Originally posted by lostagain Mike, are you saying one should not downshift with an auto trans to use the engine to slow the vehicle?  On our car, it is specifically set up for easy down shifting.  This causes excessive wear on the trans?

I believe that downshifting (e.g. long mountain downhill) does no more wear, and probably less wear on an engine/transmission than a long mountain uphill. It probably is a lot less wear.

The main thing is that it will be reducing the heat build up in the brakes. I can't tell you how many times I'm near the bottom of a long downhill and the guy in front of me (or behind me ) has his brakes smoking, and is having trouble slowing down or even stopping. Do NOT overheat your brakes. It's not a wear issue, it's a safety issue.

If you remember what it is, I would like to know as well. Would this picture of Lippert electrical brakes help? It gets me to thinking. What if the wrong side was installed, such as a right hand model when a left should have been or vice versa?

But in the context here, the wheel was heating even if I was driving on highway during hours without braking. There was friction in the drum even I wasn't braking.  So downshifting wasn't a way to help me to solve the problem.   But thank you for taking time to answer something.

Fortunately, I found someone competent who found how to adjust it properly.  Very happy to learn that the system was not broken, just very poorly adjusted... by the dealer how sold me this brand new R-Pod...

I went yesterday to see another mechanic place in St-Hubert, near Montreal and they found my dealer did not adjusted it properly.

They explained to me that the new automatic brakes on the R-Pods adjustments are made in the reverse side than the old conventional manual brakes.  It means that the dealer tried to loose the wheel, but they tighted it up... Making more friction and grip.   It appears that only one wheel was breaking on the trailer because of this lack of adjustment.

To make sure and to reassure me, the guy tested the magnets and looked at all the components of the brakes to make sure all was working well.  After the adjustment, I went to a one hour test drive, speeding on the highway, driving in city, braking at the stops and many red lights... And no more heating.

Went back to the garage, take the temperature, both wheel were normal temperature, Yey!!

Go to a brake shop.  Here in Nashville there are specialized brake and bearing shop that will take you in and fix a problem the same day.

Worth checking: Make sure your break-away brake switch is pushed in (not on).

TT

Since about a mount I noticed that the right wheel get heating after a short ride, more than the left side that seems normal.  I told that to my dealer who answered me to look at the bearings.  I did my job this week end and found the bearings in perfect shape on both side, but signs of break heating in the right side.

Yesterday I went to my dealer with my R-Pod, and they told it needed only to be adjusted.  So they cleaned the breaks (what I did last week end), adjusted the right wheel more loose to turn as free as the left side, and adjusted the trailer breaks with the Jeep and the electronic box inside the Jeep.  

I went back home and noticed the problem is not fixed, the right wheel is still too hot, and if I jack the r-pod and turn the wheel, I can ear a noise of friction inside the drum. When I do that the Jeep is not connected to the trailer, and it is the same if the jeep is connected with the cable on.  So, exactly the same situation I noticed before going to the dealer.

Called back immediately the dealer, and they told me that I can change the breaks both side for conventional non automatic breaks and that will fix my problem.  

I am a little bit disappointed because I don't want to pay for something that broke before the end of the warranty, and the dealer did just not find it... and more than that, it appears the dealer doesn't know how to fix it without changing the system.  

Also, it look like as if this is a common problem with these Lippert automatic breaks and they don't know how to solve this.  The dealer admitted that last year, a brand new R-Pod just delivered form the factory arrived with a burned wheel and that was a break failure...

Is anybody have a solution how to fix it without changing the system?