Dealer wont sell jacobs ehaust brake?

[KO_RAM]

What's the status?

Has anyone heard anything more on the status or explaination of the Exhaust Brake availability with the 6 speed? I've been using mine daily, but was wondering if there is anything I need to worry about other than checking for exhaust leaks.

 

[Winston Wolf]

My local Mopar counter says they are still "on hold". He added "they may stop selling them".



No explanations available. Very disappointing that no info is available, especially for those already installed.



Must be serious.

 

[PLaFrombois]

I've stopped at two different dealers asking about availability of the exhaust brake. Of course, they didn't have one in stock, but there were some in Chicago and could be brought up the next day. They even called to confirm they were available.



Paul

 

[mberry]

I spoke to the local Cummins dealer and all they said was "thermal issues" he did say fires, but that was unofficial.

 

[WM-300]

Must not be to serious for those already installed. I bought mine new with my 2003. If it was serious, I figure they would issue some type of recall or at least warning. I have received nothing. Mine apparently is working flawless, no exhaust leaks I can detect.

I am going to be hard pressed to remove mine. I use it all the time.



WM-300

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

Same thoughts here WM-300. Put mine on and I use it all the time. Checked for leaking exhaust marks after reading these posts. If something goes wrong and they didn't have the courtesy to let us know,... well, does anybody know a good class action lawyer? Okay cross out the good part :-laf .

 

[RMcCulloch]

My local Mopar counter says they are still "on hold". He added "they may stop selling them".



No explanations available. Very disappointing that no info is available, especially for those already installed.



Must be serious.

As Artie Johnson used to say: "Ferry Interestink!"



When I was at the local dealership last week, the Service Manager asked me if I knew of anyone that wanted one - it seems that DC shipped him an extra one for him to sell.

 

[twc]

I can add my experience to this thread. We wanted more towing capacity and ordered a 2005 Dodge 3500 DRW, CTD, 6-speed from Ferrero Auto Center in Loveland, CO. Part way through the process, the non-availability of the Jacobs exhaust brake was discovered.



Cummins Rocky Mountain in Denver confirmed the hold, saying that they thought it was an electrical problem (which now appears questionable given previous postings on the subject). Cummins also said that they would not approve any other exhaust brake (also in conflict with other postings, but it was Cummins who said it).



I also sent e-mail to Dodge and Jacobs. Jacobs never responded, which I thought unusual because their technical support department has never failed to respond within 24 hours in the past (I actually helped them debug a sticking micro-relay problem that was preventing our exhaust brake from actuating). Dodge responded with a series of messages, interspersed with increasingly detailed requests from me for The Real Story. The final answer from Dodge was, "Unfortunately, the information you are seeking is unavailable from DaimlerChrysler or considered proprietary. " That's a copy and paste from their last message.



The truck was intended as a serious tow vehicle and, for that application, an exhaust brake is not optional, especially since we live in Colorado where there are actual mountains. The dealer resolved the situation by telling me to come pick up my deposit check, saying, "We're not in the business of creating unhappy customers. " I give them high marks for integrity: They took money off the table to prevent a problem.



So what did we do? We've owned a long line of Chevrolet/GMC vehicles and have experienced serious reliability problems with each, the kind that leave you dead on the road. That's why we bought our Dodge. We did drive a 2005 GMC 3500 with the Duramax diesel and Allison transmission. Not a bad truck, but history weighed against it. We now own a 2005 Ford F-350 King Ranch with the PSD and 5-speed TorqShift automatic. We hope -- we really hope -- that it's half the truck our 1998 Dodge 2500 was. It's actually a very nice truck and, so far, things look promising.



Tom Christian

Fort Collins, CO

 

[GFrance]

Very interesting thread. I have given some thought to selling my 2001. 5 with Dtt auto smart lock & Banks brake. Was considering a 3500 dually with a six. But I'm not willing to go without my exhaust brake. Think I'll just wait to see if they resolve this issue.

 

[jelag]

I'm on record with post #11 of this thread..... about the Jacob's unit... .



From reading the past few posts I would have thought that you might not have read the first page... .



Yes there have been leaks with the Jacobs and there have been some problems... . I really surprised that this hasn't been solved and the units aren't for sale again... . I'm guessing that we might not have the complete scope of the issues... .



Like I said above in my other post... . PacBrake exhaust brake, has been approved by Cummins for all their engines from exhaust brakes through engine brakes for larger engines.....



My new 05 will be ready in a few days... . it should be in Spokane as I write this... I'm however out of town... and it will be equipted with an exhaust brake right away...



I currently drive an 04 with 83K miles... 80% of the time it pulls a trailer that weighs between 18-22K lbs depending on how its loaded... . I'm still working on my OE brakes and when the tires were changed at 65K miles the brakes were still at least 50%... .



Today the truck is pulling a smaller trailer, its about 12K lbs and on a 6% grade the exhuast brake will handle the complete load... . on larger loads, trailers over 15K lbs I do have to use the service brakes.....



I hope this has been some help... . If you have specific questions please post your questions or email me directly...



BTW the PacBrake and the Jacobs connect to the same terminals on the ECM and function the same... . I'm not aware of any special wiring harness for the 05 Auto's as the ECM has the ability to turn on and off the exhaust brake... and I'm sure that the 2 computers will talk... . as in the case of the larger engines... ...



Jim / Pacific Clutch & Brake, a PacBrake Master Distributor...

 

[SKelly]

I have an '04 with the Jake Brake. I traded the '03 with the auto since it was so bad towing and the warranty issues with fitting an exhaust brake on it. Now I hear of problems with the Jake on the 6 speeds? What a joke. If and when it catches fire I am gonna jump and leave it to burn. It under warranty right?

 

[Briman]

I am interested in the "real" story on the Jacobs brake. It's too bad that the manufacturer (truck/brake/engine) can't tell us what is going on. I decieded not to use the Jacobs brake on my '04 because of my experience on the '03.



I posted months ago that I was concerned by the heat and exhaust restriction caused by the Jacobs. Not to mention the buzzing shifter switch and the screech it made while turning off. I was more concerned with EGTs than ambient heat but after looking at my truck today I realized that the turbo mounted brakes do end up very clost to the fire wall (no pun intended).



I like my in line brake and look forward to finding out "the rest of the story" on the Jacobs.

 

[SKelly]

Growing up in a family of defense litagation attorneys I think this whole issue of Jacobs and Dodge not telling us the whole story can be pretty damaging. Will it take a fire and/or personal injury to find out?

 

[jrobinson2]

The truck was intended as a serious tow vehicle and, for that application, an exhaust brake is not optional, especially since we live in Colorado where there are actual mountains. The dealer resolved the situation by telling me to come pick up my deposit check, saying, "We're not in the business of creating unhappy customers. " I give them high marks for integrity: They took money off the table to prevent a problem.



So what did we do? We've owned a long line of Chevrolet/GMC vehicles and have experienced serious reliability problems with each, the kind that leave you dead on the road. That's why we bought our Dodge. We did drive a 2005 GMC 3500 with the Duramax diesel and Allison transmission. Not a bad truck, but history weighed against it. We now own a 2005 Ford F-350 King Ranch with the PSD and 5-speed TorqShift automatic. We hope -- we really hope -- that it's half the truck our 1998 Dodge 2500 was. It's actually a very nice truck and, so far, things look promising.



Tom Christian

Fort Collins, CO

If an "exhaust brake is not optional" what brand of exaust brake is warranty aproved for a Ford Powerstroke The torqshift in "tow haul" mode cant develop any more compression braking than a manual transmission so I assume you have added an aftermarket exhaust brake the same as you could have done with a Dodge

Jared

 

[twc]

> From reading the past few posts I would have thought that

> you might not have read the first page... .



Jim, I've read 'em all, including your #11 -- and supplemented that with my own research. Here are the facts to date:



(1) Dodge (not Cummins or Jacobs) has placed a hold on exhaust brakes.

(2) Dodge isn't talking (certainly not to me) about what the problem is.

(3) There is no specified time for correction of the problem; in point of fact, there is no commitment to correct the problem. In this context, I'm suddenly very sensitive to the plight of 48RE transmission owners.

(4) Here are my notes from Tuesday, September 14: I was told by someone (sorry, didn't get a name) in the parts department at Cummins Rocky Mountain in Denver that there was a hold by Dodge on the Jacobs exhaust brake because of a "safety issue". Contrary to some reports I'd heard, he said it was not an availability problem because they had them on the shelf in Denver. He thought the safety issue was a wiring problem and added that he though it would apply to any exhaust brake that was installed. I specifically asked about other exhaust brakes, searching for an alternate answer to my problem, and was told that, "Cummins does not recommend any non-Jacobs parts. "



> I'm guessing that we might not have the complete scope of the issues.



Too right. I haven't seen or heard anything that I would call authoritative.



> Like I said above in my other post... . PacBrake exhaust brake

> has been approved by Cummins for all their engines from exhaust

> brakes through engine brakes for larger engines.....



(5) You are a PacBrake dealer.

(6) You say that Cummins has approved installation of PacBrake exhaust brakes.

(7) There is a conflict between what Cummins told me and what you have posted.



I'm not in a position to resolve this issue, but you are. However, proof by repeated assertion isn't credible. Let's face it: As a PacBrake dealer, you have a conflict of interest.



Before I installed the Jacobs exhaust brake in my 1998 Dodge I got written approval from both Dodge and Cummins that it was an acceptable modification and would not void my warranty. PacBrake legally cannot make this claim without something comparable. As a PacBrake dealer, all you have to do is call the corporate office and have them send you a copy of the written authorization from Dodge and Cummins for PacBrake installation then scan it and post it on this site. For extra credit, assuming PacBrake can get the information, post hard data on the nature of the problem and explain why PacBrake isn't susceptible to it. Finally, I'd suggest that you send a copy to Cummins in Denver to correct their misunderstanding. I guarantee you that a lot of Dodge owners and potential owners will sleep better tonight, and it will do wonders for your bottom line.



Tom Christian

Fort Collins, CO

 

[Big MAK]

It' good to hear from TWC in this thread that PacBrake is ready and available and approved by Cummins for the engine. So there _is_ an exhaust brake available. Of-course work with your dealer to make sure no warranty issues are rasied. I'm certain there are some dealers that won't have a problem making sure your warranty is kept safe -- simply have it foot-noted on the purchase order that you are installing a PacBrake with the understanding it isn't a warranty problem.



Carlton Bale; from Cummins; has been quite forthright in keeping us informed in the top thread of this forum. It's locked there; since this is a topic many are interested in and new info comes out every week.



I think people are getting the wrong impression -- i. e. that there isn't an ebrake available -- simply because Jacobs doesn't have one and that's the one Dodge deals in. Consequently; I'm opening a new thread to stick to the top of the forum that informs readers there -are- ebrakes available. Jacobs is not the -only- game in town.