lunghd

Ok... to answer my own question & try to make this easy for others with work vans who want to upgrade.

No standard column vans had cruise from factory.

• Standard column = NO cruise from factory.
• Tilt column = cruise from factory.
• Switches are visually interchangeable (shape & mounting) so they should fit either column. (*** Cruise multi-function switch $38 vs. $175 at local AutoZone! : http://amzn.to/2cpufMN )
• Cruise stalk has a third pigtail for harness in column.

I will confirm fit when switch & cruise arrives.

Used cruise unit (everything under the hood) from 2000 Express 3500 is on the way from a Florida salvage yard. This would have been $40 if I was there to pull it... but I had to pay them to pull it & then to ship it which nearly tripled the cost... so finding one locally is your best bet.) (Try Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market )
Cruise stalk is on the way from Amazon. ($38... vs $175 at AutoZone!) -

lunghd

Used cruise unit arrived today. New aftermarket stalk/multifunction switch arrived yesterday....

Other guy who did install on his van never did respond further so I'm winging it here: There are stalk replacement videos on YouTube but I can find nothing showing where the OEM location for the cruise module is supposed to be. Hayne's is worse than useless... just tells you to take cruise control issues to dealership. (Well gee thanks mr repair manual author! Absofreakingly useless, aren't ya?)

Onward. Laid oem cruise unit out where it's old 'pre-curved' throttle cable would help indicate the module's location. (In other words: I matched the throttle cable from the cruise unit up to the throttle tab... & saw how the cable flexed around to indicate the general location for the cruise unit itself.)

Laying out the cruise unit on top of the engine was a winner as the curve in existing cruise cable showed almost exactly where it went. The OEM cruise unit attaches to pre-existing studs located on upper engine bay firewall just behind the power steering reservoir. Two studs are right there with a third stud towards the passenger compartment.
The cruise module's electrical plug is ready to go - just pop off the protective cap & plug it right in after bolting cruise module in.

The three studs will need three 10mm 'hat nuts'... just grab your air box 10mm bolts & find nuts that thread properly onto them & add some fairly wide washers. No fudging, get the right nuts or you'll pay hell trying to unstrip those studs.)

PROBLEM: the cable attaches to the end of the throttle body lever and is retained by an odd clip which is missing. Wasn't included in the box from the salvage yard so if you pull a unit... GET THIS! It ' should ' stay in the cable retainer... but... mine didn't. Since you have to disconnect it to remove the throttle cable from the throttle body just make sure you hang onto it... you'll need it to keep the cruise cable ON your throttle body!

Found this Dorman part that has a similar set up. Dealership does not have this clip separately... in fact you may not be able to get a cruise cable (they're on eBay as NOS items).:


The clip is visible inside the slot at top. This is the adjuster (generic but near identical) on end of cruise cable which attaches to throttle body).

And here is a generic GM throttle body - adjustment is not same on my van but arrow "A" shows how cable attaches to throttle body.



From what I can tell... it makes no difference whatsoever if you use a tilt-column switch in a standard NON tilt column... will find out tomorrow & update.

And for a van that wasn't supposed to have cruise... in addition to having the plugs in the harness it also had a fuse in the cruise slot of the fuse box. Yay, GM.

lunghd

Installing cruise on my 2000 Chevy Express 3500 turned out to be relatively easy.

Junkyard cable driven module & new aftermarket switch... you can do this for under $100 easy if you find the module in a local pick & pull boneyard and order the switch on Amazon.

This video will help somewhat although a few things are different as noted below:
The tilt-column multi-function switch bolts right in where the non-tilt switch goes & access, while a minor pain, was unusually easy to r & r the switch. The disassembly & replacement is pretty close to what is in the video but inside the van steering column cover there is a male torx head button screw on the passenger side (inside the column cover) and a phillips head screw on the passenger side immediately beside the ignition key switch. (EDIT: I think this was done when I had the ignition key switch replaced. I believe they did this to replace a broken stanchion from the top cover & simply inserted a phillips screw into the remains where the threaded post went. One on driver side also broke while I was doing this & I ended up just putting a long sheet metal screw down from the top of the column cover ( it's a work van & it's really not noticeable as-is.)

That torx head bolt can be loosened with a 4mm socket as most people don't have a torx head driver set (female). (Male protrudes outward; like a bit you use in a driver extension. Female is like any socket; bolt/nut is received into the opening.) Most of the metric fasteners are 10mm on the van but basic dash arrangement is the same and you'll have to drop the gear selector same as on truck to remove panel. Torx bits holding switch in were T-25 rather than T-27. I was also able to use a torx driver to remove the front screw without fishing a bit in there with a wrench to loosen it. Torx driver I used was an electronics style with a long shaft and a tee handle rather than a traditional nut driver style where the handle gets in the way. These aren't the exact ones I have but are what I'm talking about: http://amzn.to/2cNQ3BV ).

FYI for anyone who searches this up: the TILT column 2000 GM cruise multifunction switch WILL BOLT RIGHT IN to a standard NON-Tilt column and the cruise plugs are already in the harness! Cable driven cruise module also bolts in to studs on firewall just behind power steering reservoir and the harness plug-in is right there. So, for all you work van jockeys out there: you can add cruise for the cost of a new switch and a junkyard cruise module with cable. (NOTE: Newer vehicles started using electronic cruise... and you might have to have your control module flashed to 'activate' cruise. I"m talking about the cable driven ones which are easy-peasy to upgrade.)

Why the f**k GM left cruise off of these vans is a mystery... unless they were hoping to sell these as 'add ons' at the dealership. The only 3500 vans with cruise also had tilt steering... and I have only seen one work van with cruise. Appears to be an 'add-on' package the marketing genius's at GM cooked up to drive business into the dealership service departments.

I have tons of pics I took in case anything went squirrelly but overall it's pretty simple. Same basic procedure as the video in link above but as mentioned, the cruise stalks are cheaper on Amazon.

• new turn signal stalk: http://amzn.to/2c3DZ23
• (3) 'hat-nuts' for firewall studs (grab those when you salvage the cruise module)
• used cruise module:
• This is the cruise module with the mounting bracket. Leave the bracket attached (you'll need it) and grab all three mounting nuts from the studs. Be sure you do not lose the little clip that holds the cruise cable onto the throttle body lever!
  

David Elliott

Just want to thank Lungshd for his info. It's the only source I could find anywhere to help me put cruise control in my 2001 Chevy 3500 Collins bus. I'd like to leave a few notes for the next guy that finds this valuable thread:
1) Lungshd mentioned his ignition or lock cylinder had been replaced before he did the upgrade. The stock lock cylinder has the plastic ring and finger posts on it. You can not remove the top column cover with it in. You will have to remove all screws, then use a 90° pick to stick in the little hole above the lock cylinder. Disconnect the battery if you haven't already. My advice is reach under the loose cover with the pick and lightly rest it in the hole. Then turn the key forward and hold the switch in the cranking position. You should feel the pick lift as the switch goes into position. Press firmly down and turn the pick point a little counter-clockwise and hold it there under pressure. Jiggle the lock cylinder slowly backwards (counter-clockwise) and pull the lock cylinder out with the key still in. There's a great video on YouTube 2) In the video Lungshd supplied for replacing the multifunction switch you might notice them pulling a second plug for cruise control from the top of the column under the instrument panel. Don't waste your time looking for that plug port, it isn't there. At least not on the 96-02 vans that use the cruise module we're talking about here. It won't be on the harness of your upgrade switch if you bother to look there first. ( I did not unfortunately. )
3) Some facts that might save you time doing all the research I did:
The 96-02 GM vans all used the same cruise control module, no matter which engine they had, no matter the weight class. I have few pull it yourself yards near me, so I had to call the salvage yards with the exact vehicles I was looking for so they could check if the cc module and bracket were there or not. Don't let a yard tell you they have one from a Suburban or some other vehicle. The part number is the same for many years and models, but the cables are different lengths. They'll probably work, but your space is limited under the van hood and you won't have any issues fitting one from another van.
If you happen to need to replace those cap nuts for the mount or the cc module to the mount (or the two for the power steering reservoir) they are M6 x 1.0. They're 4 bucks for four at the parts store, or regular nuts and washers are three bucks for six and six at a hardware store.
Should you want to replace your crappy seat, good luck. Only seats from an express van of your year range will fit, no other GM seat will fit without modification. Even if you just want an arm rest, you'll need a factory seat with a rest because the mount is not inside the seat that didn't come with one.

I really want to express my gratitude to Lungshd for taking his time to put his experience out here for others to put to good use. If you look back at this, thanks brother. Hopefully my two cents helps the next guy who finds this thread.

lunghd

Glad it was of help, David. I could find nearly zero information when trying this one out.

For the steering clamshell: I cut the bottom half of the ring away below the key-cylinder. That allows me to pull the clamshell off from the top with a bit of finagling. Done correctly you don't notice the tiny amount of plastic removed after reassembly. (I have a work-van so I don't mind stuff like that but a conversion van / bus may not want to do this.)

All the plug ports were in my harness, I don't think the video was for same exact situation. It was literally 'plug & play'.

The Dorman cable end is garbage... clip is oversized and keeps popping loose. While in the boneyard - grab yourself an extra cable end AND those teeny little clips off the throttle body (that hold the cable onto the throttle body lever).

David Elliott

Thanks for the reply. These yards around Nashville won't let me pull things myself. The fellow that pulled my control unit got the connector off in good shape, but I couldn't figure any clip that held it to the connector pin on the throttle body arm. It did still have the clip you noted though. It seemed to just pop on, and I couldn't just wiggle or vibrate it off. Let's hope it stays. I had a Ford Taurus once that the cc would get stuck wide open once in a blue moon when the cable retainer would pop backwards out of a broken socket, that was terrifying. I haven't gotten to test the install yet, I still have the dash apart. My van base was bare bones, no radio. So I'm trapped in the hard learning process of installing a radio and back up camera, and scavenging the speakers and antenna from a 2001 Safari. Can't wait to put it back together and confirm the cruise install went right. I'll be sure to check back in and give the thumbs up (hopefully).

William Kisselstein

The trick on the seat is look for a conversion van.

I put a power seat track on mine that came out of one. I had to cut the stock track in two to get it off, though. Just jumpering power to it long enough to set it so the front was higher helped me a lot.