Read other threads about mountain driving but haven't found any mention of this:
We've been getting practice driving in the mountains of Oregon on I-5 between Eugene and Ashland. Several 6% grades lasting 2-6 miles. Pulling a toad/minivan. On last two trips we have heard a muffled beeping alarm that is difficult to tell where it comes from. Only at higher RPM 1800 to 2100. when going up a steep grade and sometimes when descending. Accelerator at 90-95%. When climbing, we have manually shifted down to match what the automatic does and then keep that gear when descending with 1-3 levels of retarder and service brakes as needed to keep RPM/road speed down. 3rd, 30-40mph. 4th, 40-50mph. Have noticed on descents that trans won't shift up without a touch to accelerator. Alarm quickly becomes a continuous tone after a few beeps, which we think we have been able to stop by applying brakes, or shifting. Wish I could be more certain what works. Beep usually happens on uphill drive. Water temps max at 195. Transmission same. Retarder reached 230 on descents. What kind of alarm is this...... Engine? Transmission? RPM upper limit alarm? Refrigerator out of level?, (been reading about issues with overheating refrigerators during mountain transits). I need to know because guessing isn't good for our cross-country travel plans.
This "beep alarm" is distinctly different than the buzzer for travel mode or turn signals. It sounds soft, much much quieter than the beep of a microwave oven. We just can't locate its origin. If we had stereo on it might not even be heard.
Feeling a bit nervous about driving uphill.
Check your ProSine display if you have one. Mine beeps every once in a while if charging voltage goes high.
Keith
How are you getting the retarder temperature? The trans temp on your instrument panel is not the retarder temp. When my trans temp reads 230, my retarder could well be close to 300. It rises very rapidly. VMSpc tells all.
Hi Keith, You might be onto something, even though I no longer have a Prosine. But we did just install a Xantrex FW 2000 inverter before our last trips. I will check that manual for audible alarms and also see if the Xantrex control panel has memory of charging voltage spikes, (we installed control panel on fridge wall facing bedroom, which could explain the distant beep). Anyone else have same alarm beep as Keith does from their inverter for similar charging spikes and/or during the driving conditions we described?
Hi Tom, I do use VmsPC. Great product. Wish it could tell me where the beep is from. BTW: I haven't set any alarms on VmsPC yet. First I want to know what parameters are appropriate for our coach. I installed the default for Cummins 400 ISL. And happy anniversary to you and Diane, been just over a year. Wonderful profile photo!
It surprised me to learn that the retarder and transmission temps are separate. I had understood the retarder to be a transmission "brake" which created friction within the transmission resulted in higher transmission temps. How are they separated and where would I find the sender for each?
Incidentally, I did get an alarm when my intake manifold (CAC) temps went up while others were barely into the normal range.
Sevn,
Retarder output temperature and "transmission temperature" are certainly related. But, retarder output temperature rises much more quickly than transmission temperature when the retarder is in use.
Sven, transmission temp and retarder temps are both reported as separate temps on VMspc. I don't know where the actual sensors are on the transmission but the data comes to VMSpc through the data bus. If you are driving steady state w/o retarder use (even if it is on) the retarder temps will be the same as the transmission temps + a few degrees. Slowing down with one or two notches of retarder will send the retard temps to around 235 in just seconds. Step on the brakes and you will use much more retarder action and the temps can quickly go over 250. Knowing what coolant, transmission and retarder temps are help you adjust driving habits for better perfomance especially in the mountains.
If you have a VMSpc retarder temp should be a standard gauge on versions 4.x and above. Earlier version sniff for PIDs and look for 120 as I recall or make a new gauge there for PID 120.
Intake manifold temps should be close to or a bit more than ambient, maybe as much as +10 to 15 degrees. If the CAC is not getting air movement from fans or not working as it should then the pressurized air is not cooled as much resulting in a higher intake manifold temp.
Mike, all of the yellow and red indicators both high and low can be set in the parameter editor on VMSpc. These are independent of the engine you select and are representative of common values to start with. Everyone's engine, installation, cooling, loads, driving habits and location are different so it is just a starting point. Set the yellow points at the upper end of where you are comfortable, say 235 for retarder temp. This should be a signal for you to pay attention, maybe adjust driving habits, gear, speed etc. Set the high red limit at a point where it is time to do something but lower than something that will damage your coach. Retarder temps for example at 250. It could be higher with synthetics but why push it.
My ISM11 oil temps are usually 199ish. Under sustained load they go up to 205. My yellow light came on at 200, Cummins tolds me 205 was not an issue so I reset the low yellow limit to 206. Oil temps are not reported on many engines.
These are there for your information. What does your coach normally do at steady state? This is normal for your coach. Start from there.
When I started using the VmsPC to monitor retarder temp, I was surprised to see how fast it can rise.
On our coach it seems we are reading the trans sump temp. Not the retarder. Probably Foretravel did that on purpose as the quick temp increase would have some owners panicked
Your driving technique sounds just right to me. On my present coach, A 97 270, I kept getting a faint alarm sound too while all gauges were in the normal range. After chasing this annoying little distant beep for several months I finally gave up and disabled the annunciator. I am a gauge watcher anyhow so I don't miss it. If your O2 is set up like the older coaches you may find that little annunciator in the dash is the problem. Good luck.
jor
What John said! 8) 8) 8) 8)
Hi Sven, With everything happening at once I failed to note the CAC temp! Wish I had recorded the trip data. I do recall that nothing went into the "red" zone on VmsPC. (But I am only using the ISL 400 profile provided with the software).
Roger, I plan on adjusting the parameters as I get accustom to our coach and driving style.
Hi Jor, Your post has me wondering if there are two separate annunciators. Maybe you can help my thinking. 1.) Did your "distant beep" happen in mountain driving? 2.) When you disabled your annunciator did you also lose the "ding, ding, ding" on your turn signals and travel mode alarm linked to HWH? If not, then there must be two under the dash. I have only been able to locate one, our turn and HWH annunciator. FYI: DW does our driving and relies on my gauge watching. My official title of copilot is literal. Unfortunately, sometimes I get caught napping and not watching. Alarms are helpful to me if I know what they signify. It's a wake up call.
Thanks!
PS, I still need to check on Keith's suggestion of the over charge alarm on inverter control panel.
Just wondering if maybe the alarm is from something not related to the drive train, like the refrigerator, although that seems far fetched. When I bought my coach the previous owner had silenced the dash alarm with a piece of tape.. I could not hear it but my wife could, however she didn't say anything about it for the first few hundred miles. The alarm was from the TV antenna up switch although the Antenna was down. Bad idea to silence an alarm that has several functions.
Finally have a solid wifi connection so am cleaning up old threads I started with new info. Original concern here regarding distant beeping alarm. Found the source and it is nothing any of us would have known. Last year I installed a ceiling lift to assist me in transferring from my wheelchair between the bedroom and bath. The lift has an alarm which alerts me to a low battery. The battery has never been low so I never considered this to be the source. Finally crossing the Cascade today it stayed on long enough for my wife to pull over and run to rear of coach to locate the sound. Don't know why it decided to alert us to mountain driving. Pulled the emergency stop switch and alarm stopped. Will have to find out if this indicates a problem or not. It is not an FT or inverter issue.
This thread is resolved. I thank everyone who responded. Along the way of chasing this "distant beep" I learned a lot more about our coach and made new friends. Thank you!