Brake Boosters getting scarce?

3xJack -

Another way of looking at this is to question whether or not you really want to use the old style booster, or instead replace it with a newer style model. There's a super cool guy here in Portland that rebuilds boosters. The name of the place is Booster Dewey, with a website here:

http://boosterdeweyexchange.com/

He rebuilt my original booster a couple of years back for a very reasonable fee. He cautioned me that the older Chrysler rebuilt boosters aren't his favorite for two reasons:

(1) It has just a single diaphragm.
(2) The mechanism that seals the diaphragm is a rigid (ceramic?) piece that has a tendency to crack and fail with age. Even though replacements are possible to find, it really isn't the most reliable design.

Sure enough, a year later that same piece failed on my booster. Not suddenly in traffic, but slowly and surely. Its no secret that I absolutely dislike the single, cost-cutting, stock brake fluid reservoir. I now also dislike the original booster. Luckily I found a generic retrofit here that works perfectly well:

http://www.performanceonline.com/19...OUTH-CAR-POWER-BRAKE-BOOSTER-KIT-19530/?page=

Its lighter, its dual-diaphragm, and it gives you the use of a modern two-bolt master cylinder found on Dodge or Ford pickups.

At first I was worried that because it sticks out a ways from the firewall that the exhaust manifold would cook the fluid in the master cylinder. I've used heat wrap material on and off and it never made any difference, so I think the cooling is adequate.

I know that many here don't think our cars need power brakes, and very often these discussions turn into the null-orthodox response of, "get rid of it and go to manual brakes." That's not terribly helpful in my opinion. I have power brakes and I love it.

If you also have power steering you might also consider going with hydroboost, but its quite costly.

-m.