I too held a CDL and know a couple of things about braking.
If the Dodge system is so poor and inadequate can anyone point me to the NTSB reports of Dodge truck accidents resulting from poorly designed or poor performing brakes?
Has NTSB ordered recalls? Has Dodge been forced by the Fed or by major lawsuits to redesign any of the braking systems?
Is there a record of lawsuits Dodge/Ram has lost in state or federal courts because of inadequate brakes?
I'm not aware of any of the above.
ABS systems were not designed or built to provide braking on mud, ice, or other conditions where no traction is available.
ABS systems were designed to allow the typical unskilled or marginally skilled driver to maintain some steering control so that he or she can steer around an obstacle or hazard.
I don't need to have been a witness to the accidents cited by the op or by Fox. The fact that each of you stated your trucks would not stop in sufficient time and distance to avoid a crash while operating on slick surfaces is all anyone needs to know.
ABS systems don't throw sand, gravel, or other traction aids on the surface or install chains.
You guys can get mad and blame me if you wish but if the brakes were at fault are you filing a lawsuit against Dodge?
Fox, you said you got a ticket. And you also said you told the officer what happened and he said he'd heard that story many times but he still wrote the ticket. Apparently the LEO knew that it was speed too fast for conditions and poor traction that caused your accident not ABS brakes.
Throw your angry comments if you wish.
I agree somewhat with the above (and I also have a CDL)... Sad fact is that a lot of police in this country are in it strictly for revenue generating and will write a ticket for anything (even to their own mother!)... Right or wrong!!
Here in Wyoming, The WHP
WILL issue a citation to
ANYONE that slides off the road or crashes for "driving too fast for conditions" regardless of speed!
Truth is that ABS from ANY MFR (Audi/VW, BMW, Dodge/Ram, Ford, Chevy/GMC, etc... ) is ONLY designed for the
"average" consumer that may never see dirt, gravel, snow, or ice in their lifetime and is DANGEROUS to those of us that encounter these conditions from time to time.
While working here in the oilfield, I have been plagued with traction control and ABS issues that have dang near put me in the ditch just about every time it rains or snows because of "technology"('06, '07 Dodge, '07 Furd and current '11 Furd). Non biased observation from a "die hard GM fan" co-worker friend of mine in the same boat says that he's noticed/experienced the exact same issues with his '11 GMC 3500!
Truth is that it severely inhibits my stopping abilities even when the tires have plenty of grip to go forward!! #@$%!
It is very dangerous IMHO to have a 7k+ vehicle of ANY make or model that absolutely refuses to respond to the driver's need to
STOP! just because a room full of weenie engineers with a college degree thinks that a computer algorithm knows best... When in fact, common sense and experience actually does!!!
PS: My '92 brakes much better than my '09 ever did (or will) since I bypassed the ABS module and tossed the ABS computer in the trash!!!