Re: Time to go over going down steep grades,
Reply #39 –
Check these out to keep retarder from turning on brake lights sometimes. Let us know if you need more info: ----------- Add a dash switch on the wire from main retard-relay mounted on dash 12v breaker panel in front of copilot chair to retard brake light relay. Or add the switch on this retard brake light relay's wire to air brake switches. Our coach is different, as the air brake switches and retard brake light relay are mounted on front panel in street-side front compartment. Switch is VERY handy to keep cruise control from turning off on highway dips when retard joystick is not in off position. Dip causes throttle to move to idle position allowing retard to come on, and at bottom of dip throttle will accelerate coach turning off retard, if cruise control is still active. ------------ We put in a dash switch to optionally not turn brakes lights on when retarder is active. We did it for freeway driving to keep retard from turning off cruise control. If driving on cruise with joy stick not fully off, and the highway goes down even a small hill, the throttle goes to idle position, retard will kick in and when the highway goes level or starts to climb again, we used to unexpectedly find cruise turned off. With the new retard/brake light switch, we can prevent cruise from turning off. Always driving with joy stick off eliminates the need for the switch. On our coach there is a retard brake light relay next to the two (front & rear) air brake pressure switches, all of which are located high up on the front panel of the forward street side bay (just behind the headlights). Running a pair of wires from this retard relay up to dash gave us our option. Some coaches where joy stick was added post-production, the retard brake light relay was not added, so these coaches do not ever turn on brake lights when their retarder is activated. ------------
Or the relay was disconnected. My Foretravel salesman/friend Roger T. who worked at and then ran the sales at the Foretravel of California store after I left mentioned how this was a popular mod. Seems mine must be disconnected. So maybe my coaches brake lights do not come on when the retarder operates on cruise.
I had following people I thought told me that they did come on. Seems unlikely. I will have to be careful if being followed closely it seems. Lots of good mods to allow the retarder to work on cruise which is one of my favorite things when driving the coach.
A lot of owners here were holding back this info it seems. I casually posted many years ago that that was how mine was setup. Either some read my posts or like thinking of great minds took over or their coaches had had the mods long ago.
Great info as I said. I hope this can be pinned for future info both for the mod and to warn that the brake lights my not be on when on cruise and the retarder operates or does the taillights never operate on retarder cruise on or off?
Topic: Time to go over going down steep grades,