Exhaust brake

[royals1212]

I also use my engine brake in heavy traffic. It has saved me several times here in the DFW area.

[wmpbauer]

Having the engine brake active in heavy traffic is also an appropriate use. Be advised, however, there is a reason many communities have posted signs prohibiting the use of your engine brake. It will occasionally result in a citation....


Pat Bauer, President
Entegra Coach Owners Association
www.entegraowners.com
2017 Anthem DEQ/Ford Edge

[backwater4]

Can the jake break be turned at on at anytime?

[Tall Tex]

Originally Posted by backwater4

Can the jake break be turned at on at anytime?

Yes.

[Misty123]

Originally Posted by bamaspiveys

I turn my engine brake off on the interstate, it aggravates me every time I let off the gas and want to coast a little to have the brake come on and slow me down. I do keep it on in stop and go/city traffic, I like the extra help slowing down, that half a second it takes me to apply the brakes. Bad idea?

First, Micheal Spartan can program your Jake brake in about five minutes to not come on when you release the throttle. Like you I hate trying to feather the throttle so I had them reprogram mine, now it only comes on when I touch the brake.
Second to the OP your Jake brake on high should give you a lot of braking power. You won't notice it as much at higher speeds, but as the mh starts slowing down it will get very aggressive on high.
Like I said I had mine reprogrammed so it will coast and I never turn the Jake brake off unless it's really slick. I have no doubt that you can glaze the brakes if you set there with your foot lightly on the brake pedal over an extended time. I've driven many types and sizes of vehicles with and without Jake brakes and have never glazed a set of brakes yet.
To each there own, but I'll leave my Jake on and coast down the hills. If I need the service brakes I'll use them approximately.

[Gary.Jones]

Yes, but it doesn't do anything until you get your speed down to a point that the ECM of the Allison and Cummins knows that a downshift (in addition to the Jake itself) is appropriate and you do that with the service brakes.

Oh, and another point. Service brakes are applying slowing force to all 8 tires and the Jake is applying slowing force to 4.

And, I would take what a general RV tech at some dealer says about what I should do or not do with my Spartan with a grain of salt..... Most of their knowledge is close to zero on such issues in my experience. I would take Spartan's techs advice much more seriously..

Gary

[lowejug]

coming out of 3 other coaches I also feel the anthem doesn't seem to be as aggressive on the exhaust brake mode also... good information here on how apparently we should not be to concerned about using our good old fashion brakes... great post..

[backwater4]

Originally Posted by Tall Tex

Yes.

Thanks

[umsman]

OK I understand all of above,, I use the reg brakes,, The point I am wanting to ask is,, I do not feel like the (EXHAUST, JAKE, Whatever you want to call them) is working..Question again.. Is this something to ask a CUMMINS dealer, Or a Spartan Dealer?

[Gary.Jones]

I would suggest starting with Spartan 800 customer service. I have found Cummins customer service to be less helpful. Spartan will refer you to a Cummins person if that is the best way to go.

Could you describe more what worries you? At what speed are you traveling when you engage the Jake? 60, 70, 50, 45? That would help. What gear are you in at the time?

Gary

[Cruzer]

Big Mike, when teaching at the Spartan Academy, is pretty adamant about not using the engine brake excessively. The service brakes are designed for 350,000 miles but that is based on optimal usage. Brakes need to be used fairly hard and then rested. No light applications or riding the brake because that causes them to heat up and glaze, which will not only reduce their service life but also reduce their effectiveness.

The engine brake is designed to retard speed when descending grades, not bring the coach to a stop. Riding the brakes to maintain a set speed on a downhill grade will heat up and glaze the service brakes so this is what the engine brake is designed for. My personal preference is to leave it on when traveling on the interstate on cruise control. That way if I need to do a panic stop I have a bit extra stopping power. But when I pull off the ramp to get to a Flying J I'll just use the service brakes. I do use the engine brake quite a bit on the numerous mountain grades we encounter out west.

Anyway, back to the OP's initial question:

I'd like to know what your previous tag axle coach had for an engine. I've driven numerous coaches for road test reviews over the years and have found a difference between the various models. First most is the engine size. If your previous coach was say an Essex with the 500 ISM you will have better engine braking in that coach than your Anthem. The larger the engine displacement, the greater that braking power. I've also seen a difference in the year of the coach. Our 2007 Allegro Bus with a Spartan tag axle chassis and 400 ISL Cummins did a better job than a recent year Anthem or Aspire with the 450 ISL. That's because my '07 didn't have the DPF or the SCR emission gear hanging on it. The latest emissions equipment does affect engine braking to an extent because of the restrictive exhaust. I've also noticed that Freightliner ISLs don't engine brake as well as Spartan ISLs and my guess is that their smaller diameter tailpipe has something to do with that.

If you previously had a MMGT chassis with a Cummins ISL in the pre-2008 vintage then your present 42RBQ will be close, but not quite the same as your older coach. If your Newmar had a 450 ISL of the 2011 or newer vintage then your 42RBQ should be identical in braking power. If not, then I would have it checked out. There is no user adjustment on the engine brake. It's all done in the ECM and valve train on an ISL so that would require a trip to a Cummins service center. It may be something as simple as a bad connection on the switch that keeps it in low range all the time instead of high.

One other consideration is that it may be braking but you just don't perceive that it is. I recently drove a King Aire, which is a great coach, but found that I heard more engine noise and felt more vibration than in my Cornerstone. That's not to say it was a noisy coach by any means but Entegra's R33 floor and vibration isolation doesn't allow as much noise or impression that things are happening back in the engine compartment.

[Misty123]

Originally Posted by umsman

OK I understand all of above,, I use the reg brakes,, The point I am wanting to ask is,, I do not feel like the (EXHAUST, JAKE, Whatever you want to call them) is working..Question again.. Is this something to ask a CUMMINS dealer, Or a Spartan Dealer?

Next time your Jake comes on look at the shift selector. It should show something like 2-4, but it too is programmable and if someone has had it set up to 5-6 or so it won't be nearly as aggressive.

[Dr4Film]

There are no adjustments for either an Exhaust Brake or Engine Brake.

It is either ON or OFF.

Engine Brakes being the better of the two types will either be a two or three stage brake where you can choose what level of braking you want. Whereas with an Exhaust Brake it is whatever it is.

However, with either type of braking you can choose what gear your Allison will first downshift to when your Engine or Exhaust Brake is activated. That has to be flashed into your ECM. My Allison is programmed to 4th gear when my Exhaust Brake is activated with an aim to reach 2nd gear eventually when my speed allows the Allison to safely go into 2nd gear.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[mel s]

Has it been determined whether the OP has an "exhaust brake", (as he said)... or an "engine brake"?
Wondering