-Benz | “Cruise control lever” | Operated with a lever on the steering column, not a button: it stores the current speed or recalls the stored one from 20 km/h, and a brief or held push changes the speed in 1 km/h steps. It accelerates and brakes to hold the speed.Source: Mercedes-Benz E-Class Sedan operator's manual (US, edition C1-2017 H, PDF), PDF page 160, checked 2026-10-12 |
| MINI | “Cruise control on/off (Active Cruise Control)” | Press the button on the steering wheel to switch on; the current speed is held and stored. The system works from about 30 km/h; pressing the button again switches it off and deletes the stored speed.Source: MINI Hardtop 2 Door / 4 Door owner's manual (US, online edition II/20, PDF), PDF page 179, checked 2026-10-12 |
What to check in your car's manual
Whether your button switches the system on and you then press SET, or sets a speed straight away; the lowest speed it works at; whether it can brake (adaptive cruise) or only eases off the throttle; and which button deletes the stored speed.
Where makes differ
SEAT's cruise control only works the accelerator and does not brake; Mercedes-Benz says its cruise control accelerates and brakes the car to hold the stored speed. Mercedes-Benz uses a lever on the steering column instead of a button. Hyundai warns that its Driving Assist button symbol may differ by equipment. MINI's button switches on Active Cruise Control, which also keeps a distance to the car ahead using a camera. On Opel and Renault the same group of switches also runs the speed limiter, so check which mode is selected before you lift off.
In the other handbooks' own words:
- SEAT (Ateca owner's manual, UK English, edition 06.21, 2022 model year): “The cruise control system only operates the acceleration, it does not brake the vehicle.” PDF page 236
- Hyundai (2025 Tucson, 2025): “The Driving Assist button symbol may differ depending on your vehicle option.” web manual page
Where the regulations list it
| Rule | Row | Function | Must be lit with the headlamps |
|---|---|---|---|
| FMVSS 101 | Table 1, “Automatic vehicle speed (cruise control)”: no symbol or word set | Control | Yes |
US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 101, Controls and displays (49 CFR 571.101): Cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses sold in the US. S5.2.1: a control listed in Table 1 or Table 2 is identified by the symbol in column 2 or the word or abbreviation in column 3. S5.3.1(a): a control marked 'Yes' for illumination must have its identification lit whenever the headlamps are on, except on the floor, console, steering wheel, steering column or windshield header.
Good to know
- UN R121 has no row for cruise control, so in Europe, the UK and Japan its symbol is the maker's. The dial-and-arrow drawn here is the one the Opel, Peugeot and SEAT handbooks print.
- FMVSS 101 S5.2.8 requires every function of a cruise control to be identified, but Table 1 sets no symbol or word for it. Its illumination rule (S5.3.1) does not apply to controls on the steering wheel or column, where most cruise buttons are.
- A green or white speedometer lamp in the instrument cluster is the cruise control indicator, not this button. The adaptive version that keeps a gap to the car ahead has its own lamp on the dashboard pages.
Related dashboard pages
Sources
The symbol is cited to the regulation row above; what pressing it does is taken from the owner's manuals below. Each document was read on the date shown.
- FMVSS 101: govinfo: 49 CFR 571.101 in the Code of Federal Regulations, 1 October 2025 edition, Table 1 (pp. 329-332) and Table 2 (p. 334) as printed checked 2026-09-25
- Opel Corsa E owner's manual (UK English, edition August 2017, PDF): Cruise control: switching on, p. 159 — The steering-wheel button showing a speedometer with an arrow; pressing it lights the control indicator white, SET/- stores the speed and turns it green. checked 2026-10-12
- Peugeot 3008 / 5008 handbook (UK English, 2024 edition, PDF): Cruise control, p. 136 — The speedometer-with-arrow cruise control symbol and the steering-mounted controls; minimum 25 mph (40 km/h). checked 2026-10-12
Written in our own words; the manuals cover their own models only.