Towing Controls In DIC

[CWSWine]

I just posted this on another forum and many people didn't know that there was settings in you DIC(Driver Information Center) that affects braking and towing. Under Settings/Driver Assist there are couple of settings affected how you controller applies the brakes. There is a setting of Low Medium High that affects braking. My come defaulted to 'Low" and with a gain setting of 10 it wouldn't lock up the tires and was weak braking. I move the setting to "High" and now my 14,100 lbs 5er will lock the brakes a gain setting of 7 to 8.

Also my "Trailer Sway" was set of "Off" You should set that also - some like on some like off - I run mine on.

The dealer told me that 14,000 lbs 5er you won't lock up the tires and when told about DIC settings they said that they didn't know they were there and must be something new that they just added.

[GaryWT]

When I first got my 350, I made some adjustments and the braking was not great set at ten. But over time it improved and now I am set at 6 and the wheels will look up when I stop quickly. If people read the owners Manuel they will see how to do these things.

[TonyCO]

I just checked my 2014 Max Tow F150 just to be positive. I can get into the settings and check the brake controller, but the only thing I can change is from electric to electric / hydraulic brakes. I have my gain set to 10 and it barely locks the trailer up. I wish I had more options.

[CaptnJohn]

Originally Posted by TonyCO

I just checked my 2014 Max Tow F150 just to be positive. I can get into the settings and check the brake controller, but the only thing I can change is from electric to electric / hydraulic brakes. I have my gain set to 10 and it barely locks the trailer up. I wish I had more options.

Have you tried looking under 'information' on the DIC? That is where I can adjust from low - medium - high

[TonyCO]

Correct, that is exactly where I went. Maybe that is a new feature for 2015. I even broke out the manual and nothing. Oh well.

[CWSWine]

Originally Posted by TonyCO

Correct, that is exactly where I went. Maybe that is a new feature for 2015. I even broke out the manual and nothing. Oh well.

Mine is F350 - maybe the F150 don't have that level of control.

[JRTJH]

My 2013 F250 didn't have the "low/medium/high" braking levels. (At least I never found it) but my 2015 does. That is one of the features I read about in the owner's manual before taking delivery of the truck and setup was easy to access.

Unfortunatley (or fortunately) the salesmen at the dealership where I bought my truck were very VERY familiar with how to set up the voice activated dialing, connecting I-phones, Bluetooth operation of music stored elsewhere and touch screen operation of the climate features, but when I asked them anything about the trailer functions, brake control or what was incorporated in the brake control (anti-skid, anti-roll, anti-sway, etc) they were fast at pointing out the EBC location on the dash and that if I squeezed the knobs, it would apply trailer brakes.... That's about the extent of their knowledge, so take a few minutes, sit in the driver's seat with the owner's manual and read/play/read/play until you figure it out. There are features to maintain data on multiple trailers, automatically store EBC settings for multiple trailers and the truck systems "remembers for you". Great system with a very broad level of functionality/

[Barbell]

Our '16 Ram 3500 towed our fiver right from the truck dealer's lot with absolutely no stopping problems. I asked the service manager where the tow/haul setting should be and that is exactly where it works best. I have never locked the trailer brakes but the rig stops better as a unit than the truck does by itself. The combination of the trailer brake controller, the Asian transmission that shifts itself down and the exhaust brake is perfect. May not be for everyone but it sure works for us. My wife would never dare to drive the old rig but she is comfortable with this one.

[Big Boy w/ Big Toys]

One thing to remember is the brake controller on these newer trucks are proportional to braking pressure. So many times you can set the settings to 10 or Max (Depending on the year of the truck) and based off brake pressure more or less voltage is applied. If you have a good set of trailer brakes or you run a lighter weight/unloaded trailer, you may have to turn down the setting some.

Last note....for Ford drivers, not sure on the others, the antilock brakes also pulses your trailer brakes. I am someone who pulls trailers alot in winter conditions....not sure I care for the trailer brake anti skid feature but it has helped in a few situations.

FYI I have a '12 and '14 F 350s DRW and the 6.7l's. Love them both for towing and hauling.

[Yak]

As a Ford dealer tech I have one thing to say, we have no clue how to use these options. We take overview courses on new models but it might be a year or two before we see an issue, by that time we lost that info. On some new models it can take us 10 minutes to figure out how to reset the oil light.

[TonyCO]

Originally Posted by Yak

As a Ford dealer tech I have one thing to say, we have no clue how to use these options. We take overview courses on new models but it might be a year or two before we see an issue, by that time we lost that info. On some new models it can take us 10 minutes to figure out how to reset the oil light.

Ford Tech driving a Dodge?????? I love my truck, but now you are scaring me! Blahahahahahahahaha.

[Yak]

Originally Posted by TonyCO

Ford Tech driving a Dodge?????? I love my truck, but now you are scaring me! Blahahahahahahahaha.

It was a Goldilocks thing at the time the F150 was too big, the Ranger was too small and the Dakota was just right. After working on one of everything made since the 50s you come to realize that their all just about the same. Weather it's your F150, the customers GT 350 or my Dakota, they're all gonna break and I'll have to fix them. From the day the Dakotas were introduced I thought it was one of the few things that Dodge got right. I got what I wanted.