Brake controller

[Bama Camper]

Good information. Please let us know if you hear from Continental.

I had a Tekonsha P3 in my last truck. Excellent controller, never had a problem with it. It's an analog controller, so you should not have any problem getting 100 pct stopping power when you need it.

[TAKPAK]

I won't ever hear from Continental, because their website is very user unfriendly and I can't find anyplace to post a question related to this. It is so huge, and it becomes apparent that they only cater to the OEM people with their products. There are some spots that refer to "private" parties, but they don't have anything to do with brake controllers, etc. I'm trying a workaround by dealing with the GM customer service, who surprisingly has been very responsive. I have also been quite surprised at the amount of problems that have been showing up on various GM forums (have not checked Ram) about the "newer" controllers. Looked on Duramax forum, as well as Diesel Place forum. HUGE amounts of complaints about the controllers, along with some very ingenious, though dubious fixes to the problems. I don't think this is going away anytime soon!

[Bama Camper]

According to the talk on the RAM forums, there seems to be have been a change in the 2015 IBC (RAM calls theirs an Integrated Trailer Brake Module - ITBM). The problems have been mainly in the 2015 and 2016 3500s and 2500s. I have a 2013 model, and although it is a digital brake controller, it doesn't have the problems the newer models do. One RAM forum member who has a 2015 2500 has done extensive technical tests and documentation of the problem, and presented it to RAM and filed a complaint with the NHTSA. I think they have started listening to him.

My brake problems were related to a trailer problem, causing the IBC to throw errors. Once the trailer was straightened out the IBC has started behaving itself. It's still a duty-cycle based (pulse width modulation) relational output. The plain old analog based controllers are probably not quite as stable (electronically) as the digital ones, and not as "smart" with regards to speed and demand, but they are probably more reliable, less finicky and certainly work better at slower speeds than the new ones.

[Bama Camper]

By the way, for those members here who have a RAM truck whose brakes are marginal - one trick that has been successful for some members on the RAM truck forum is to set the brakes to "Heavy Electric Over Hydraulic" instead of just "Heavy Electric". The setup menu is in the center console display (EVIC), not the one in front of the driver.

[TAKPAK]

[quote]Originally posted by Bama Camper

According to the talk on the RAM forums, there seems to be have been a change in the 2015 IBC (RAM calls theirs an Integrated Trailer Brake Module - ITBM). The problems have been mainly in the 2015 and 2016 3500s and 2500s. I have a 2013 model, and although it is a digital brake controller, it doesn't have the problems the newer models do. One RAM forum member who has a 2015 2500 has done extensive technical tests and documentation of the problem, and presented it to RAM and filed a complaint with the NHTSA. I think they have started listening to him.

Thanks for the info. I was wondering if the Ram's were having problems. I too have filed a complaint with the NHTSA, about the GM problems. I consider this to be a major safety issue. I have perused the Duramax forum, as well as the Diesel Place forum, and found that there are MANY complaints about the "new" generation controllers. It looks like GM, Ram, and Continental manufacturing had better figure this out! Of course, the trailer manufactures had better take note too!!