Forum Discussion

pawpawlang315's avatar
pawpawlang315
Explorer
Jan 22, 2014

Exhaust brake

I am having an occasional problem with the exhaust brake on my 2005 Chevy Duramax engine installed in a Gulf Stream Endura. It will at times not retract when the brake pedal is released which causes a lot of back pressure on the engine if I apply accelerator. I can crawl under the vehicle and tap the air cylinder rod assembly with my tire thumper and it will open up. It doesn't do it every time and does not seem to have a regular pattern. I have sprayed the entire assembly with lubricate and that seems to help but did not alleviate the problem.

Has anyone else encountered this problem and if so what if anything did you do to remedy it.

I would also appreciate any suggestions anyone would have.
Class C
  • ronfisherman's avatar
    ronfisherman
    Moderator
    Jan 22, 2014
    Not sure it would be carbon buildup on a Duramax. You should lube it every few thousand miles with high temperature Lube. I use Pacbrake Lube to keep mine working properly. If you have not used a high temperature lube previously. You may need to remove it to get at inner shaft. If you take it to a GM dealer. They will sell you a new exhaust brake for big dollars.
  • carringb's avatar
    carringb
    Explorer
    Jan 22, 2014
    Yup what he said. It's sticking due to carbon build-up. You need to take it apart and clean the butterfly with carburetor cleaner. Avoid extended idling to prevent future carbon buildup. Keep in active all the time and it will be much less likely to bind up.
  • dalton4's avatar
    dalton4
    Explorer
    Jan 22, 2014
    Several years back some Dodge/Cummins owners were having problems with carbon building up on brake's butterfly valve/stem. As I remember, the fix was to remove carbon and use brake often enough to keep the carbon from building up.

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