I’m guessing since it is a separate option, that it does not use the same principle as clutch/engine braking to slow the vehicle.
I reckon it has a similar function as exhaust gas recirculation.
Additionally: if this function was kept on in a truck would it be detrimental to the engine?
In: Technology
We called this a governor. It depends on how old the vehicle is. on old gas and diesel engines, it was a mechanical system detecting engine load like a vacuum governer for example (that was horrible). these days everything is computer controlled and can directly assess the vehicle speed and can just limit fuel delivery until the speed is reduced.
There is two types of retarders when it comes to heavy equipment.
The first is the “jake brake” or Jacob’s brake, and it is a mechanism installed in the engine valve train that changes what the valves do. In short it makes your engine into an air compressor making it create air pressure slowing down the engine. There is an exhaust valve style as well, which is just a valve on the engines exhaust that creates back pressure, this is used on smaller automotive diesels.
The other style is a fluid retarder which is found on large haul trucks in mining. In its basic form is like a water wheel, but in reverse. It uses fluid to slow down the engine. These are used in short bursts (less than a min) as a brake, longer than that they are subject to high temperatures.
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