BTW most fun on an ascent - heading east on I90 out of the columbia gorge climbing a big grade and came up on several nhra top fuel haulers (spotless chrome monsters) passing each other. Once they fell in line passed them all- then they passed me once we were off the grade in the cascades. Awesome vehicals and fun to see up close. Biggest problem I have on grades is coming up on a vehical that is crawling up or down . Even if you have the right equipment this will keep you up on your game. A good reason to pick a multi lane highway over a single.
Glad you are enjoying your exhaust brake Henry. I wouldn't own a diesel pickup without one. I hope GM and Ford make them OEM soon, those pickups really get in the way on steep downhills
2008 Dodge 3500 CTD LB SRW 4X4 6-Speed Auto
P3 Blue Ox Sway Pro
2007 Komfort 212
Not sure how my equipment fits in here.....I don't haul very heavy (7-7.5K) and I have a TC lock-up/exhaust brake unit. TC stays locked up to the summit, then EB kicks in...I seldom use foot brake. No gearing down necessary, I just get out of OD when roller coasting in the mountains (and I too live right in the middle of them). Mine was less than $300. Tho not an "engine" brake, it does the job. 'Course I don't have a Dodge.
"We have met the enemy and he is us"
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Thanks for the comments. Where I live, work and play, it's all mountain passes and while my work trailer is pretty light, the Arctic Fox trailers are notoriously heavy. Having the exhaust brake is a very nice option and an excellent safety feature that can't be beat.
Gearing down in an automatic doesn't really work all that well because the torque converter only locks up in OD, not in any other gear. So you lack the engine compression that a standard transmission has (at least in my truck that's how it works). So for all the people that replied "you just simply gear down in an automatic transmission", you must have something different from me. I am impressed by your driving ability and your truck.
DSteiner51, I am even more impressed by your ability of driving down a 15 - 20% grade in an automatic transmission for miles at a time by only down shifting. I am not saying this in jest, I am serious because I can't remotely imagine myself being capable of driving 70 or 90 km per hour like I did down the highway in second or first gear.
ryoung, you are definitely right as far as necessity versus cost. I was referring to "if you can afford it" because it wasn't cheap! I can definitely see how some people would look at the price tag and would really have to justify whether they needed it or not. Especially if their towing habits or terrain did not require it.
Paul Clancy, what is the Duramax/Allison grade braking? I have never heard of it? Sounds cool because you obviously know the testing grounds of engines and brakes that I am talking about. You know, the stuff that scares the******out of flat landers and eats their brakes pads. Lol.
Dave H M, That's pretty impressive that you got that much life out of your first set of pads. I wish I could say the same. I changed mine at 90,000 KM, that 56,000 miles. Like I said, I live in the hills and I drive very conservatively. I don't speed and stop excessively and brake pad life of my expectancy is very common in the Pacific Northwest due to the mountains.
Nolra, The torque converter locks up at 40km per hour (25 miles per hour) when I lift off the gas (while the system is switched on, while switched off, it's doesn't work). The exhaust brake butterfly flap kicks in at 900 RPM. Those settings can be changed.
No I didn't install it myself. I don't have the tools or ability to do that much work. I took my truck directly to BD Power to have it done. Luckily, they are within driving distance for me.
Albeto, I am talking about exhaust brake. This is what I got and this is the gauge pack.
coolbreeze01, I sure wish my truck came stock with it. The new ones all have them and I am envious. It was a toss up to get a new truck completely or just install the after market equipment. I figure I am gonna drive this one to the ground first. Can't afford a new one for now.
DSteiner51 wrote: I am happy for you. It appears you spent a bunch of your hard earned money for ??? I don't have any of that stuff and a 6-7% slope is a simply nice grade. For a 4 mile long 7% slope I shift down and engage the cruise, sit back and relax. Nothing to it. I routinely travel 15-20% without problems. It is called shifting down.
Don't you have a Ford Ranger as your TV for your 5er?
If you do, you may not know that with diesels, there is not as much available "engine braking" as they have no throttle plates to close off to restrict air entering when coasting.
2004 Cougar 301 BHS "MEGACASPER" 2007 Dodge/5.9L Cummins/3500 SRW Megacab/48RE/4x4/3.73/10,100# GVWR
RV and truck weight = ~20,000# Hypertech Max Energy
Paul Clancy, what is the Duramax/Allison grade braking? I have never heard of it? Sounds cool because you obviously know the testing grounds of engines and brakes that I am talking about. You know, the stuff that scares the******out of flat landers and eats their brakes pads. Lol.
Hi Henry
From the allison (transmission) web site.
http://www.allisontransmission.com/service/faq/index.jsp?CategoryID=11#82
It works extremely well and I stay at the speed limit with cruise grade braking engaged. If I towed heavier I'd be looking into the banks speedbrake which is a plug in box that uses the variable turbo vanes with the allison grade braking together to slow descent. Gets rave reviews from those with big trailers who are bothered by the rpms of grade braking alone. Just some other options that work as well as the eb.
Oh boy....I'm starting to see a new rivalry with some of you guys: the "Exhaust Brakers" vs. the "Non-Exhaust Brakers". I felt some tension in some of the posts by guys without the brake. I'll see how this goes. LOL....
Happy trails!!
Pete
2004 F-250 SC XLT FX4 OFF ROAD 5.4L, camper package, snowplow prep and more.
1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4x4 5.2 V8
It is apparent that those who have only owned newer trucks and not owned older ones do not understand how conventional non-electronic automatic transmissions work.
My truck has a C6 automatic, which does not have a locking torque converter in any gear. Downshifting has always worked well for engine braking for me. Same with my Chevy's with TH350 and TH400 auto trannys and my Dodge with TQF727 auto tranny. No locking torque converter in those tranny's either. You don't need a locking torque converter to use trans gearing to slow the vehicle. The torque converter not locking does not mean the trans is free-wheeling, it just means that there is some slip, about 50-100 rpm worth, still plenty of engine braking going on. Trust me, it works fine.
For the record, I am certainly NOT against exhaust brakes. I also understand that diesels do not have as much engine braking compression as gas engines, for the reasons IB516 stated. We also have a diesel E350 in the family business that I tow with as well. It doesn't have an exhaust brake and gearing down the auto trans does help slow the van going down the big hills we have around here.
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I can definitely see how some people would look at the price tag and would really have to justify whether they needed it or not. Especially if their towing habits or terrain did not require it.
