Diesel Truck Resource has just published a new article on the PacBrake Install. Lary Ellis, our staff writer has been testing the PacBrake for a couple of weeks now, and here is the result:<br><br>Click here for the article <br> <br> <br>

 

Sure is a great article. Explains a lot of things. Now, I have to add this into the long list of to do's. Fortunately, I have two shops nearby who do this routinely and one is a PACBRAKE dealer.<br><br>~Dave

 

Nice job. on the write up. how is the pack brake different from the jacobs unit. <br><br>what ever happened to the follow up EMJAY article?<br><br>Dan

 

Nice write-up Top. 8)
Have you found a vendor yet for the &quot;Installation of Twin Turbos&quot; article?

 

The article is well done, congratulations. One thing I did notice, these instructions are generation specific, however, I&quot;m unable to find the model year of CTD.<br><br>Less than two months ago I installed a PacBrake on my 2003. There major differences in the installation of the PacBrake and what I read in this article.<br><br>I would Ditto what Lary said,<br>&quot;I chose Pacbrake after many hours of research on the Internet looking for an exhaust brake, from the moment I contacted them I have not regretted it. The people at &quot;Pacbrake&quot; have all been very friendly and professional; nothing about the entire process from first contact to successful installation has been anything but first rate. I have no doubt their level of customer service, (should you need any kind of support) will be superb. They supplied me with a toll free technical service number, but I had absolutely no reason to make use of it. Everything worked exactly as Pacbrake said it would!<br><br>If you have been thinking about an exhaust brake, then you owe it to yourself to check out the offerings from Pacbrake. With over 18 years of experience behind them, you won't be sorry you did.&quot;<br><br> <br>

 

Next month will be one year with my Packbrake and I love it. Of all the additions that I have added to my truck the Packbrake is the one I use the most. The most memorable event with the Packbrake was coming down Interstate 25 in South Carolina. That section is between a 6% and 7% down grade. I was running with the cruse control on and to my surprise the cruse control actually actuated the Packbrake when it let the accelerator all the way off slowing the truck. At the point where the truck slowed below the set speed the cruse control would gently add acceleration and the Packbrake would disengage. This worked great the truck smoothly maintained the set speed all the way down the hill. Not one time did I have to apply the service brakes. <br><br>Edward<br>

 

Phil, <br> you are correct those instructions were for the second generation truck year 1996. The great thing about Pacbrake, is the emphasis they place on supplying the end consumer with ALL the information you need for a successful install.<br><br> Pacbrake really has put together a terrific and informative package, I just don't see how it could be improved on. Often as not the attention to detail is lacking when you buy something these days. Pacbrake has really earned my respect by the great job they have done of trying to cover every thing in great detail.<br><br>

 

Good job on the article. May be some time before I am able to obtain a brake, but your installation and report continue to reinforce my decision to go with the PacBrake.<br>Thanks for the work.<br>Ed

 

Which manufacture is making the brake that Dodge Dealers are selling?<br>TIA

 

[quote author=Honker link=board=7;threadid=15707;start=0#151876 date=1056222625]<br>Which manufacture is making the brake that Dodge Dealers are selling?<br>TIA<br>[/quote]<br><br>Jacobs makes the one for the dealer. I love my Jacobs. Like Larry says, nice deep throated rumble when applied. Not loud, just nice - - and very effective.

 

I thought the write up on the PacBrake install was great,Now if only we could get a Skilled Writer to do a write up on the generation 3 install(hint&quot; Sierra Phil or like skilled person&quot.I have read the instructions a couple of times,don't see mention of the air tank install in any detail.It also appears to be a liittle tricky in installing the ECM pins,like best to remove the pin bracket?How hard is it to take the old elbow out &amp; put the new exhaust brake in?Anyway some one please do a install on a gen 3 6speed.Or I'll just keep reading the instuctions,&amp; saving my money untill it all comes together. Thanks Pat

 

PacBrake Compressor Install:<br>Save yourself time and drop the right front wheel liner first. It is next to impossible to tighted the bottom screw once the compressor is in place. <br> The three holes to use mounting, (manual tranny), the compressor assembly are already drilled in firewall. Check to see that the self-taping sheet metal screws are the correct length. The bottom of the three screws is impossible to tighten. If you have the an instruction manual dated prior to March 03, you need the new one. Download their PDF file and print it out 12 pages. 2003 Dodge PacBrake Instructions<br><br>These instructions have much better illustrations than the first instructions. <br><br><br><br><br>

 

Good article, Lary. I bought my PacBrake from Piers about a year and a half ago. I use it all the time and it worked flawlessly for a year. When driving up to VT in Jan., the brake stuck on in NJ at a toll booth. I had to pull over about 3am in single digit temps with no flashlight (my fault) to get it to release. I tried it again after getting to VT, it stuck on again. I didn't use again on that trip. When I got home, I took the vacuum solenoid apart and found what looked like graphite all in the actuator pin (can't remember what it's called). I cleaned it up and it's worked great, till this week. It's stuck &quot;on&quot; on me twice this week. This morning it stuck on slowing down for traffic. I had to pull off in someone's field and fiddle with it for about a half hour this morning in the driving rain. I ended up having to take the clevis pin out and dropped it in a hay field. That did it!!! I called and talked to Greg at PacBrake this morning. He couldn't have been nicer. He's shipping me a new vacuum solenoid and clevis pin, all without charge. Pretty good customer service. He also told me there's a &quot;reset&quot; button on the vacuum solenoid that I never knew was there. I'll check that when I get home tonight. To make a long story a little longer, the PacBrake is a good system. Just whatch that vacuum solenoid, it's the weak link. <br><br>Hope ya'll enjoy your brakes as much as I have mine (with a couple of exceptions).<br><br>David

 

David, <br> Sorry to hear of your troubles, but I sure am glad to hear Pac-Brake is taking good care of you. <br><br> I didn't know about the reset button myself, but I will be looking into that Thanks for the information and good luck on getting yours back up and running <br>Lary

 

Lary,<br><br>I think that solenoid will fix me right up. It's a helpless feeling when it sticks on. If it's going to stick, I'd rather it stick off. You can always use your service brakes to stop, but with the brake on, you can only run about 1500 rpm, wide open &amp; rolling black smoke. <br><br>I checked and there is a &quot;reset&quot; button. It's not marked as a button, but if you take a pen or small screw driver and push one the middle of the black plastic housing facing the front, you'll find it (I think). It may be facing the firewall on yours. I looked at the pictures from you install article, and it looked like the mounted facing the other way on your bracket. It may have just been the the picture though.<br><br>Good luck with your brake. If you have any problems, don't hesitate calling Pac. They seem to have their mess together there.<br><br>David