Think of the diode as an electronic check valve - flow is only permitted one way. If the ALP mute wire is in fact outputting 5v at standby (I don't recall what mine was doing) and ground when triggered a diode will block the 5v from reaching the radio circuit while still allowing the circuit to ground on activation. There's probably a better explanation of this on
www.the12volt.com
You can most certainly trigger relays from the ALP outputs though. You only need a few mA of current for a positive trigger and a ground for a negative trigger relay setup. Not saying OP should or shouldn't interfere with the cars brake circuit, just clarifying on the relay topic.
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