An engine requires oxygen to burn the fuel, if you reduce the flow of fresh oxygen rich air into the engine then it will slow down. An Exhaust Brake is one of the most popular upgrades because when activated it restricts the flow of air out of the engine. The engine is then not able to expel the oxygen-depleted air and replace it with fresh air. As a result of the engine slowing down, so will the truck.
Brake fade occurs when the drums or shoes are no longer able to apply the friction necessary to slow the wheels. This is typically caused by long periods braking and at minimum would lead to some brown trousers’ moments. The primary advantage of installing an Exhaust Brake is to reduce the demands on the brakes, especially when going downhill.
An exhaust brake will not prevent brake fading but they will reduce the chances of it happening, especially if it’s also coupled with regular breaks when doing long mountainous descents.
We brought a 4″ Exhaust Brake kit from BD-Power. We’ll install it once we have the engine installed and the plan figured out for a new exhaust.