1991 Cutlass Brake system
 

Hey guys,
My Dad has a 91 Cutlass Supreme Coupe and it has been sitting for some time now due to a brake issue. When you depress the pedal it has about the same effect as standing on a brick. It is very hard and doesn't have much impact on braking at all, making it undriveable. This car has a good amount of issues but this needs to be fixed first. I know it is the power master 3 by Bosch IIRC... What I need to know is what is the easiest/cheapest way to replace the power booster and or master cylinder on this car to a different system maybe to make this car driveable again...
Wake might be able to chime in here too since he's seen the car.
Thanks in advance

If the peddle is hard, then you have no vacuum assist. Check to make sure you have vacuum to the booster before you move forward.

What would be the best way to go about that on this car? I look at under the hood and make a sourface...lol >.<

You can find the vacuum line that goes to the brake booster, and check to see if its cracked, or still intact.

Don't forget, the car has to be running for the brake pedal to function properly.

The brake booster line is on the brake booster it will on the passenger facing side. It's a rubber hose that has some sort of a clamp at the end. It runs to the intake manifold. Find it check for cracks in the line. If it has any kind of wear replace it.

That is were you get the assist to your brakes.

There is also a check valve on the end by the booster. If that's stuck closed it can cause a problem. Can't say I've ever seen that, but possible.

Is this an ABS system, and is it the same system used on the 88-91 Bonneville? If so, it works differently than most other ABS designs, and I believed used an electric assist. Can you post a pic of the Master Cylinder and other primary underhood braking componants?

Alright I'll check it when I get a chance. Thanks guys! I'll update later on.

Just from what I remember isn't this an electronic system? Meaning there is no vacuum assist? I can't recall whether it was this one or not. Anyway, what happened exactly was he was doing about 30 mph, and had to panic stop, at which point he heard a mechanical "click" noise and the pedal went hard the next time he hit it. The Brake and ABS lights were on before this and remain on now, Does the paperclip trick work on this car?

I believe so. We had a code scanner that would pull OBD 1 codes and ABS codes. I think it is just a $40 oversized paperclip, but I believe one pin will deliver ECM codes, and another will deliver ABS codes. Not sure which pin it is. You may want to check fuses, because I believe it may be an electronic pump, and if the fuse is blown, I believe you will encounter the symptoms you describe.

Oh, and fuses make that noise when they blow. Check all fuses, including the large Maxifuse. They are big enough that they may blow loud enough to hear.