Down Hill Braking on a Ford Chassis
Guru's, This may seem a silly question, but, on my DP when going down a long or steep grade, I just downshift my Alison to a lower gear and hit the exhaust brake as needed. I never have to use the ...
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Gas engines provide engine braking on the intake stroke when the throttle is closed, thus don't need a throttle on the exhaust to provide braking. For an exhaust brake to work, intake throttle has to be wide open, that doesn't work for gas but is normal condition for diesels that don't throttle intake.
Braking power is proportional to engine RPM, so for maximum braking you find a gear and downhill speed which puts you close to redline. On the 6.8 V10, for braking, that can be upwards of 6000 rpm. At about 13000 pounds, my V10 will hold me at about 15 mph in first on a 12% grade, 40 mph in 2nd on a 8% grade.
What you don't get on a gas engine is engine braking modulated by a brake pedal.
Braking power is proportional to engine RPM, so for maximum braking you find a gear and downhill speed which puts you close to redline. On the 6.8 V10, for braking, that can be upwards of 6000 rpm. At about 13000 pounds, my V10 will hold me at about 15 mph in first on a 12% grade, 40 mph in 2nd on a 8% grade.
What you don't get on a gas engine is engine braking modulated by a brake pedal.
