Got pulled over last night for no brake lights. Sherriff hits his lights and as I am pulling over and stopping he turns em off. So I sit there until he comes up to the window and tells me he was going to give me a ticket for not having working brake lights, but they came on just as I was about to stop. I had to explain about the Pacbrake. Dont have to use the brakes much, only to stop completely. Ha Ha. He just kind of looked at me sideways and let me go.

 

Hahaha thats rich, would have been priceless if it had been pouring rain

 

I had the same thing happen and even have had truckers curse me coming down off the mountains saying my brake lights don't work. I just tap the pedal once or twice and drive on.

 

Youd think the truckers would understand. course many of them dont seem to know the word slow yet alone brake.

 

I dont think its cause the truckers necessarily have a problem. If anything they might be a little surprised at the slow down because they dont normally see that sort of thing in a pass. vehicle pulling a camper or whatever. A hotshot rig yes, campers not as often. And, if you made your living by the mile, the faster you went, the more you'd make too. His kids might need a new pair of shoes

 

Well for safety reasons why not wire the brake lines to come on with the exhaust brake too? You do brake so why not let the others know about it?

AlpineRAM

 

I think that would be worse for safety to be honest. I think you need to know when to use the brake and when not to use the brake. When you're towing, and going down a long hill, the last thing you want is your brake lights to be on constantly. I think it would cause more confusion then anything else. Not only that, but you'd get a lot of people going by you thinking "What an idiot".

 

I don't know about the implications... the deceleration with these light vehicles like empty pickup trucks with an exhaust brake is rather brisk. I concede that the brake lights shouldn't be on when you use the ex brake to just maintain speed down a grade with your trailer or 5th wheel.
With the "you use the brake so why..." I meant that the standard brake lights help the drivers behind you to notice that you are decelerating. This doesn't mean that the driver of a vehicle can rely on the brake lights of the vehicles in front to know when to use his brake.
Some time ago they had an extra exhaust brake light on the rear of the trucks over here.

AlpineRAM

 

I drive a grade up and down to job site in McCall ID that is pretty curvey. I normally drop to 3rd gear and feed it fuel for the straights (about 35 MPH) and jake it for the curves.

I've got yelled, the #1 finger and many more...

If I got someone behind me when i start down the grade. I will tap the brakes twice at the top and twice at the bottom. Jake the grade itself.

Now I get asked... "How in the hell do you drive off the grade without touching your brakes?"

 

If you're towing a trailer using the Jake brake, I would suggest getting the brake lights to work with it. Nothing like being in a slow moving vehicle in the mountains with some dummy in a sports car riding so close to the trailer you don't know he's there until he rear-ends you. Even without a trailer, there's always someone out there who thinks it's okay to tailgate.

 

I tend to watch the progress of the vehicle in front of me and not rely on his brakelights. But that's just me.

 

Yeah, just ask Rattlinram about how quick mine decelerates with the Jacobs.
Something about a "bat turn" he will tell you.