Hi, I have a 2500HD diesel and love the truck and powertrain. I searched the forum to get info on my questions and did find some related answers but not the complete answer.

My questions are: I like the engine brake and have it on all the time (unless I forget to put it on). Is there any reason to not use it all the time such as lower fuel economy, engine wear, lower performance, etc. Does the engine brake wear out with too much use? I cannot find any reason to not use it. If there is no reason why is it selectable and not on all the time?

Thanks for your help.

 

Never use it if the roads are icy or slick. After a rain I took an exit ramp and drifted around the corner when the engine brake engaged and lost traction due to the oil coming to the surface. Scared the daylights out of me. The same thing will happen on snowy or icy roads, so the EB was designed to be off until selected on by the driver more than likely for safety reasons.

As for fuel economy, I think that is debatable as I haven't noticed any difference whether it is on or off. Now, if you want to coast between stop signs or lights where you can gain enough speed to engage the EB (30-35mph from my observation-25 if I down shift), but the distance is short enough to just coast, I will turn it off.

Other than that, I leave it on all the time to keep the vanes moving on the turbo. I don't think it will wear out any quicker - if anything it will extend the life of your brakes.

 

Almost lost mine doing about 35mph in 4X4 on icy roads, I have never used it on slippery roads since.

 

I run in Tow/Haul with the exhaust brake on all the time, but I agree it's best not to use it on slick roads.

 

This has been discussed heavily on a few other forums, and most guys suggest running it all the time (when road conditions permit). Using it all the time forces the sliding nozzle of the Variable Geometry Turbo to move constantly, which operates the exhaust brake function, as a result keeping it free from soot build-up.


There should be no drop in mileage if you're using it to slow come to a stop/slow, but obviously there would be if you're using to play around, seeing as you're killing momentum and then burning more fuel to accelerate back up to speed.

 

I run with mine as often as possible because I love having it with the manual trans. I have had a few slips on icy roads from the braking power but the traction control usually kicks it off pretty quick if it slips. I have found my fuel mileage suffers mainly due to accelerating after it slows me down a bunch rather than coasting and I need to get back on the gas to get back up to speed. I've heard leaving it on is better to keep the turbo veins clean with all the oily residue from the ccv filter blowing in there.