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Reverting to the older Power brake booster (long) Posted by Notnoel [Email] (#23) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Notnoel) on Sat, 26 May 2018 15:38:29 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
I have just completed a "retrograde" upgrade on my 1988 non-ABS vert. I switch back to a rebuilt 1979-1986 vintage booster. This also necessitated changing the master cylinder (MC), the two short lines from the firewall to the MC, the reservoir, and the one-way valve on the vacuum line to the intake manifold. All of these parts must be changed. The one-way valve is larger on the older set up, and the reservoir for the newer MC looks like it should work at first, but will not work (the posts that go into the MC are too large on the newer reservoir).
The 79-86 booster is only available rebuilt and the MC is available new or rebuilt (I went with a new TRW MC). The 79-86 boosters also seem to be getting rare. If you are driving on a 87-89 booster, you are driving on borrowed time.
I talked with a very knowledgeable rebuilder out of San Jose,CA - Michael of Power Brake Exchange (PBE)- who told me that the diaphragms in the 1987-1989 booster are no longer available anywhere. He also described the 87-89 diaphragms as delicate, and said that the earlier units are much beefier.
This retrograde installation to the earlier unit works very well. There had been some concern expressed in previous posts about the viability of going back to the earlier set-up. Michael of PBE noted that the 1987 900 had the newer weaker boosters and powered the old sytle, yoked brake calipers with the emergency brake in the front. I figured that if the newer booster would work with the older calipers, then the older booster should work with the newer calipers. I am happy to report that that reasoning appears to be solid - my brakes feel great with the older booster/MC set-up.
Anyone that plans to drive their Saab for ever (like me), may want to think about snatching up a rebuilt booster now and begin collecting the other bits. I for one, will be laying in a spare.
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