Smoked the brakes yesterday-update on test

DanLefoot wrote:

Terryallan wrote:
IF the trany won't automatically drop to lower a lower gear. You have to do it manually. The lower the gear, the better the exhaust brake works. Not so much in higher gears

I get it now. On the 8% part of the grade I would brake hard and long enough to bring the speed down low enough so the auto tranny dropped into 2nd gear. But after a quarter of a mile or so the grade would lessen to 4%. My foot goes the accelerator which releases the exhaust brake and shifts to 6 gear. And not too long after I hit another 8% grade and I have to hit the brakes again and so on.
I think operator error.

Look at your transmission readout going up the hill and see what gear the trans is using to lug you up. Generally speaking use that same gear going down the other side - you will have to manually select the gear using the pad. Other wise you will be riding the brakes. If it seems to speed up after taking foot off the gas on the down slope you need a lower gear that will slow you down without the brake or keep you at a steady speed. If anything you should only need to stab the brakes once in a while if the trans and exhaust brake aren't enough.