On the plus side your transmission didn't blow up into a million pieces.

Next time pass the slow cars and you won't have to brake so much.

 

D-4 would of helped depending the speed you were going!

 

Yeah, the lack of a sport-shifter, or paddle-shifters is kind of disappointing. I can live without it, though. I'm no expert, but I'm surprised that 2nd gear didnt provide enough engine braking. How long and steep is it?

 

I'll take it a step further and note that this problem is nonexistent with a manual transmission

I'm no expert on engine braking but I wonder if the high-revving propensity of Honda engines makes them less of a candidate for effective engine braking.

I have driven Pikes Peak (albeit in a rented Camry, not in my Ridgeline) but this was before they paved the last few miles and put guardrail downhill from the switchbacks above the tree line. All I can say is that the warnings you get going up about the potential for brake failure coming back down - combined with coming back down through thick cloud cover on switchbacks covered with a slurry of icy red mud ... TERRIFYING. By the time we got to the brake check station I needed the 15 minutes to get my composure.

 

That’s an unusual scenario, where you are not only going down a very long, steep decline and also forced to follow people going really, really slow. I think in most real life situations 4th gear or at most 2nd gear will suffice.

 

Read the OP post. He's descending Pike's Peak, which tops out at 14,000 feet plus, and it's a steep descent. 4th or second is not enough and, in both the 6 and (lower first) in the 9 speed, still not enough. That's the number 1 feature I would like to see added, some kind of hill descent lower range on 1 and maybe 2 for us mountain drivers. I took my 2020 to W CO for a road project field trip. This road descends to the Gunnison River over about 9 miles, with 18% grades, and I could smell my brakes descending in first. Just not low enough for steep hill descent.

 

I haven't played around with L too much. Most likely, you were in drive, and then shifted into low, and the truck probably shifted into 2nd gear. I wonder if you would have gotten better results if you came to a complete stop in low, and then started going again. I'm not sure if/when it would shift from first to second in that scenario.

 

It didnt work. It shifted into 2nd as soon as i let off the gas.

 

My 2012 Acura TL's 6-speed auto was programmed like that. Even using the paddles. Could not stay in 1 any faster than 2-3 mph before it would change to 2, uphill, downhill, didn't matter. I live in CO also and that was very frustrating, especially on steep downgrades.

The 9-speed in the latest models does not have that issue, plus 1st gear is a little lower than L in the 6-speed. That's why I held out for the 2020 model because I noticed that my friend's 2019 did the same thing as my Acura, and that was a deal breaker.

 

I was on a snowy road in low and it did a good job of keeping the speed down. I don't remeber the actual speed but it was a steep hill.

 

I agree with you completely on the poor decision by Honda to not include something like this. It would be nice if they had included the manual mode on the shift knob. One thing I just thought of was the AWD terrain modes. I wonder if the sand or mud mode keeps it in 1st gear to higher rpms because its trying to give you a lot more torque and throttle in those two modes than normal and snow. I have a very steep street I drive down to a stop sign every day for work and use L gear but still have to use my brakes more than I'd like. I might try one of those modes in the morning to see if it keeps me in lower gears without pressing the gas as I coast down the street. Probably bogus but I'll try anything once, except crack..crack is wack.

Update: I attempted sand mode with Low gear coming to a complete stop to get it into 1st. It did nothing to help, it still shifted to 2nd and I needed to brake as I normally do down my hill. Sigh...

 

It was worth a shot.

I just had a crazy idea. So, has anyone noticed that when you are going down a hill (with the cruise control set) that if the hill makes you accelerate to about 3mph faster than the set speed.......that the truck will downshift to try to slow you down? So, going down a mountain, what if you had it in low, and set the cruise at the lowest possible speed that you can? I think the cruise only works from about 25mph and above. Would the truck downshift into 1st to try to slow you down? It sounds kind of crazy, but i think it might just "work." That being said, i can't imagine this being a feasible solution. I neex to find a long, steep hill near me to test this out..... : )

 

So, you're on a mountain and coming down...Wow, excessive braking. You are coming down a mountain. There are times that you do need excessive braking. As long as you were slowed/stopped the RL's brakes worked as advertised.

 

I live on a mountain with very steep roads....VERY steep....yes, you do need brakes, but you shouldn’t’t have To tear them up in 6 months. Obviously, you don’t drive down very steep mountains often. And....my brand new brakes are mushy.....And where exactly are the RL’s brakes advertised? Perhaps I didn’t see that magazine....

 

I will need to read the manual again about using L gear. Uncertain that it tells us much actually. I did notice a button on my awd rtl-e so will need to look at the manual for that as well. Wonder if that will lock in into a gear if pressed.

If in the end either of above are the answer then I too would say the ridgeline does not like to use engine/gear breaking well at least not with a travel trailer in tow then again I probably needed to increase the power brake control setting.

Honestly I need to just ride with someone that has towed travel trailers a lot and they can give me best practices insights. Then at least will see what the ridgeline can and cannot do on that front.

 

 

Please read my post carefully before making stupid comments. I was the only one in a string of vehicles that had to brake constantly. You can’t pass other vehicles on hairpin curves with no guardrails at 14000 ft above sea level. I have been in the mountains many times with other vehicles and never had this problem. Put away some of your beer and cigarette money for a couple of days and take a trip to Pikes Peak with your Ridgeline and let me know how it goes.

 

Maybe just call an Uber next time if driving makes you uncomfortable.

 

Pump gas compression level gassers in general don't have great engine braking in general race motors have more compression and do a better job.

The ecoboosts sure don't Ive towed with two different 3.5's, my titan only has a bit of trans braking ability.

Every truck I've owned in the last 30 years gets the same upgrades at the first brake job-

I call it a "stage 1" brake upgrade.

1. Upgraded discs - cross drilled and slotted if I can get both. (I can't find both features on the market yet for the ridge but I have some time)
2. Better pads - I really like the hawk LTS pads. I pushed them hard with a 7500LB -9K load.
3. Stainless steel lines, and if I can fit it a master cylinder stiffener. This helps the "stepping on a chunk of tofu" feeling practically every stock truck has these days including the ridge.

This combo of stuff gives better "bite" and better cooling especially when slowing a towed load.

UD

 

Having cooked the brakes driving aggressively down the Tail of the Dragon in a 2200 lb car. I'm sympathetic to the OP.

I've bled and flushed the brakes on the Ridgeline and still don't love the pedal feel. I've watched and felt the master cylinder while I had someone stand on the brake pedal, but couldn't perceive any movement (although I've fabbed up a brace/bracket on another car with great results.) I am wondering if I'm feeling brake line expansion and if stainless lines might help.

I realize this is a bit of thread drift regarding mushy brakes vs. fading brakes and no locking low gear.

 

I'm pretty sure you would get a lot less engine braking in D4 than you would in L.

 

I use D4 all the time for engine braking. I occasionally use L for engine braking, but only when I'm under 30mph. Putting it in L provides quite a bit of engine braking, but i guess if you're going down a steep enough hill, 2nd gear isn't enough to keep you from gaining speed.

 

Not really sure either way. I don’t fully understand the complicated system.

 

I live in a hilly area, some quite steep roads, throwing it into low doesn’t always give me the engine braking I’m looking for so I’m not surprised to read your post. I don’t know if it’s a transmission calibration issue or what but I’d be concerned if I was towing a heavy load down a mountainside.

Ps +1 for doings pikes peak




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Couple of observations:

Even when I was a kid back in the 1960's it was common knowledge that vehicles with automatic transmissions did not do engine braking very well. Yes, you would get some braking, but not nearly as much as with a manual. That torque converter (or fluid drive on some cars back then) always had too much slippage. This was also the reason why push-starting an automatic required such dangerously high speeds, and why that capability was later removed.

I had read somewhere that today's disk brakes are fade resistant and can withstand high temperatures to the point where engine braking is no longer really necessary. Perhaps the park officers are behind the times? Did the RL ever feel unsafe going down the hill?

 

Repost:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fo...s-my-first-gear-hondas-steep-learning-curve-on-the-mt-washington-auto-road/amp/

 

I live in Colorado and have been up Pikes Peak many times with my 2006 Ridgeline and have never had to stop at the Ranger station because of hot brakes. I can't imagine ever needing 1st gear but I don't get behind a bunch of very slow cars. I just pull over and let them get on ahead and then start my decline. D3 works for most of the decline but occasionally I shift to 2nd on really steep areas. I am not familiar with the newer model so am not sure how to compare.

 

2nd gear on a G2 is somewhere about a 24% lower gear than 2nd gear on a G1. I assume this would result in more engine braking in a G2, than in a G1, while in 2nd gear.

 

Which would be great if there was a way to select 2nd gear on a G2, which (I think) would be a heck of a lot easier on the drivetrain than putting it in "L" in a Pikes Peak descent scenario.

 

I understand the frustration. I use a braking method that I learned from CDL training called snubbing. Essentially you brake to 5mph below the limit then release and speed up to the limit and repeat. The steady pressure on the pedal(if that applies) can cause excessive heat. As far as engine braking, well that's great if you can get the right combination of speed and gear. I use D3 in the gen 1 ridgeline and often times that is not enough engine braking and 2nd would be too much. So I resort to the snubbing mentioned before. Another sideline thought to keep in mind is proper brake fluid replacement(2years) is important. As brake fluid absorbs moisture from the atmosphere over time the boiling temp is reduced. The last place you want vapor is in your brake lines.

 

I use a braking method that I learned from CDL training called snubbing. Essentially you brake to 5mph below the limit then release and speed up to the limit and repeat. The steady pressure on the pedal(if that applies) can cause excessive heat.

+1.

For the physics-minded, there are two reasons why this works. First, it averages out heat buildup by more frequently cycling the heat source (braking) and the cooling source (air touches entire disc when not braking). This is well understood by most. Second, and less well understood, your brakes and your engine both dissipate energy, but an important source that no one has mentioned in this thread is wind resistance. The descent of a vehicle requires dissipating a fixed amount of energy, so the more you dissipate in wind resistance, the less heat goes into your brakes. Wind resistance is cubic with speed while friction is only linear, so the faster you go, the less total heat goes into the brakes. The upshot is that you minimize the potential for brakes to overheat by maximizing your speed on straight, open sections, then snubbing down when limited by curves, traffic, laws, etc.

 

Looks like you were following someone. Use your adaptive cruse control and let your engine brake for you.

 

It would take a braver man than me to go down Pikes Peak using adaptive cruise control!

 

This is a known issue, The Story Behind Mt. Washington?s Bizarre List of Banned Cars - The Drive

No 1st gear is a poor design.

 

Went skiing over the weekend to Abasin. It was snowing so I had my AWD in Snow Mode. On the downhill side of US 6 traffic was moving really slow because of a big truck. It has a similar down hill grade as Pikes peak just not as long. I put in low and it seemed to stay in first. It never went above 20 and only had to use brakes a couple times the whole way down because of traffic not because of speed. I dont know if snow mode made it lock in 1st but it seemed slow enough for me. Maybe someone else can verify.

 

Interesting idea. I keep meaning to find a steep enough hill to try some of this stuff out.

I often have trouble figuring out what gear im in. Then by the time i do......it changes to a different gear.

Point of reference:
1st gear / 25mph / about 4000rpm.
2nd gear / 25mph / about 2500 rpm.