Posted 2006-08-20 10:36 AM (#46972) Subject: A matter iof brakes
Veteran
Posts: 109
Ok for all the folks that are out there towing what they think is under powered rigs. Consider what just happened to a trainer in the area. She tows with a good older ford gas rig, has the big block gas engine and is a dually. Trailer that she upgraded to a couple of years ago is a living quarters Hawk, 12 footer I believe. Good set up and works well and she tows within the limits of the rig.
Going off to a show and she felt something was wrong with the braking and as she just had the front brakes worked on was a little nervous I guess. Dealership is close by but not the one who had originally worked on the brakes. Stops with trailer on and horses loaded. Yep, there is something wrong with the brakes. First it is proportional valve that brakes front to rear in the correct amount of pressure. No, it is the master brake cylinder, nope it is the valve. After someone came and rescued her and the horses with another truck and her truck left behind to be worked on this is what happened.
The dealer tested and changed out the master brake cylinder with a non ford unit, after market unit. The brakes still were not right so she took it back to her normal ford shop. Found out the the front brakes were fried, the ones that she had just redone. The valve was the culprit, but the after market brake cylinder was shot, could not hold up to the stress of the work. Front brakes have to be completely redone again as they were braking the truck. Don't know about the rears. Ok she starts thinking what about the trailer brakes. They are shot! The brakes on the trailer were working great at the start. But there is now $1200.00 worth of work to redo them.
Bigger brakes are better then more under hood horse power. Yep, it is nice to be able to get to speed in a decent amount of time. But the being able to stop is better.
Posted 2006-08-20 11:12 AM (#46973 - in reply to #46972) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 544 Location: Claxton, Ga.
That is one thing that Dodge/Cummins has over all the competition. The factory approved exhaust brake. If you have a manual or an 06' automatic and pull heavy in the mountains it will pay for itself and then some. Brakes are not doubt a safety issue. I would classify the exhaust brake also as a safety feature.
Posted 2006-08-20 2:54 PM (#46992 - in reply to #46987) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Expert
Posts: 1416 Location: sc
Originally written by nanny on 2006-08-20 2:06 PM
Yes, we have the 2500 HD with the exhaust brake
gm says you can use one, although warranty issues may arrise due to allison, more or less, saying not to use one. so to say "Chevy also has the exhaust brake with the allison tranny" is not really accurate. i am assuming you mean you have had an aftermarket engine brake installed.........many people are under the incorrect assumption the dmax/ally combo has one built in.
Posted 2006-08-20 3:12 PM (#46994 - in reply to #46972) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 544 Location: Claxton, Ga.
Ford and GM have programed a transmission brake into the tow/haul button. It will down shift for you and slow you down. That is not the same as a exhaust brake. An exhaust brake restricts the exhaust gases per a butterfly valve. This in tern will make it harder for the exhaust gases to exit the combustion chamber. It does work in conjunction with the transmission. The manual gear is chosen by the driver while the automatic is somewhat more complicated. It uses the lockup torque converter to make a 1 to 1 connection and must be unlocked during downshift or upshift to prevent transmission damage. It will also turn off at lower speeds(25 mph). The higher the RPM's get the more breaking power you will have with an exhaust brake. The 06' Dodges with the auto are programmed to do this and they do it very well. If you set the cruise on 55 MPH coming down a steap grade the ECM will activate the exhaust brake and downshift when need. Many folks have reported not even touching the brakes in areas where they used to have issues.
Posted 2006-08-20 6:44 PM (#46999 - in reply to #46994) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Location: Texas
I sure thought my truck, with duramax/allison, had an exhaust brake since I paid for it as a factory option. Also think there may be some confusion about the difference between an exhaust brake, a turbo brake and a Jacobson (Jake) brake.
Posted 2006-08-20 6:51 PM (#47000 - in reply to #46994) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Expert
Posts: 1719 Location: PA
I had the tow/haul in my Ford and LOVED it! I now have an exhaust brake in my GMC and it's good but I feel you waste a lot of fuel because you can't just take your foot off the accelerator to coast without it going on if the switch is on.
Posted 2006-08-20 6:56 PM (#47001 - in reply to #46999) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Expert
Posts: 1416 Location: sc
Originally written by Tx. Vaquero on 2006-08-20 7:44 PM
I sure thought my truck, with duramax/allison, had an exhaust brake since I paid for it as a factory option. Also think there may be some confusion about the difference between an exhaust brake, a turbo brake and a Jacobson (Jake) brake.
isnt yours a 4500 (medium duty w/light duty powertrain)???
Posted 2006-08-20 8:11 PM (#47005 - in reply to #46972) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Expert
Posts: 2689
Something wrong with this story.... well, probably a few things.
Front brakes JUST done, she noticed that something was wrong almost straight away, but the front brakes were already shot ? OK, even if the rears weren't working at all this seems a bit extreme. Supposedly the trailer's brakes were fine, so the truck's fronts weren't taking any of the trailer's stopping work load. Ooops, no, the trailer brakes HAD BEEN ok at the start (of this fiasco) but mysteriously incurred $1200 of work. Did I misread that ?
I think her biggest mistake was taking it to TWO different repair shops and giving BOTH of them the excuse that the other one fouled things up (by using non_Ford OEM parts, for example).
ONE OF the benefits of rotating the positions of your wheels YOURSELF is that you get to look at things like brake pucks BEFORE bad noises (the usual symptom for most people) draw your attention to them.
Posted 2006-08-20 9:59 PM (#47013 - in reply to #46972) Subject: RE: A matter iof brakes
Veteran
Posts: 109
Sorry Reg the brakes had just been redone in the front. But this was the start of things, the brakes had to be redone after she had got the trunk back, from the second shop and and still noticed a problem at that point she had put miles going up and down the road and the hills. Since she is very careful It may have been later than earlier. Since the rear brakes were not doing any real work it caused the other brakes to take the load. This started a heating up problem and warped parts.
A matter iof brakes
